Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, Vol. 101, No. 1, Spring 2025

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“Kristen had a lot of gratitude for the opportunities she had been given, and she felt an obligation to help others.”

The late Thomas P. Hoey, about his daughter, Kristen A. Hoey, IE 2008

Soaring to New Heights: GT’s OMS Analytics Transforms a Delta Air Lines Leader

A former business intelligence architect at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Claudia Scott transitioned to Delta Air Lines after graduating from Georgia Tech’s Online Master of Science in Analytics (OMS Analytics) program in 2021. Now an IT Business Advisor for Delta’s Enterprise Data Services, Claudia’s responsibilities include overseeing Delta’s transition from legacy analytics systems to more governed, AI-ready solutions.

Q

What motivated you to pursue Georgia Tech’s OMS Analytics program?

Online Master of Science in Analytics

As a business intelligence architect at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, I was given the opportunity to lead the Center of Excellence for their enterprise BI tool. That role revealed gaps in my expertise, especially in understanding business challenges and strategic leadership skills. Georgia Tech’s OMS Analytics program offered the perfect blend of technical and business education to help me bridge those gaps.

Why did you choose OMS Analytics over an MBA?

Initially, I considered an MBA, but the OMS Analytics program uniquely combined technology and business education. It was tailored to what I needed — delivering solutions aligned with business needs while understanding their challenges. It was exactly what I was looking for.

What impact did the program have on your career and connections?

The connections I made were invaluable. I met people from diverse backgrounds — corporate executives, researchers, and recent graduates. Working on challenging group projects created bonds that have turned into lifelong friendships. The collective support and insights from this community enriched my experience and made the journey memorable.

Q

A

The program’s fast pace and exposure to diverse platforms taught me adaptability. I shifted from being tool-specific to focusing on solutions. This mindset helps me now lead teams at Delta Air Lines through transitions, showing them how new systems and approaches can improve their work and impact. The OMS Analytics program was truly transformational, equipping me with the skills and knowledge to excel in a data-driven world. A Q A Q A

How did the program prepare you for real-world challenges?

•Top-5 nationally ranked program

•100% online and self-paced

•Complete in 24-36 months

•Same faculty and curriculum as on-campus program

•3 specialized tracks:

-Analytical Tools

-Business Analytics

-Computational Data Analytics

•Total tuition under $11,000

•No GRE/GMAT required

Read more about Claudia Scott’s journey at pe.gatech.edu/blog/ClaudiaScott omsanalytics.gatech.edu

W TECH’S STAR POWER

WHEN I WORKED in the O ce of Government and Community Relations at Georgia Tech, some of my work involved answering requests to film movies on campus. Being in that role gave me a behindthe-scenes look at Tech’s surprising presence in the entertainment industry.

Some of you may remember how the Clough Undergraduate Learning Commons was transformed to look like Google’s headquarters for The Internship (2013). The production team created an elaborate slide that started on the third level and went down through the atrium to the ground oor. One day, when President Emeritus G.P. “Bud” Peterson and I were

walking toward the building, we ran into Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson! They were really nice and enjoyed their time on campus, even interacting with students.

You might also have recognized Tech in the baseball movie Trouble with the Curve (2012) , starring Clint Eastwood. The lm was shot in Russ Chandler Stadium, which was transformed to represent the University of Southern California. I was blown away by how our scoreboard name changed from “Russ Chandler” to “Dedeaux” —it looked so real! And having

Clint Eastwood at Georgia Tech was exciting.

These films are just a small piece of Tech’s connection to the arts. e Centergy One building in Tech Square houses the Georgia Film O ce. It’s great that they’re right here, because they help big movie studios connect with us if they’re interested in lming at Georgia Tech.

In the following pages, you’ll find out if the Institute is an EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony winner), read about Yellow Jackets involved in the entertainment industry, explore nostalgic ways Tech students entertained themselves decades ago, and learn about the increasing presence of the arts on campus from Jason Freeman, interim associate vice provost for the arts. You’ll also read about members of the Alumni Association’s Afnity Networks and learn how these groups connect Yellow Jackets with similar interests.

I’m truly proud of the impact that Georgia Tech has made on the entertainment world. It’s not only about seeing familiar faces on campus or the big screen; it’s about knowing that our campus is a part of something bigger.

Tech is a hub of ingenuity where innovation meets imagination. It’s why Tech is in a league of its own.

Go Jackets!

DENE SHEHEANE, MGT 91 PRESIDENT GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGAZINE

VOL. 101 | NO. 1

PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER

Dene Sheheane, Mgt 91

VP STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS

Lindsay Vaughn EDITOR Jennifer Herseim

DIRECTOR

Hedberg

EDITOR Barbara McIntosh Webb

COPYWRITER

Sharita Hanley

STUDENT ASSISTANTS

Riddhi Bhattacharya, Alisha Tan, Joanna Xiao

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Chair

Tommy Herrington, IM 82

Past Chair/Vice Chair of Finance

Betsy Bulat, IAML 04

Chair Elect, Vice Chair/Roll Call

Rita Breen, Psy 90, MS IE 92

Vice Chair of Engagement

Jimmy Mitchell, CE 05

Member at Large

Anu Parvatiyar, BME 08

Member at Large

Amy Phuong, IA 05, MBA 14

Member at Large

James “Jim” Sanders, IE 88

Member at Large

Sam Westbrook, IE 99

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Latanza Adjei, IE 98; Thomas Antonino, BA 15, MSA 22; Sybrina Atwaters, EE 94, MS HSTS 09, PhD HSTS 14; Donald Beamer, Econ 05; Matt Bishop, CmpE 06; Michael Bogachek, IE 00; Alexia Borden, IE 01; Jasmine Burton, ID 14; Jacky Cheng, IE 17; Kimberly (Kilpatrick) Civins, Mgt 92; Catherine Cooper, IE 90; Aurélien Cottet, MS AE 03; Cynthia Culbreath, IE 93, MS IE 95; Adam Fuller, Mgt 93; Siddharth Gore, ME 17, MS ME 20; Craig Hyde, CmpE 05; Joy Jordan, ChE 92; Brandon Kearse, ME 09, MS CE 10; Olivia Langevine, IAML 13; Randolph McDow, IE 95, MS PP 03; Meredith Moot, Mgt 08; Susan (Sutherland) Piña, IE 93; Kyle Porter, Mgt 04; Jacquelyn Renée Schneider, BC 06, MBA 18; Greg Sitkiewicz, IE 00; Courtney Robinson Smith, Mgt 00; Kamau Smith, IE 99, MBA 09; Miya Smith, IE 03; Russell Smith, Cls 98; John R. Spriggle, ME 02; Peter Stewart, CE 97; Casey Swails, Mgt 07; Maurice Trebuchon, IE 86; Paul Trotti, ME 00; D’Andre Waller, ME 17; Kourtney Wright, CS 15, MS CS 23

GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI MAGAZINE (ISSN: 1061-9747) is published quarterly by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association, 190 North Ave. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30313. Periodical postage paid in Atlanta and additional mailing offices. © 2025 Georgia Tech Alumni Association For advertisements, contact Darius Woody at Darius.Woody@alumni.gatech.edu

POSTMASTER

Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, 190 North Ave. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30313

Russ Chandler Stadium was featured in the film Trouble with the Curve

Our cover shoot took place on stage at the Ferst Center for the Arts, which hosts world-class dance and theater performances and concert series.

TECH TALENT ON AND OFF THE SCREEN

With ties to the Emmys, Grammys, and Oscars, Georgia Tech is close to snagging the coveted “EGOT” status— though the “T” seems to be missing.

With imagination, ingenuity, and Tech-earned perseverance, these alumni shine in show business.

DEPARTMENTS

FILMED AT TECH

Netflix filmed scenes from Cobra Kai at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house. Vince Mancuso, the fraternity’s student housing manager, helped coordinate during the production. “They filmed in our basement, which is a really cool space,” Mancuso says. “It has signs, multi-colored lights, a dance floor, and a mezzanine overlooking it.” Members of Kappa Sigma also served as background actors.

AROUND CAMPUS

SNOW DAY

A rare winter storm coated campus in white this January and sent Yellow Jackets out to play in the snow. This was the first heavy snowfall campus has experienced since 2018.

TECH’S VIBRANT ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT SCENE

NOTES FROM THE DESK OF GEORGIA TECH’S PRESIDENT.

1 2 3

THE ARTS BELONG AT TECH.

Technology has been transforming art and entertainment throughout history. It has changed how we produce and consume art and opened new avenues for artistic expression. Think of photography, film, video games, interactive art, or synthesizers—none of which existed until quite recently. The Guthman Musical Instrument Competition is a perfect reminder that the instruments we have today are not set in stone. We’re constantly experimenting, creating new ways to make music and interact with instruments. The same is happening across the visual and performing arts, and we’re committed to playing a role in creating that future. Our mission is to develop leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition. How can you improve the human condition without the arts? That’s why we’re strengthening the arts at Tech through our academic programs, our extracurricular activities, and even the development of our campus.

ATLANTA IS AN ENTERTAINMENT HUB.

Atlanta has become a world-class hotspot of film production, music, professional sports, and other forms of entertainment. And Georgia Tech is committed to contributing to the growth of these exciting industries. That’s why we’re building a new degree program—the Bachelor of Science in Arts, Entertainment, and Creative Technologies—which is expected to launch in the fall of 2026. We’re also making sure our campus itself supports the arts. Two years ago, the Georgia Tech Foundation acquired the former Randall Brothers property on Marietta Street. We envision this property as the seed of a new arts corridor, which we’re calling Creative Quarter, that will support our students and faculty and contribute to our city’s rich arts scene. The new development will feature a major makerspace, performance spaces, and studios where our students can create and the community can come experience the arts at Tech.

CREATIVITY IS A KEY INGREDIENT IN LEADERSHIP.

Just like technology shapes the arts, the opposite is also true: The arts can also advance technology. Inventing a new device or medical cure, designing a new building, and launching a startup are all acts of human creation. We have a tremendous startup culture on our campus with programs like CREATE-X and the InVenture Prize, where we’re helping students develop and strengthen their creative muscles so they have the confidence to visualize something that’s never existed before. There may be nothing better than the arts to do just that!

—Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95 President, Georgia Tech

The ARTumn Showcase last fall at the Ferst Center for the Arts featured works by faculty, staff, and alumni.

The Ferst Center for the Arts launched a new concert series called “Ferst Impressions,” where students perform with professional musicians.

ROTC FITNESS FACILITY HONORS

TECH ALUM, SOLDIER IN ADDITION TO ROTC CADETS, THE NEW FACILITY WILL BE OPEN TO ARMY ROTC ALUMNI, CREATING A SPACE FOR TECH VETERANS TO STAY CONNECTED.

GEORGIA TECH’S LT. TYLER BROWN FITNESS FACILITY was dedicated Nov. 8, 2024, honoring alumnus and Army O cer Lt. Tyler Brown, Mgt 01, HTS 01. The fitness facility brings state-of-the-art equipment and renovated training space for the Reserve O cers’ Training Corps (ROTC), housed within the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts.

e new facility is named in honor of Lt. Tyler Brown, who was killed in combat in Iraq in 2004. Brown served as Student Government Association president at Tech in 2001. Commissioned as an infantry o cer, Brown completed Airborne and Army Ranger School before deploying to Korea and Iraq.

A generous donation from the B and B Stern Foundation supported the renovation and upgrade of the ROTC Facility, with plans to include an area dedicated to all Army ROTC alumni who visit, creating a space for Tech veterans to stay connected to the program and each other. Brown’s father, Carey Brown, IE 69, stated, “The renovation and dedication of the facility is all about honoring Tyler by honoring others.”

Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95, joined representatives of Tech’s ROTC and other members of the campus community to dedicate the new tness facility. “We’re committed to supporting our student veterans and ROTC cadets, midshipmen, and airmen. We’re committed to strengthening our relationships with the armed forces and growing our ROTC programs. And this new facility will help all of those commitments,” Cabrera told the gathered crowd.

The new facility aims to better prepare cadets to compete for professional assignments upon commissioning and to prepare them for the physical demands consistent with the Army. e tness center was made possible by contributions to Transforming Tomorrow: The Campaign for Georgia Tech ROBERT STALKER

WRECK DRIVER FIRST TO REACH 3,000 MILES

MATTHEW KISTNER, CS 24, the 75th driver of the Ramblin’ Wreck, set a record last year, becoming the first driver to take Tech’s beloved mascot 3,000 miles in a year. Each year, the Ramblin’ Reck Club selects one student to be the solo driver and caretaker of the vehicle. The driver is responsible for driving the 1930 Ford Model A Sport coupe to campus events and leading the football team onto the field for home games. In 2024, Kistner took the car to 10 states, including to New York, the farthest north the vehicle has ever been, for Tech’s football game against Syracuse.

HONORING WALT EHMER’S LEGACY

ON OCT. 5, 2024, Georgia Tech unveiled the Walter G. Ehmer Theater in the John Lewis Student Center. Previously the Atlantic Theater, the new name perpetuates the legacy of Walt Ehmer, IE 89, the late chairman of Waffle House Inc. More than 100 friends, family, colleagues, and alumni came together to fund the Walter G. Ehmer Scholarship and the newly dedicated theater in Ehmer’s honor and memory to amplify his impact on both students and on the Institute he dearly loved.

Y PATHWAY OF PROGRESS OPENS ON CAMPUS

THE NEWEST PERMANENT ART INSTALLATION ON CAMPUS INFORMS, INSPIRES, AND CELEBRATES DECADES OF GEORGIA TECH WOMEN’S ACHIEVEMENTS.

YEARS IN THE MAKING, the sweeping, shining art installation Pathway of Progress: Celebrating Georgia Tech Women , located in the heart of campus near the John Lewis Student Center, opened in March.

The structure contains nearly 3,000 mirrored tiles, each of which will one day tell the story of Tech alumnae, students, faculty, and staff who made a lasting impact—at the Institute, in their eld, and in the world. e inscribed mosaic fabric stretches across the site in three areas, starting o wrapped around a spiral contemplative bench dedicated to the history of women at Tech. Emerging from the ground, it spans across the site and main pedestrian spine, presenting the voices ofwomen from Tech—graduates who have made a significant impact in their field since leaving campus. And as the tribute reaches above the John Lewis Student Center, it inspires visions for future Georgia Tech women.

On March 8, opening day, 168 inscribed tiles presented voices and stories from the installation’s inaugural honorees, and more honorees’ stories will be added annually. The design process included input from faculty, staff, alumni, and students. It was brought to life by Merica May Jensen, Mgt 08, M Arch 11, the lead project architect and a founding creative director at Gray Matters, a New York City–based design studio.

“The structure and website were inspired by the words of Virginia Woolf, ‘I am not one and simple but complex and many,’” says Jensen. “ e highly tensioned cable-net works with transformation, reflection, and mosaics to honor individuals, the collective, and our journey.”

who have shaped our institution,” says Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95. “This dynamic space will inspire our community and future generations of leaders to make their own significant contributions to scientific and human progress. We are especially proud that one of our alumnae has championed this project and garnered the support of many others, and we look forward to seeing it grow.”

BY STACY BRAUKMAN re

Before founding her studio, Jensen was a design lead at the interdisciplinary firm Diller Sco dio + Renfro. She is also an associate professor at Pratt Institute.

“With this beautiful new campus landmark, Georgia Tech recognizes and celebrates the remarkable women

That alumna is Andrea Laliberte, IE 82, MS IE 84. After a successful career at Coach, Laliberte returned to campus in 2013 looking to give back. She served as the Edenfield Executive-in-Residence in the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, participated on several Georgia Tech boards, and was chair of the Alumni Association in 2016–’17.

Currently, she is a member of the Georgia Tech Foundation Board of

Andrea Laliberte

Trustees and the Campaign Steering Committee for Transforming Tomorrow: e Campaign for Georgia Tech. Laliberte also has supported scholarships, programs, and facilities through her visionary philanthropy.

“I met so many amazing people—from astronauts to Olympians to CEOs— but what struck me was how many impressive alumnae we have,” she says. “ ere are, and have been, amazing women here, but no one knows about them.” She wanted to tell their stories in a public, visually compelling way. And now it’s happening.

“My true hope is that people take the time to learn the stories of the women who are being honored and about the history of women at Georgia Tech, that they’re able to take away how

Visit celebratingwomen.gatech.edu to learn more about the Pathway of Progress structure and its inscriptions.

amazing their accomplishments were, and be inspired for what they do in the future.”

The installation incorporates a mosaic ribbon emerging from a table made of locally sourced Silver Cloud granite and finishing with granite from Barre, Vermont—recognizing Laliberte’s birthplace and honoring her parents.

Looking ahead, Laliberte said, “I get emotional seeing what this is becoming and what it will be. The stories it will tell bring me such joy. I am honored that I’m able to play a part in it and put it on campus.”

The structure contains mirrored tiles that tell the story of Tech alumnae, students, faculty, and staff who made a lasting impact.

SSOMEWHERE, YIREN REN is studying, focused on her research that demonstrates how music impacts learning and memory. Possibly, she’s listening to Norah Jones or another musician she’s comfortable with. Because that’s how it works: e music we know and love, that feels predictable or safe, can help us study and learn. Other kinds of music can also influence our emotions and even reshape old memories.

Ren, a sixth-year PhD student in the School of Psychology, explores these concepts as the lead author of two new research papers in the journals

MUSIC CAN CHANGE HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT A MEMORY

GEORGIA TECH NEUROSCIENTISTS ARE EXPLORING THE IMPACT THAT MUSIC HAS ON LEARNING AND MEMORY.

PLOS One and Cognitive, A ective, & Behavioral Neuroscience (CABN). e research explores music’s impacts in very di erent ways, according to Ren’s faculty advisor and co-author of the studies, Thackery Brown, associate professor in the School of Psychology.

“One paper looks at how music changes the quality of your memory when you’re rst forming it—it’s about learning,” says Brown , a cognitive neuroscientist who runs the MAP (Memory, A ect, and Planning) Lab at Tech. “But the other study focuses on memories we already have and asks if we can change the emotions attached to them, using music.”

MAKING MOODS WITH MUSIC

In their CABN study, Ren, Brown, and their collaborators from the University of Colorado (including former Tech Assistant Professor Grace Leslie) report that the kind of “mood music” we hear in a movie’s score can be powerful enough to change how we remember our past.

Study participants listened to movie soundtracks and incorporated new

BY JERRY GRILLO

emotions into their memories that matched the mood of the music. And the effect was lasting. A day later, when the participants recalled these same memories—but without musical accompaniment—their emotional mood still matched the tone of the music played the day before. “This sheds light on the malleability of memory in response to music, and the powerful role music can play in altering our existing memories,” says Ren, who originally planned on being a professional musician. She found a way to combine her interests in music and neuroscience and is interested in how music therapy can be designed to help people with mood disorders or depression.

There is no time machine that will allow us to go back and insert happy music into the mix while a bad event is happening and a memory is being formed, “but we can retrieve old memories while listening to a ective music,” says Brown. “And perhaps we can help people shi their feelings and reshape the emotional tone attached to certain memories.”

ON THE FIELD

SEE YOU ON THE FLIP SIDE

Luke Dotson, a senior on the Georgia Tech dive team, performs a rotation at the Georgia Tech Invitational last November. Tech’s swim and dive teams competed at the ACC Championships this February.

WILEY BALLARD: GEORGIA SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR

BALLARD, BA 17, GOT HIS START AS A STUDENT BROADCASTER WITH THE GEORGIA TECH BASEBALL TEAM. TODAY, HE’S A PROMINENT

TELEVISION BROADCASTER FOR THE ATLANTA BRAVES.

BY LORRIE BURROUGHS

FFOR WILEY BALLARD, winning the 2024 Georgia Sportscaster of the Year award from the National Sports Media Association feels surreal. The Atlanta native joins broadcasting legends like Pete Van Wieren, Skip Caray, and Wes Durham—voices that shaped his childhood in Atlanta.

“I dreamed of being a sports announcer since I was 6, so to win Georgia Sportscaster of the Year at any age, but much less in my early 30s—I

still struggle to put the words to it,” he says.

Ballard’s broadcasting journey began with an unexpected source: the Atlanta rashers NHL team. He and his younger brother discovered hockey through the rashers’ youth programs, and Ballard became captivated by play-by-play announcer JP Dellacamera. “I just thought he was awesome,” Ballard recalls. “I thought, ‘ at looks like a really fun job.’”

His connection to Tech sports runs deep, though he was the first in his

family to attend the Institute. “My dad grew up going to the games when he was 7 or 8 years old. My grandfather moved to the area in the 1920s and started the tradition.”

His family had season tickets to Tech basketball when he was growing up, where he witnessed the team’s Final Four appearance.

During his rst year of high school, Ballard discovered Georgia Tech baseball, requesting season tickets as a birthday gift (“probably the best gift I ever got”). He spent countless

Wiley Ballard, BA 17, was named 2024 Georgia Sportscaster of the Year.

afternoons at the ballpark, scoring games and envisioning his future. His career trajectory was set a er learning that Tech’s baseball announcer was a student.

Ballard sought out legendary Georgia Tech and Atlanta Falcons broadcaster Wes Durham about whether to attend a university with a reputable broadcasting degree or apply to his beloved Georgia Tech. Durham told him that with strong networking skills, Georgia Tech could provide unique opportunities without the intense competition at traditional broadcasting schools.

“ at’s what I wanted to do anyway because I love Georgia Tech, and I just wanted to get on the air,” Ballard says. He studied finance at Tech, while maximizing every broadcasting opportunity. As a freshman, he called 15 baseball games; by sophomore year, that number grew to 40. Soon, he was the primary announcer at Tech’s baseball games.

During this time, the Atlanta Braves reached out to Tech, speci cally Mike Stamus, associate director of communications and public relations at the Georgia Tech Athletics Association and the official scorer to the Atlanta Braves. e Braves asked if he knew of a student who would be interested in running the cash register at the press box for Atlanta Braves games. Ballard got the job. e role proved invaluable for networking with professional broadcasters.

“If Chip Caray wanted a hot dog, he would come up to me and say, ‘Hey, here’s three dollars,’” Ballard explains. “After he did that 10 or 12 times over a few months, he’s like, ‘All right, who are you?’” Ballard would occasionally send them recordings

“IT’S KIND OF LIKE SHOW BUSINESS. YOU’RE WAITING TABLES AND FIGURING OUT HOW TO KEEP THE LIGHTS ON WHILE PURSUING WHAT YOU WANT TO DO.”

of his Tech broadcasts and ask for feedback. These connections and his ongoing experience calling Tech baseball, football, and other sports helped build his career.

When college baseball season is over, many players continue to play in a summer team with the Sunbelt Baseball League. Announcing for the league was Ballard’s summer internship program. While other undergrads were planning summer internships in banking and finance, Ballard walked into Judy Reese’s o ce, who was then an academic advisor in Scheller’s Undergraduate Program Office, and stated he wanted to be a baseball announcer. And she said, ‘Okay, that sounds terri c. Let’s do it. I have no idea how we do it, but we’ll get to work on it,’” Ballard remembers

fondly. And that’s how he got the gig with the Sunbelt League.

A er graduation, he interned with the Braves in their PR office until a position with Georgia Tech Athletics opened up, where he worked in the Creative and Digital Strategy Office while continuing to broadcast games, including volleyball and so ball.

“It’s kind of like show business,” he says. “You’re waiting tables and guring out how to keep the lights on while pursuing what you want to do.”

His persistence paid o as he spent six years as the football radio sideline reporter for Georgia Tech.

Today, Ballard’s career continues to ourish with the Atlanta Braves. Being creative and setting oneself apart from others is essential. To that end, he’s created some memorable moments, including eating an entire container of grasshoppers—a Seattle ballpark specialty—on air during a game.

“It’s storytelling. It’s live television, and you have to think that stu through,” he says.

For Ballard, his unconventional path to professional sports broadcasting by way of Georgia Tech proved instrumental in achieving his childhood dream. “Whatever you want to do, go to Georgia Tech,” he re ects. “It doesn’t matter what that is, but if you want to be the best at what you do, you go to Georgia Tech.”

Ballard got his start in sports media as a student broadcaster for Georgia Tech baseball.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: A SEASON TO REMEMBER

HEAD COACH NELL FORTNER IS ON THE WATCH LIST FOR “WOMEN’S COLLEGE COACH OF THE YEAR” AS THE YELLOW JACKETS FINISH A HISTORIC SEASON.

GEORGIA TECH WOMEN’S BASKETBALL head coach Nell Fortner is one of 15 candidates selected for the 2025 Werner Ladder Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year Watch List presented by AIXA Time. Fortner has guided the Yellow Jackets to a storied season in 2024–’25.

Georgia Tech Set to Host Sweet 16 and Elite 8

Georgia Tech will host the South Regional of the NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball Championship March 28 and March 30 at State Farm Arena. Atlanta was set to host the Final Four in 2020, but the event was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

One of three coaches representing the Atlantic Coast Conference on the list, Fortner led Georgia Tech to the best start in program history as the Jackets went 15-0 to open the year. The Yellow Jackets have defeated three top-25 opponents, including then-No. 14 North Carolina on Dec. 15, which earned Tech National Team of the Week honors by both the NCAA and USBWA. Tech jumped into the national rankings on Dec. 9 and then spent 11 consecutive weeks in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. As of press time, Fortner has guided the Yellow Jackets to three 20-win campaigns in her six seasons on The Flats. The 2024–’25 team is the fastest to

reach 20 wins in the NCAA era at Georgia Tech.

In the midst of its 15-game win streak early in the season, Tech set program records for three-pointers made in a game (15) against Florida A&M and three-point attempts (38) against Mississippi State. With a 100-61 rout over Pittsburgh, the Jackets also recorded the largest margin of victory (39) against an ACC opponent in program history.

Standout student-athletes Kara Dunn and Dani Carnegie have also gained national attention. After posting 28 points against Pitt, Dunn was named one of five USBWA National Players of the Week on Dec. 31. Meanwhile, Carnegie has earned five ACC Rookie of the Week accolades after leading all ACC freshmen in scoring the majority of the season.

With the success of the program, the Yellow Jackets broke the McCamish Pavilion women’s basketball attendance record during the Clemson game, drawing 6,386 fans to the Thrillerdome on Jan. 19. Georgia Tech Athletics

SUPER BOWL CHAMPION E.J. JENKINS

E.J. JENKINS became the 21s t former Georgia Tech football player to win a Super Bowl, when his Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans.

A wide receiver at Georgia Tech in 2022, who converted to tight end (TE) as a pro, Jenkins was on the field for 25 plays at TE and on special teams in this year’s Super Bowl. Jenkins played in 12 games and made 11

starts at wide receiver in his lone season at Georgia Tech in 2022. A former Yellow Jacket has now been on the winning team for three consecutive Super Bowls. Former Tech place kicker Harrison Butker made his fifth Super Bowl appearance on Sunday with the Chiefs, who were trying to become the first team to ever win three straight Super Bowls. Butker, one of Kansas City’s team captains, did become the first former Yellow Jacket to ever play in five Super Bowls and, despite Sunday’s defeat, remains Georgia Tech’s only three-time Super Bowl champion. Georgia Tech Athletics

E.J. Jenkins (left) celebrates with teammate Kenneth Gainwell after the Super Bowl win.

Tech Square Phase 3

Tech Square Phase 3

Construction is well under way for Tech Square Phase 3, located opposite the current Scheller building at the corner of Spring and 5th Streets. The new building will consist of two towers, creating more than 400,000 square feet of new space for research and collaboration.

One tower, named for principal donors Roberta and Ernie Scheller Jr., will be the new home of graduate and Executive Education programs of the Scheller College of Business. The second tower, George Tower, in recognition of Bill and Penny George, will house the School of Industrial and Systems Engineering.

You can honor family, showcase your organization, or create an enduring tribute that will inspire generations of future leaders through taking advantage of naming opportunities within the Scheller Tower.

Naming opportunities are available for the following spaces and more, beginning at $100,000:

•State-of-the-Art Classrooms

•Finance and Technology

Floor

•Outdoor Plazas

•Innovation Lounges

•Learning Pods

•Conference Rooms •Breakout Rooms •Interview Rooms

IN THE WORLD

WORLD TRAVELER

Brandon Cox, Mgt 03, will soon reach his goal of visiting 197 countries (193 United Nations member-states plus four that are not). He will join roughly 400 people in the world who have accomplished the impressive feat.

Cox stands in the ruins of Palmyra, Syria.

AROUND THE WORLD IN 197 STOPS

BRANDON COX, MGT 03, ENTERS THE HOME STRETCH OF HIS QUEST TO VISIT EVERY COUNTRY.

KRISTIN BAIRD RATTINI

BBRANDON COX, MGT 03 , has literally been to the Gates of Hell and back on his quest to visit 197 countries (193 United Nations member states plus four that are not). e fearsome re- lled crater in the Karakum Desert of Turkmenistan—country #171—is among the many incredible landmarks Cox has recently visited as he closes in on his goal, which he expects to complete in 2026.

Cox didn’t initially set out to join the ranks of the roughly 400 “country collectors” who’ve visited every nation. Instead, he initially set goals each year

to force himself to explore new countries—not just places he already knew. His early travels to off-the-beatenpath destinations were inspired by a memorable encounter in Seoul, South Korea, in 2003, while participating in Georgia Tech’s Pacific Study Abroad Program. Cox befriended a young Korean woman whose family was painfully separated on both sides of the border between North and South Korea. “I started traveling with the intent to better understand what drives con ict and that separation,” he says. He visited North Korea in 2006, one of the rst Americans allowed in during a brief thaw in diplomatic relations. His work in integrating internation-

al joint ventures for airlines fueled his wanderlust and paved the way for his expanding explorations by temporarily relocating him to Europe. Today, he posts about his travels on Instagram under the handle @nothing_declared. “ ere are so many amazing things to see in the world,” he says.

He backpacked across the entire length of Africa, crossing 20-plus countries and three active war zones. In Mozambique, he scuba-dived with whale sharks in the morning and manta rays in the a ernoon. His 2023 solo trip to Afghanistan—a er the Taliban takeover—was an enlightening journey along the ancient Silk Road but also “terrifying at times,” he admits,

Clockwise from top left: “Gates of Hell” Darvasa Gas Crater in Turkmenistan; Tiébélé, Burkina Faso; Asmara Tank Graveyard, Eritrea; Gobi Desert, Mongolia; Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.

How

with countless checkpoints with armed guards who weren’t used to seeing an American traveler. In Mongolia, he and his wife, Emily, sledded down enormous sand dunes and happened upon a local Naadam festival showcasing the national sports of archery, horse racing, and wrestling. “You need a balance of easy places you love but also places that get you out of your comfort zone,” he says. “Otherwise, you don’t grow; you don’t learn.”

He has learned to keep a “go shelf” of essentials so he doesn’t forget anything, a lesson learned after forgetting a coat for Antarctica. (“I was packing in the middle of summer,” he says.) And he also has learned the many challenges that can make his best-laid plans go awry. Logistics complicated travel to the remote Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan; he had to cross overland from India instead of ying direct. Travel restrictions have delayed his travels to Mali, one of his last countries, where he’s eager to see the Great Mosque of Djenné.

Upon finally arriving in Damascus, Syria, in the fall of 2024 a er two postponements, he drew on his sommelier training when sampling local wines, and he explored Roman ruins. “Syria is now one of my top 10 countries,” he says. “I wouldn’t have known how incredible of a destination it is if I hadn’t gone.”

BY THE NUMBERS

Brandon Cox, Mgt 03, might be the most well-traveled Yellow Jacket. Take a look at his travel stats from the last 10 years.

(1,308,887 MILES) TRIPS TO THE MOON 5.48

MOST COUNTRIES IN A YEAR:

”Around 30, but that was when I used to go on long extended trips, and I don’t have time for that kind of travel anymore. In the past 10 years, I’m good if I get near 10 new ones a year.”

ITEMS LOST:

“I don’t really lose a lot.”

(121 DAYS)

Top: Gobi Desert, Mongolia. Bottom: Agadez, Niger.

CAPTAIN OF INDUSTRY

EL CAPITAN IS THE WORLD’S FASTEST SUPERCOMPUTER. A TECH GRAD IS THE CHIEF ARCHITECT BEHIND ITS PROCESSOR.

LLAST NOVEMBER, El Capitan, a supercomputer based in the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), achieved a score of 1.742 exaops—meaning it made 1.742 quintillion (that’s 18 zeros) calculations per second—on a High-Performance Linpack (HPL) benchmark test. This mind-blowing speed solidi ed El Capitan’s rank atop the industry’s TOP500 list of the most powerful supercomputers on the planet.

Perhaps more impressive and equally important to the future of computing is the fact that El Capitan, which takes up 7,500 square feet (about the size of two tennis courts), managed to accomplish the feat while also being one of the most energy efficient machines, coming in at No. 18 on the corresponding Green500 list.

“It you look at the TOP500 list, look at the power of El Capitan and then go down a couple of notches, you’ll see that El Capitan is close to twice the performance as those other machines at the same power,” says Georgia Tech

grad Alan Smith, chief archi tect of the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) that powers El Capitan.

“Completing an HPL run is stressful. El Capitan contains over 11,000 nodes—each node is essen tially a fully contained computer that could boot up on its own and run an operating system. If one node fails, the job fails. It takes a lot of work to get a machine stable enough to even nish an HPL run.”

A CIRCUITOUS PATH TO CIRCUITRY

Although Smith is the chief architect behind the processor powering the world’s fastest supercomputer, his journey to this point was not nearly as fast nor as e cient as the machine itself. But the slight detours turned out to be essential. As a high schooler in suburban Atlanta, Smith went to work supporting IT for his father’s kitchenequipment manufacturing company.

assembling each component for optimum performance. He developed a passion for the unseen physics within the device, down to the tiny semiconductors and the current of electrical signals, the blood flow of a machine that could almost instantaneously perform these complex calculations and process information. When he arrived at Tech in 1998, Smith studied microelectronics with the goal of building smaller, more efficient, and faster computer chips.

But a er nishing his undergrad at Tech in 2000 with a degree in Electrical Engineering, he matriculated directly

TONY REHAGEN

Alan Smith engineered the MI300A processor at the heart of El Capitan.

into the school’s graduate program, which had a very strong semiconductor program. It was the turn of the 21st century, the computer industry was exploding, and U.S. manufacturers like Intel, AMD, and Texas Instruments were racing to build their own chips and processors. But two things happened to divert Smith’s path: He met his future wife, Laura Smith, EE 00, also a Tech electrical engineer, who decided to go into the workforce, and he got a job o er from AMD, a global leader in high-performance computing.

While at AMD, Smith was assigned to the bigger picture, less concerned with manufacturing chips than designing them and focusing on the construction of the entire computer. At the same time, the economics of the industry were shi ing, leading U.S. companies to save money by outsourcing their manufacturing operations. Smith took all of this into account when he returned to Tech to complete grad school in 2011, switching his path from Electrical Engineering to Electrical and Computer Engineering. “I could see how things were moving and wanted to focus my work on design. It turned out to be a pivotal point in my career,” he says. “Tech obviously has a premier Electrical Engineering program, but it also has topnotch Computer Science and Computer Engineering programs. e things I came back and focused on turned out to be exactly what I needed to take on this role.”

Smith studied Computer Architecture and Computational Science and Engineering. He also added a minor in math. (“Turns out linear algebra is the heart and soul of high-performance computing,” he says.) He uses all of that in his current role designing and con guring processors for GPU-accelerated computers like El Capitan, which is important because the supercomputer’s primary function is crucial: National Security.

NO JOB TOO BIG

The National Nuclear Security Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Energy, relies on El Capitan to run nuclear weapons simulations to ensure the safety and reliability of the U.S.’s nuclear stockpile without having to actually test them.

El Capitan 2.79 exaflops (2024)*

HOW POWERFUL IS THE SUPERCOMPUTER?

“ e National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Livermore achieved laboratory fusion ignition [a reaction that produces more energy than it consumes] for the rst time in 2022. El Capitan will be used to further optimize future NIF experiments to achieve higher useful energy output.”

While El Capitan is using all its manmade brainpower for old-school national defense and fusion research, its companion computer Tuolumne (built with the same processors but at one-tenth the size) is being used to support projects in open science. is system, currently No. 10 on the TOP500 list, will be used for cutting-edge research on other projects, including energy security, climate modeling, drug discovery, earthquake modeling, and of course, a newer and more nebulous eld: arti cial intelligence.

“ e accelerated processing unit at the heart of El Capitan and Tuolumne were built to simultaneously support traditional HPC simulation and AI training and inference,” he says. “ is allows computer scientists to expand the scope of the physics and to execute higher-fidelity simulations at higher speed. In addition, Livermore scientists are using advanced AI techniques to guide experiments or to build surrogate models to replace parts of the physics simulation, thus enhancing the simulation speed, which in turn allows the machine to conduct more scientific discovery.”

The super-numbercrunching abilities of El Capitan and its “sister” system Tuolumne have the potential to unlock breakthroughs in energy security, drug discovery, earthquake modeling, and more. To put El Capitan in perspective, you would need 1 million cellphones to equal the same computing power. Lined up, that would be 5.13 miles of phones. See how it stacks up compared to other supercomputers.

Tuolumne 294 petaflops (2024)

Sierra 125 petaflops (2018)

Sequoia 20 petaflops (2012)

BG/L 596 teraflops (2007)

Purple 93 teraflops (2004)

White 12 teraflops (2000)

Blue Pacific 3.6 teraflops (1998)

* 2.79 exaflops is the system’s peak performance. 1.742 exaflops is El Capitan’s sustained measurement.

TECH GRAD BREWS UP A TASTE OF HER GRANDFATHER’S HOMELAND

ZAHRA TABATABAI LEFT HER CAREER AS A TV NEWS WRITER TO START BACK HOME BEER, WHICH PAYS HOMAGE TO MIDDLE EAST BREWING CULTURE.

BY TONY REHAGEN

WWHEN IT CAME TO COLLEGE, Zahra Tabatabai had no choice—she was going. Tabatabai is a firstgeneration American whose parents had emigrated to the U.S. from Iran in 1978. “College was absolutely mandatory, not up for discussion,” she says. “Otherwise, you get the speech about how they le their home to build a better life in America, and they weren’t about to let us throw away that opportunity.”

Her parents probably couldn’t have predicted that, after four years earning a degree in business from Georgia Tech (Mgt 03), their daughter would nd her American Dream not through her New World education, but through a family tradition rooted in their homeland: brewing beer.

Today Tabatabai is head brewer and sole proprietor of Brooklyn’s Back Home Beer, a fast-rising name in the world of cra beer. e moniker stems from the fact that her grandfather,

Gholam-Reza Fakhrabadi, had brewed his own beer using the sumac, lime, and orange blossom from his own garden back home in Iran, before the 1979 Islamic Revolution made the production, sale, and consumption of alcohol illegal. Fakhrabadi died when Tabatabai was just 3 or 4 years old, but her mother and aunts frequently invoked memories of “Baba Joon’s” (Farsi for “Dear Father”) home brew in the family’s Atlanta kitchen while she was growing up.

While the seed of Back Home Beer had been planted in Tabatabai’s mind at an early age, it was slow to germinate. A er four years studying business at Tech on the HOPE Scholarship, Tabatabai ventured into journalism. In 2005, she moved to New York, rst writing for ESPN, then Fox News. Eventually, she began freelancing and considered enrolling in law school. But in 2020, an o and comment from her grandmother (“Maman Joon”) about how she missed the taste of her late husband’s beer from back home inspired Tabatabai to get cooking. She set up shop on the tiny gas stovetop of her

Brooklyn apartment and started mining her grandmother’s memory to try and reconstruct Baba Joon’s lost recipe. She would bottle each promising batch and stow them in her checked suitcase for the flight back to Atlanta, where her family would taste and provide feedback. Once Tabatabai and her testers were satis ed that they not only had product that approximated the old home brew but also had something to o er modern American drinkers, the

notion of opening a brewery took hold.

In Tabatabai’s mind, Back Home Beer would not only honor the memory of her beloved grandfather, it would also embody the rich history and culture of his native land. Today, due in large part to Islam’s complicated relationship with intoxicating beverages, people tend to think of the Middle East as a vast alcohol desert. But the truth is, beer was born there. The earliest evidence of humans fermenting an ale-like beverage with barley dates back 5,000 years to Mesopotamia, present-day Iraq and parts of Syria and Turkey. And the people who were brewing this primitive precursor to beer were almost exclusively women.

Tabatabai wants to tell this ancient story, but she also wants to dispel the notion that the modern Middle East is a monolith of teetotalers. “It’s hard as a people to have your history erased,” she says. “We want other people to be educated about this connection we have to beer-making; we want to reclaim what is ours. So much of my early support came from the Middle Eastern community here; so many Iranian and Iraqi people are very proud. They want people to realize that we dance, drink, party, and eat great food.”

Back Home Beer o cially launched in 2021 with a contract brewer helping Tabatabai release two flagship beers:

The Persian Lager with its dash of Persian blue salt from Iran is the closest approach to Baba Joon’s beer; the Sumac Gose is a sour bursting with the avors of sumac and sour cherries, both ingredients her grandfather grew in his garden. She oversaw everything from production to the art on the cans to personally delivering cases all over the city in her weighed-down Prius. Soon, she enlisted her brother to distribute in Washington, D.C., where he lived. In Fall of 2023, Tabatabai tapped into the reputation her upstart business had grown to launch a Kickstarter campaign for a brickand-mortar Back Home taproom and Middle Eastern street-food eatery that pulled in $125,000, the largest drive for a brewery in the platform’s history. She is currently scouting possible locations in Brooklyn.

Even though brewing beer was about the farthest thing from her

imagination when she arrived on campus at Tech, Tabatabai says she has used much of her college experience to get Back Home Beer to where it is—and not just her business classes. “Tech was a very intense program,” she says. “You really have to be a person who doesn’t procrastinate, uses time wisely, and is e cient to survive an environment like that. Those things all translate to owning your own business.”

Whether she’s using her Tech diploma or not, her family is still plenty proud: In December 2024, Back Home Beer became available in Atlanta, her hometown, where her parents, aunts, and Maman Joon still live. “They’re happy I’m continuing my grandfather’s legacy, their legacy,” she says. “They can share it with their friends, similar to what Grandfather was doing in Iran. Cook big meals, have friends over, and drink his beer. ey can recreate these memories.”

Sour Cherries

Persian Blue Salt Sumac

PERSIAN LAGER

SUMAC GOSE

Tabatabai has brought six beers to market since launching with her two signature brews.

AND THE AWARD GOES TO...

IN THE ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT SPACE, DON’T SLEEP ON GEORGIA TECH.

BY DANIEL P. SMITH

FFrom Kung Fu Panda to e Tom and Jerry Show, Grammy-winning albums to inspired documentaries, Ramblin’ Wrecks have enlivened the entertainment industry—spurring more dynamic lms and shows, enhancing storytelling, empowering artists, and pushing deeper connections with audiences. eir work, o en in critical behind-the-scenes roles, has earned lo y industry honors and demonstrated the creative, entrepreneurial spirit Yellow Jackets bring to the world. With ties to the Emmys, Grammys, and Oscars, Georgia Tech is close to snagging the coveted “EGOT” status—though it seems the “T” (Tony) is still missing.

ANIMATION GAME CHANGERS

BBy the early 2000s, animation had come a long way from the days of Felix the Cat and Walt Disney. Computer-rendered images replaced hand-drawn characters. And the animation process, once the sole domain of creatives, became increasingly technical, even mathematical. While stirring more dynamic visuals, the shift created long, laborious projects and ignited industry-wide hunger for a more natural creative process for animation.

DreamWorks Animation, the Universal Pictures–owned studio behind celebrated hits like Shrek and Madagascar, tapped Alex Powell to spearhead a x.

Over ve years, Powell led a team of

50 DreamWorks engineers, including his now-wife and fellow Yellow Jacket, Bridgette (Wiley) Powell, in creating the Premo character animation system. Stripping away the spreadsheets and recalculations, Powell and his team created a faster system that allows animators more time to re ne their animations, iterate, and produce lively, high-quality results.

“Premo is primarily centered around this idea that if we can make everything interactive about animation, like interacting directly with the characters, you can judge a performance immediately and make tweaks,” Alex says.

While the Powells were not direct collaborators with each other on the project—Alex focused mainly on the front-end animation experience, while Bridgette served on the project’s optimization team—they o en found themselves discussing Premo long after leaving the o ce for the day.

“It was living and breathing work, but that’s because it was such a fun project and such a massive endeavor,” Alex says.

Powered by collaboration, collective passion, and urgency—“There was no contingency plan,” Alex confesses—Premo enhanced the 2014 release of How to Train Your Dragon 2. At a special pre-release screening

Alex Powell, CS 04, MS CS 05, and Bridgette Powell, CS 10

How to Train Your Dragon 2 was created using the Premo software.

of the film in downtown Los Angeles, Bridgette marveled at the nished product. Premo unlocked a level of scale and complexity intensifying the action and propelling the lm’s story.

“Seeing what the artists were able to do, from the scale of the dragons and size of the sets to manipulating dragons ying across the screen, was pretty phenomenal,” Bridgette says.

Over subsequent years, the proprietary technology has bolstered additional DreamWorks titles, including additions to franchises such as Shrek, Trolls, Kung Fu Panda, and e Wild Robot. Premo also garnered widespread industry attention and praise. In 2018, in fact, Alex earned

an Academy Award for Scienti c and Technical Achievement; the Oscar celebrates his contributions to the engineering and design of the groundbreaking animation system.

Even though the Powells have since left Hollywood, swapping L.A.’s entertainment scene for Silicon Valley tech jobs, the joy of

PIONEER OF SOUND

Omer Inan, Regents’ Entrepreneur and Linda J. and Mark C. Smith Chaired Professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering

WWhen the message from a generic AMPAS email address came his way in 2021, Omer Inan initially considered it junk.

But AMPAS sounded vaguely familiar, so Inan opened the email and …

“Immediate disbelief,” he recalls of reading the word congratulations alongside the iconic image of the Oscar statuette.

AMPAS—the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences—awarded an Academy Award to Inan and

his former colleague, Countryman Associates President Chris Countryman. The honor for Technical Achievement hailed the duo’s work on sub-miniature lavalier microphones used in film and television, including the B2D, the world’s smallest directional lavalier. Over a six-year career with Countryman, Inan helped solidify the family-owned company’s foothold in the entertainment industry with various audio innovations designed to deliver crisp, clear sound for lm, television, and stage actors,

unlocking creativity for animators and empowering them to elevate their work remains a shared professional triumph.

“We had this ability to go in and write something bespoke for a select group of artists, which became deeply personal and incredibly meaningful,” Alex says.

Inan’s research at Tech focuses on wearable technology. Inan (left) and Samer Mabrouk, EE 15, MS ECE 19, PhD ECE 21, hold an IV infiltration detection sensor they developed together.

musicians, broadcast news anchors, and mic’d-up professional athletes.

“Seeing our products used in these highly demanding environments has always been a thrill,” says Inan, who has folded his experience in the audio world into a proli c research and entrepreneurial career at Tech, creating wearable sensors for health.

PURPOSE-DRIVEN STORYTELLER

Emmy Winner: Paul Goggin, Phys 91

PPaul Goggin says most of his Tech buddies would have pegged him to become a college professor. Inquisitive and studious, Goggin majored in physics, intimidated by neither complexity nor theory.

But Goggin, who devoured science fiction and history books and minored in philosophy as well as science and literature, aimed to be more da Vinci than Einstein. at personal mission shines in the present.

In 2018, Goggin co-founded The ABLE Channel to bring accessible, engaging, and accurate health information to the masses. He describes the pioneering streaming service as “Netflix meets healthcare”—a novel blend of consumer-facing content with a distribution focus on hospitals and insurance companies.

Leading ABLE has allowed Goggin to craft compelling stories reaching the mind and the soul. ABLE earned an Emmy nomination in 2023 for Together We Are Able, a 42-minute television special featuring stories of

individuals with disabilities thriving in careers and rede ning perceptions and expectations.

And last year, Goggin and the ABLE team earned an Emmy win in the Societal Concerns—Long Form Content category, with Surviving Suicide: Stories of Help and Hope. e six-part series o ers intimate stories of individuals affected by suicide, sharing powerful personal accounts of survivors—a single mother living out of her car, a teen who attempted suicide three times, and a military veteran stationed near the Pentagon on 9/11 among them—and those who have lost loved ones to suicide.

“We had many people warn us not to do a series focused on suicide,” Goggin says. “It was too touchy. A third-rail topic.”

Nevertheless, Goggin and his colleagues pushed ahead, recognizing suicide’s long, expansive reach. Each year, he notes, the U.S. sees 40,000 to 50,000 suicides in addition to 1.5 million suicide attempts. Surviving Suicide became a means to discuss suicide in a meaningful way while offering hope and guidance. The

National Alliance on Mental Illness called Surviving Suicide a program capable of saving lives. “We designed the series to engage and upli ,” Goggin says. “ e Emmy is nice, but the real goal is helping people.”

In addition to crafting a second season of Surviving Suicide, Goggin, a former Alumni Association board member and former chair of the College of Sciences Advisory Board, currently has about 30 projects in development at ABLE, including a program on young adult mental health and a multi-part series on diabetes. “We want to be the place where people can get health information and inspiration,” he says.

The Emmywinning series, Surviving Suicide, features stories from survivors and resources for individuals seeking help.

INNOVATIVE UX DESIGNER

Emmy Winner: Steven Little, Mgt 06

AAfter years of the Susan Lucci treatment—regular Emmy nominations without wins—Steven Little and his Turner Sports peers finally broke through when March Madness Live claimed a Sports Emmy for Outstanding Trans-Media Sports Coverage in 2018. In winning the coveted prize, the Turner Sports team topped nominees such as HBO’s Hard Knocks and ESPN’s of the 2018 College Football Playo National Championship.

A senior product designer on the award-winning project, which provided streaming access to all 67 games from the 2017 NCAA

Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, Little contributed to the app’s visual design and user experience. He continued working on March Madness Live—and earning additional Emmy nominations—for the next seven years, helping to incorporate additional features, including an inapp bracket pick ’em game. Little was named as one of the “40 Under 40” in the Alumni Association’s 2023 class.

“March Madness Live lives for only three weeks each year, but it consistently delivers year after year for fans,” says Little, who left Warner Bros. Discovery, Turner’s parent company, last year and is now working to accelerate the growth of Section 103, a licensed collegiate apparel brand he launched in 2021.

e Oscars at Georgia Tech

Among the artifacts in the Georgia Tech Library Archives are two Oscar statuettes that belonged to Y. Frank Freeman, who graduated from Tech in 1910. Freeman quickly made a name for himself in the movie business as an executive for Paramount Pictures. As a longtime member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Freeman received two Oscars (in 1956 and 1966) for his humanitarian work and for his outstanding service to the Academy during his 30 years in Hollywood. His family donated the Oscars to Georgia Tech a er his death in 1969.

CELEBRATED COMPOSER

Emmy Winner: Vivek Maddala, EE 95

AAfter years scoring music for serious dramatic films and documentaries, Vivek Maddala jumped into the animation deep end in 2016. Hired to write the musical score for The Tom and Jerry Show reboot, Maddala made an immediate splash, earning four consecutive Emmys for Outstanding Music Direction and Composition (2018–2021) for his work on the animated cat-and-mouse

show featuring wall-to-wall music steeped in European Romanticism and 20th-century jazz.

For Maddala, the music of Tom and Jerry introduces children to complex harmony, melody, and rhythm, constructs that are scarcely found in the music they typically hear.

“The show gives children more nutritional value in their musical diet, which can be incredibly powerful and educational,” says Maddala, who also contributed musical scores to a pair

TTruth be told, 10-year-old Jeff Albert wanted to play the trumpet. He only picked up the trombone to fill a need for his elementary school band director.

“It was a complete fluke, but it’s worked out well,” Albert says. “ e trombone ts me.”

of Peabody Award–winning titles (American Revolutionary and the PBS documentary Asian Americans).

Beyond his work in lm and television, Maddala also produces records, composes scores for theatre and dance productions, and performs as a multi-instrumentalist in Los Angeles–area bands.

“I mix it up, which is a constant opportunity to grow and evolve as an artist,” says Maddala, a former member of GT Jazz Ensembles.

GO-TO TROMBONIST

Over subsequent decades, Albert, who moved to Atlanta and joined the Georgia Tech faculty in 2023, has carved out a decorated career as a master of the brass instrument.

Raised in New Orleans’ rich musical scene, Albert wrote horn arrangements and performed for many years with The Meters, a legendary funk band honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in

2018. He released experimental jazz records on U.S. and European labels. He performed on a track with U2, recording in studio alongside rock icons Bono and Edge. He also wrote the horn parts and played trombone on Bobby Rush’s Porcupine Meat , which captured a 2017 Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album.

“ e community aspect of music, interacting with people and connecting with them through music, has always energized me,” Albert says.

Jeff Albert, associate professor and interim chair in the School of Music

OVISIONARY DIRECTOR

Emmy

Winner: Osahon Tongo, Mgt 10

Osahon Tongo considers himself blessed. Why? He savors his work as a producer/director at NFL Media, the National Football League’s media arm that includes the NFL Network, NFL Films, and NFL.com.

“I’m exhausted but very satisfied,” says Tongo, who’s based in Los Angeles. A defensive end on Tech’s 2009 ACC Championship football team, Tongo now combines his passion for football and storytelling at NFL Media.

He has earned acclaim for his work on NFL 360 and an assortment of shortand medium-form documentaries

showcasing individual lives and stories though a football lens.

In 2023, Tongo won a Sports Emmy for Outstanding Edited Special for e Indelible Legacy of Jimmy Raye . The 35-minute feature told the story of Raye’s journey from segregated Fayetteville, N.C., to national championship quarterback at Michigan State to the NFL, where Raye became a trailblazing coach and mentor. Tongo was also recognized by the Alumni Association as part of the “40 Under 40” 2024 class.

“The opportunity to touch the human spirit with my work is such a blessing and something that gives me great purpose,” Tongo says.

TECH TALENT

Technology has transformed the entertainment industry over the years. With imagination, ingenuity, and Tech-earned perseverance, these alumni shine on and off the screen. BY KELLEY

FREUND

WHEN FILM DIRECTOR Tamer Shaaban, CS 11, set out to create a commercial announcing Audi’s 2026 debut in Formula 1, he turned to Unreal Engine, a computer program normally used for developing video games. It was a creative decision that’s becoming more common. According to Jason Freeman, Tech’s interim associate vice provost for the arts, new technology is causing di erent forms of media and entertainment to converge. e ways in which video games and lms are created are more similar than a decade ago, and 10 years from now, those methods will merge even more. Whether students plan to pursue a career in animation or one in lm, they will need a common set of skills and the ability to respond to fast-changing technology. And Georgia Tech wants its students to be prepared for that.

“ ere’s an opportunity for us to better develop the workforce as this industry is evolving, and to become thought and research leaders in this space,” says Freeman. “To do this, we need a agship academic program, something that becomes a hub for all that activity.”

For many years now, the arts have become increasingly visible at Georgia Tech. Rafael L. Bras, Tech’s former provost and Regents’ Professor, was an early champion of integrating the arts into the fabric of campus through works of public art and through collaborations between Georgia Tech students and artists-in-residence.

“Dr. Bras helped us to understand that all GT students, regardless of their discipline of study, needed to embrace creativity to be successful in their careers, and that the arts are essential in teaching our students to ex their creative muscle,” Freeman says.

In the fall of 2026, the Institute plans to launch a bachelor’s of science degree in Arts, Entertainment, and Creative Technologies. e new curriculum, which includes collaboration with departments across campus, focuses on artistic practice, technical innovation, and entrepreneurship. Tech also plans to develop the former Randall Brothers property on Marietta Street as an innovation hub called the Creative Quarter focused on the arts, creativity, design, and technology.

“We have had this reputation for so long as being just an engineering school,” Freeman says. “But bit by bit we’re making clear to the world that the arts are a very important part of our DNA here at Tech as well.”

Here, we feature nine alumni who prove just that.

ON AND OFF THE SCREEN

JESSICA LUZA, STC 07

Actress in Hysteria!, House, MD, and Johnson

Did you always want to be an actress?

It has been in my heart since I was a child. My parents saved the fortune from my first fortune cookie that reads, “You will be drawn to the glamour of the stage.” Once I found out that the kids on Full House were having fun AND getting paid, I was hooked and never looked back.

Tell us about Hysteria!

I like to describe it as Stranger Things meets Freaks and Geeks. It takes place in a fictitious small town in Michigan and is set against the very real Satanic Panic of the late ’80s. The star high school

quarterback goes missing, and rumors begin to fly that local Satanists are involved with his disappearance. The misfit members of the band Dethkrunch take advantage of the sudden interest in the occult and pretend to be Satanists to get more street cred. I play Cassie Dandridge, one of the more grounded characters on the show, and it was a blast to play her and lean into her intelligence and power.

How do you think you’ve grown as an actress over the years?

I’ve realized that show business is a very real business, and that helps me take pressure off myself and

Luza plays Cassie Dandridge, the daughter of Bruce Campbell’s character, in the show Hysteria!, which can be streamed on Peacock.

to not take things as personally. I have also realized I want to start producing and writing more. I don’t love being beholden to a casting director or producer who gives me permission to work.

Is it exciting or strange to see yourself on television?

I am always so grateful to have been cast that I usually watch the project at least once to support it and will post about it on social media. It would be a lie to say it isn’t exciting to see myself on television because I know that little

It would be a lie to say it isn’t exciting to see myself on television because I know that little Jessica would be so proud that I continue to follow my dreams.”

Jessica would be so proud that I continue to follow my dreams.

What is a lesson from Tech that has stuck with you?

Perseverance. Tech was a very challenging school, but I loved that I could work hard and push myself. With acting there is endless rejection, so having perseverance is absolutely necessary.

PHOTO BY MARK HILL/PEACOCK

JOHN RUSSO

HEATHER PRITCHETT, MS CS 93

Technical Director, Walt Disney Animation Studios; credits include Wreck-It Ralph, Tangled, Frozen, and Mulan

Do you have a project that has been particularly meaningful to you?

My favorite project was Tangled. Not only was it a fantastic movie to work on because we were really pushing what was the current edge of hair and skin rendering, but it was also a success in theaters. In many ways, it was one of the first movies I worked on that I felt the public loved as much as I did.

What do you enjoy about working in this field?

As a technical director, I have always loved that my

job sits at this wonderful intersection of creativity and technology. I get a chance to work closely with artists and develop tools and workflows that enable them to be better at their jobs.

What attributes are necessary to be successful in this type of job?

Putting aside programming and computer graphics knowledge, my role also involves a lot of soft skills. You need good communication skills and the ability to work well with a team. I think one of the most valuable attributes

As a technical director, I have always loved that my job sits at this wonderful intersection of creativity and technology. ”

is being able to look at a problem and know how to break it down and solve it. Good technical directors need to be able to find not just the best solution, but sometimes the quickest, and those aren’t often the same.

What is one lesson from Tech that has stuck with you? Things change whether you want them to or not. I often joke that my job feels completely different every three to five years, and most of that is because of technology. Faster machines, improved tools, better graphics cards, and new research are constantly pushing us to make our movies better. To quote Walt Disney, “Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things…and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”

Pritchett worked in the animation department on Tangled.

NESTOR GALARZA, CS 22

CEO of xNestorio; online content creator with over 1.5 billion views and over 6 million subscribers

What led you to start creating content and posting videos?

From a young age, I was really into YouTube. I was also into gaming, and I was good at it—so good, in fact, that people did not believe it. The inception of my channel was making videos to prove I wasn’t cheating. It was cool watching a community gather around my content. I remember being shocked at how much fun we were having. So, I kept doing it.

How do you think you’ve grown as a content creator?

When I first started, I was just a kid playing with my

laptop, uploading as much content as I could and hoping something stuck. I started to look at other big content creators in my space and studied what they did. It pushed me to give my viewers a unique experience.

Why Minecraft videos?

When I started, Minecraft was my favorite game. I feel like Minecraft has encouraged a level of creativity. Anyone can play the game. Anyone can modify it. We can code and add whatever we want into the game and make anything happen. The possibilities truly feel endless.

What does it mean to you that over 6 million people subscribe to your work?

Twelve-year-old me could never imagine getting to this point. When you have that many people watching you, you want to make sure that you appreciate their time. I try not to get too caught up on the numbers and just focus on making the best content possible.

When I got to Tech, I actually met people who had been watching my YouTube channel for as

long as I’d been making videos! It’s cool to encounter people I’ve impacted in the real world.

What advice do you have for others who want to be content creators?

I encourage you to embrace failure. You have to be able to ask yourself, “What worked here? What didn’t?” and move forward. Every failure taught me a different lesson. If I wasn’t such a failure, I could never have such success.

TAMER SHAABAN, CS 11

Film/commercial director whose work includes commercials for Microso , Audi, Lay’s, and Dove

When did you start making films?

I’ve been making films since I was in high school. I studied Computer Interaction at Georgia Tech, but I got approval from the dean to take a video class,

and then I took film courses outside of Tech. I also took the school’s Campus Movie Fest as an opportunity to make films, and every year, I won something. That reinforced that I could do this.

Can you walk me through your creative process?

I’ve never thought of myself

as a creative person. For me, the worst thing is for someone to say that I have an open budget, and I can do whatever I want. That’s rare, but if something like that does happen, I start creating the lines of the box. I ask a lot of questions: What’s the demographic? What feeling are we trying to evoke? I

What interested you in meteorology?

As a kid, I would write down the weather for the day. The clouds fascinated me, and I wanted to learn more about how it all worked. At Tech, there was a specialized study for meteorology, so I decided to pursue that, but I really wanted to be more of a storm chaser.

How did you get into the broadcast side of things?

I actually have stage fright,

COLLEEN COYLE, EAS 08

Broadcast meteorologist

so I find it hilarious that this is the career I fell into. While doing an internship at WSB in Atlanta, I started practicing in front of the chroma key wall [green screen]. I didn’t think anyone was watching, but later found out I was being routed to all the televisions around the news station. The team at WSB helped me put a resume tape together that I sent out.

What have you enjoyed about this career?

Witnessing the power of storytelling. I’ve seen some pretty tragic things, like the EF 5 tornado in Joplin [Missouri] in 2011

and Hurricane Harvey in Houston in 2017. I was amazed by the openness of people. I’m speaking to them on what could be the most horrible day of their life, and they still were willing to tell me about their experience because they wanted other people to understand what was going on in their town. I felt very privileged to be able to tell people’s stories.

What advice do you have for someone interested in a broadcast career?

Don’t put someone else’s “no” on the table for them. The realm of entertainment and broadcast can be

tricky, but you never know what may happen. Don’t be afraid to send someone a resume tape or apply for a position. Don’t be afraid to go for it.

What’s a lesson from Tech that has stayed with you?

Tech is not an easy school. Very quickly I learned motivation and drive and a healthy work ethic. Tech is also about innovation and exploring new things, and I feel that’s now something that I’ve been able to apply not just in my career but in other avenues as I pursue everyday life.

create all these guidelines, and then that allows me to be creative.

Do you have a favorite project?

I really like the Lay’s ad, featuring Leo Messi and girls in a refugee camp in Jordan. [This commerical won a Clio Sports Award for Social Good.] I felt I was giving these women a voice—they love soccer just

like the rest of us. After we wrapped, one of the young girls told me that the two days we spent filming were the best she’s had in her life.

What are your thoughts on technology?

I don’t think projects are going to rely on any one tool, so I think it’s important to become as knowledgeable as possible

about all the tools that are available. But more importantly than that, you need to understand storytelling—that’s the most powerful tool in your arsenal. You’re going to see a ton of content come out in the coming years. Anybody can create anything, but it’s going to be the people who can evoke emotion that will stand out.

Do you have advice for thinking creatively?

I think creativity is a muscle that you can build. One of my professors in a Tech design class told me to look at everything I use in the world and find a way to improve it. I started doing that and found myself becoming more creative in the way I was thinking because I was questioning everything.

How did you get into the media industry?

I was working as a structural engineer at a homebuilding firm when a random email landed in my neighborhood homeowners association inbox. It was about a new TV show looking for old neighborhoods as potential filming locations and people to join the cast. The carpenter role caught my eye. Growing up, I spent my childhood following my dad around the workshop. That first audition was one of the most awkward experiences of my life. They put a camera three inches from my face and told me to “act normal.” Somehow, the producers saw potential in me.

CHIP WADE, ME 06

Cra sman, TV host/contributor/producer who has appeared on HGTV, FOX, ABC, and Travel Channel

segment. The day before, my small team and I spend 12 to 15 hours constructing the set, troubleshooting, and fine-tuning every detail to make sure everything runs smoothly. Seeing that vision successfully presented on live TV is an incredible payoff.

Do you get nervous on live TV? How do you calm your nerves?

Is there a favorite project you’ve worked on over the years?

What do you enjoy about being a contributor on morning television shows?

These segments are a creative outlet—an opportunity to use my expertise to showcase cool products, innovative building techniques, and real-world solutions that make a difference for viewers. What people don’t see is everything that goes into making a three-minute live

No matter how many live segments I’ve done, there’s always an adrenaline rush before going on. But for me, confidence comes down to preparation. I put in the work ahead of time to make sure I fully understand the topic. My engineering background helps a lot—I’m used to breaking down complex systems, understanding specs, and figuring out how things work.

My wife and I have partnered with major media outlets to design and build innovative show homes. What I love most about these projects is the opportunity to work directly with brands, engineers, and fabricators—not just to showcase their latest offerings but, in many cases, to push the boundaries and develop entirely new applications for their products.

What advice do you have for thinking creatively?

I think creativity starts with curiosity. My favorite question to ask is: “What if?” At the end of the day, innovation isn’t about coming up with the wildest idea—it’s about creating something that actually solves a problem and makes life better.

No matter how many live segments I’ve done, there’s always an adrenaline rush before going on. But for me, confidence comes down to preparation. I put in the work ahead of time to make sure I fully understand the topic.” “

JESSICA

JOLENA YAO, CM 19

Look development artist for Moana 2, Walt Disney Animation Studios

How did you get into the field of animation?

Growing up, I wasn’t the kid who was always drawing, so in an age of 2D animation it didn’t seem like a career I could pursue. But when computer animation gained in popularity, I thought I could work on the technical side. I majored in Computational Media at Georgia Tech, and while I learned a variety of skills, I also learned that ultimately I wanted to go into the artistic side of animation. I pursued a master’s degree in Visualization at Texas A&M, where I discovered my love for look development.

What is a look development artist?

In look development, we translate the 2D artwork into the 3D world. We are given 3D models, to which

we add color, texture, material properties, and procedural instancing to bring the environments and characters to life in the CG world. Specifically, I work in environment look development, so for Moana 2, I was helping create the environments the characters live in. This ranges from props the characters are interacting with, to the full-scale sets, such as islands and the magical realm inside of a gigantic clam.

Moana 2 in particular means a lot to me as a woman of color who grew up without a lot of representation in the media I was consuming.” “

What does it mean to you to know that work you’re doing is being seen in movie theaters across the country?

Moana 2 in particular means a lot to me as a woman of color who grew up without a lot of representation in the media I was consuming. It makes me so proud to think that someone could see themselves or their culture represented on screen.

What do you enjoy about working at Disney?

It is great to be working

every day with people who are so passionate about what we are creating. It’s also a dream come true to be contributing to the legacy that I grew up with and have loved throughout my life.

What is one lesson from Tech that has stuck with you?

Georgia Tech really taught me how to problem-solve and to think critically, which is something that is very valuable in my job.

Yao worked as the look development artist on the movie Moana 2

Why did you decide to join a reality show?

The premise of The Ultimatum is to join your partner in a journey to determine if you’re ready for marriage—or not. I was at a point in my life where the idea of settling down felt impossible. My reasons for being anti-marriage at the time lacked depth: “I don’t see the need” or “I don’t believe in the institution of marriage.”

ROXANNE KAISER, BA 15

Reality show star in Net ix’s e Ultimatum: Marry or Move On

How do you think the show changed you?

The show completely transformed my perspective on love and marriage. I never imagined that two-and-ahalf years after filming, I’d be married, have a husband, and be navigating this entirely new chapter of life. The experience gave me clarity, helped me embrace the idea of partnership, and shaped the way I view commitment. It’s been an incredible journey, and

I learned so much about myself, what I wanted out of life, and the things that truly mattered (or didn’t) in my relationship.“ “

I’m so grateful for how much I’ve grown because of it.

Can you talk about some of the pros and cons of being on a reality show?

One of the biggest advantages was the personal growth it facilitated for me. I learned so much about myself, what I wanted out of life, and the things that truly mattered (or didn’t) in my relationship.

The downside of putting your life on display is the criticism—and it can be brutal. If you’re not prepared to tune out the noise, it can take an emotional toll. The scrutiny can be overwhelming at times, but ultimately, the experience has taught me resilience and how to focus on the positives.

What advice do you have for people looking to put their lives in the spotlight?

Think of it like starting a business—it takes grit, hard work, and a hustle mentality. You’re essentially building a brand, showing the world who you are, and hoping people connect with your journey. And once they do, you have to show up authentically, consistently, and with purpose for the people who follow and support you.

What is a lesson from Tech that has stuck with you?

You’re never the smartest person in the room. Being surrounded by brilliant peers humbled me and showed me the value of learning from others.

WAYNE WOOTEN, ICS 90, PHD CS 98

Rendering engineer; credits include Toy Story 2, Monster’s Inc., and A Bug’s Life

What attracted you to this field of work?

It was the bid for the Atlanta Olympics in 1996. There was a lab at Georgia Tech that built this interactive, immersive experience so that the IOC could have a built-out map. When they touched the venues, it would play computer-animated videos of CG renderings of places like the new stadium. Their lab was next door and I would wander over to see what they were doing. It really excited me.

Was there a project you really enjoyed working on during your time with Pixar?

Early in my career, the

computers that rendered frames of animation were about as powerful as an Apple watch, and it would take hours to get artists back their frames. I was a bit of a rogue agent when I got to Pixar. My officemate and I started using people’s computers for rendering while they were on vacation. Eventually we got a call from the head of IT. We thought we were going to be in trouble, but instead he tasked us with deploying a system that would figure out who was on vacation and utilize all the computers in the facility for rendering. In the end, that system was nominated for a scientific Oscar.

What was a project that challenged you?

In the early days, it was hard to compute things like a glass of water with light shining through. Over the years we added the capabilities of a new technique called ray tracing. Now all movies at Pixar are ray-traced.

What’s your job now with Adobe?

It’s going to sound boring, but it’s the same thing I did at Pixar. There’s a piece of Adobe software called Substance that allows users to create physically realistic looks on 3D models, and they need to be able to render those. I work on that software.

What’s one lesson from Georgia Tech that has stuck with you?

To learn when life has provided you with a lucky opportunity that you shouldn’t turn down, even when these opportunities are scary or challenging. That was very true for my decision to come work at Pixar. I was turning down professor positions when there was no guarantee that Pixar was going to make a second feature-length movie that was going to be a hit. But it was a chance to work with a lot of great people and something I couldn’t turn down.

Wooten was the animation software development team leader for Toy Story 2.

TECH’S

A high-stakes game of Jeopardy!

A nail-biting round of Family Feud. No matter the challenge, Yellow Jacket alumni were ready to excel on these TV game shows.

Mike Casner, Mgt 07

Great Chocolate Showdown 2023

Lindsay Resnick HTS 13, Jeopardy! 2018

Roman Reigns (Joe Anoa’i), Cls 07

The R-Truth Game Show

Eva Erickson, Phys 22 Survivor 2025

Calvin Johnson, Cls 08

Dancing with the Stars 2016

What did it feel like to compete on the show and see yourself on TV?

“Competing on Jeopardy! was one of the best moments of my life. It was amazing to see how the game and show work from the other side of the TV screen.”

What’s something that would surprise people about the show?

Hari Parameswaran, EE 22 Jeopardy! 2021, 2023

What did it feel like to compete on the show and see yourself on TV?

Amy Lankford Henderson, Mgt 91

The Price Is Right

“Competing on Jeopardy! has always been a life goal of mine. To be called on the show not once, but twice, was something I could only dream of.”

“The production is such a well-oiled machine that it only takes about 30 minutes to tape a 23 minute–long episode.”

Matt Smith, ID 01

Did anything you learned at Tech give you an advantage over the other contestants?

MTV’s Real World New Orleans 2000

“Getting a Georgia Tech degree is a serious undertaking that takes grit and perseverance, which is exactly what got me through the Second Chances Tournament. Several times during my run, I came back from behind to win my games.”

Did anything you learned at Tech give you an advantage over the other contestants?

“Being an Industrial Engineering student, classes like discrete math and ISYE 2027 gave me a more analytical mindset and helped me evaluate how many times I should spin the wheel after knowing the answer to the puzzle.”

What’s one fun fact that would surprise people about the show?

“The wheel weighs about 2,400 pounds, so make sure you have a strong arm! I also got to meet 15 other college contestants that day!”

What did it feel like to compete on the show and see yourself on TV?

“I always had a passion for trivia throughout middle and high school, and to get to play on one of the world’s most famous game shows was a true honor. I still use my experience as a story to share with almost everyone I know.”

What’s something that would surprise people about the show?

“Due to the tournament format, none of the contestants in the later games are allowed to watch the early games while in the studio so they can’t adjust their strategy. We were sequestered in the green room and got to watch movies and play Jenga while a game show was recorded in a studio just down the hall!”

COMPILED BY ALISHA TAN

Quincy Howard, student Wheel of Fortune 2022

Cameron Creech, ChBE 14, and Connor Creech, CM 17 Family Feud 2025

Rishab Jain, MSE 21 Jeopardy! College Championship 2018

Carson Garrett, student Survivor 2023

Sreekar Madabushi, CS 23 Jeopardy! Teen Tournament 2019, Jeopardy! 2023

Santiago Archila, BME 06 Family Feud 2011

Katie Simmons, BA 15 Family Feud 2014

Kristine Kazian, IE 07 Domino Masters 2022

Corey Rockwell, IE 98 Wheel of Fortune 1994

Stephen Webb, Phys 06 Jeopardy! 2023

ALUMNI HOUSE

40 UNDER 40 Innovation and camaraderie were on full display at the 2024 “40 Under 40” awards ceremony and reception this past November. Nominations for the Class of 2025 are open until May 5. Nominate a Yellow Jacket at GTalumni.org/40under40

Earlier this year, the Georgia Tech community and friends came together for the 2025 Gold & White Honors Gala, an inspiring and celebratory evening that showcased the strength, ingenuity, and unity of the Institute.

“ e Gold and White Honors Gala is a chance to celebrate individuals living out Georgia Tech’s core values in their everyday lives. Each year, I am astonished and inspired by the honorees. eir character, accomplishments, and dedication to improving the human condition makes me incredibly proud to be a part of such a distinguished community,” says Dene Sheheane, Mgt 91, president of the Alumni Association. “Georgia Tech is truly one of a kind.”

e Gala is the Georgia Tech Alumni Association’s most prestigious event and primary fundraiser for three nationally acclaimed student programs: the Student Alumni Association, the Georgia Tech Student Foundation, and the Student Ambassadors.

Rita Breen, Psy 90, MS IE 92, chair-elect and vice chair of Roll Call, addressed guests during the Gala. “We are here today, in this privileged gathering, because someone invested in us, and the Gala is an opportunity to recognize those who give—their e orts, talents, and treasure—to GT, our communities, and our amazing students,” Breen said. anks to the generosity of 25 corporate sponsors, table hosts, individual ticket sales, and live auction proceeds, the evening raised a record-breaking $653,000. is year’s Gala was a testament to the dedication and generosity of the Georgia Tech community coming together to support the next generation of innovators and change-makers. Your continued support helps ensure the Institute remains a place where students can thrive and reinforces the bond that unites Yellow Jackets of all ages across the globe.

Special thanks to the Georgia Tech Alumni Association Board of Trustees for their commitment and support in making the 2025

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Tommy Herrington, IM 82, Chair

Betsy Bulat, IAML 04

Past Chair/Finance

Rita Breen, Psy 90, MS IE 92

Chair Elect/Vice Chair Roll Call

Jimmy Mitchell, CE 05

Vice Chair/Engagement

Dene Sheheane, Mgt 91

President

Anu Parvatiyar, BME 08

Member at Large

Amy Phuong, IA 05, MBA 14 Member at Large

Jim Sanders, IE 88

Member at Large

Sam Westbrook, IE 99 Member at Large

STUDENT ORGANIZERS

Harrison Baro, EnvE 25 President, Student Ambassadors

Divya Vikram, Mgt 25 President, Student Alumni Association

Carl Cort, EE 26

Chief Executive Officer, Student Foundation

STUDENT HOSTS

Ashleigh Henning, BioChem 25

Mehul Dhoot, ChBE 25

Saif Khan, BME 26

Sanika Tank, LMC 26

Thanmayee Kavuri, BME 26

Gold & White Honors Gala a tremendous success.

A BIG LEGACY

MEET THE 2025 GOLD & WHITE HONORS RECIPIENTS

This year’s Gold and White honorees truly embody Georgia Tech’s mission to develop leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition. The recipients of these prestigious awards include a humanitarian philanthropist who volunteers seven days a week, a public health advocate improving veterans’ lives, a Triple Jacket medtech leader whose pioneering work has led to multiple U.S. patents, a transformative servant leader who’s spent her life making sure underrepresented students can attend Tech, and a marketing firm CEO who spent decades fostering Tech spirit in the community.

The honorees were celebrated at the Gold & White Honors Gala at Flourish in Atlanta on February 13. Read more on the next pages about these distinguished honorees and their inspiring stories of impact.

PROFILES BY JENNIFER HERSEIM AND SHARITA HANLEY | PHOTOGRAPHY BY KAYLINN GILSTRAP

THE JOSEPH MAYO PETTIT DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

JOCELYN STARGEL, IE 82, MS IE 86

FFor Jocelyn Stargel, graduation was just the start of a lifelong connection with the Institute.

“I think about Georgia Tech’s mission—to improve the human condition—and then I think about the community I found as an outof-state, Black female student. Tech prepared us to innovate and solve the critical problems of the world. My community and I flourished with that foundation,” Stargel says.

Stargel has served in various capacities to improve Georgia Tech. She chairs the College of Engineering’s Advisory Board and is a trustee of the Georgia Tech Foundation Board. She served on her 40th Reunion Committee and the ISyE Advisory Board. A longtime volunteer with the GT Women Alumnae Network, she was president in 2014–2015. In 2020, she became the first African American woman to chair the Alumni Association’s Board of Trustees. She is an inaugural honoree of the Pathway of Progress, a campus tribute to Georgia Tech women, which opened this year.

Stargel joined Southern Company Services in 1990 and held multiple leadership roles over the course of the next 23 years. She retired from Southern Company in 2015 and founded Stargel Consulting, which specializes in IT and Risk Management.

She has never hesitated to give back to her alma mater, returning as a guest lecturer, mentor, and engaged alumna of her sorority, Delta Sigma Theta. In addition to meeting lifelong friends at the Institute, Stargel met her husband, Bob Stargel, EE 83. Their daughter, Chloe (Stargel) Engler, is a 2015 graduate. Their philanthropy includes consistent support of Roll Call and scholarship endowments, such as the Stargel Family GTBAO Scholarship, an academic scholarship, and the Promise scholarship. Stargel was inducted into the

Founder and Managing Partner, Stargel Consulting, Inc.

Council of Outstanding Young Engineers in 1999 and the College of Engineering’s Academy of Distinguished Alumni in 2016. She was named to the Women Out Front Class of 2017 by Tech Women’s Basketball.

“Receiving the Joseph Mayo Pettit Distinguished Service Award is an honor I never imagined that I would receive,” she says. “I have gotten to know past honorees personally and am in awe of their career achievements. I am truly humbled to join such an esteemed class of recipients.”

PRESENTING SPONSORS

(L-R) President Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95, Mya Moffitt, Dr. Beth Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95, and Josh Hembree.

TOM UMSTEAD, IM 56

A

At 91 years old, Tom Umstead, IM 56, continues to embody Tech values through his unwavering dedication to community service. For more than 26 years, he has dedicated his life to serving metro-Atlanta residents and charities, volunteering seven days a week.

Umstead’s service began in 1999. After witnessing the compassionate care his grandson received during an emergency room visit, he purchased doughnuts to thank the staff. He continued bringing the team treats and in 2007, became an official volunteer at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA). After retiring, his commitment deepened when a chance

encounter at Publix led to daily food donations to Ronald McDonald House. “The manager was throwing day-old food away and I told him Ronald McDonald would love to have that. I came back two days later to pick up more food. Eventually, he asked if I could pick up five days a week. I told him I could pick up food seven days a week. That’s how it started,” he explains.

In 2015, Umstead founded Mr. Tom’s Heart (MTH), a nonprofit that connects people in need with available resources. MTH delivers essential food and hygiene items to organizations like CHOA, Calvary Children’s Home, Ronald McDonald, and the Aflac Cancer Center. MTH also supported a prom for young girls undergoing chemotherapy, providing dresses,

food, and flowers. All of these efforts are powered by Umstead and other volunteers. “We don’t have any employees, but we have 400 volunteers, and we do about 50 pick-ups at Publix, Trader Joe’s, and Costco every day.”   Umstead also founded a basketball group that 400 local students enjoy, and he sponsors and mentors current Tech students.

In 2019 Umstead received the Southeast Regional Emmy and the Georgia Hospital Association’s Hero Award in 2024 for his community impact, but his focus remains on service. “I do what I do because it’s in my heart. Most of the children I serve get better, but they don’t always get cured, so I like being able to put a smile on their face.”

DEAN GRIFFIN COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD

Humanitarian & Philanthropist

MBA 18; Nichole and Shan Pesaru, CmpE 05; Student Ambassadors and student leaders.

Clockwise from top left: Lesley Ehmer, IE 20, Greg Ehmer, BA 15, Daniel Spingola, IE 15, Andrew Brandes, Mgt 12, Grace Brandes, BA 15, Anna Kate Ehmer, BA 17, John Keesee, ME 91, Kara Ehmer; Jacquelyn Schneider, BC 06,

SPONSORS

As the Southeast’s most trusted name in facility construction, operation and maintenance, McKenney’s provides high-quality, energy-efficient solutions at every stage of a building—Design, Build, Manage, and Maintain. With over seven decades of experience, McKenney’s builds to a higher standard.

Top: Students Hunter Richardson and Sanika Tank.

Bottom: Kunal Patel, IE 07, and Jalpa Patel, ChBE 09

JOHN B. CARTER, JR. SPIRIT OF GEORGIA TECH AWARD

DEBORAH KILPATRICK, ESM 89, MS ME 94, PHD ME 96

GGeorgia Tech’s mission to develop leaders is exemplified by triple Jacket Deborah Kilpatrick, whose doctoral research on the biomechanics of human tissue inspired her remarkable career. Her pioneering work in healthcare has led to multiple U.S. patents and roles from early-stage research to commercialization in Fortune 500 and startup companies.

“It really starts with staying grateful for the opportunities I was given at Georgia Tech, as well as the ones that followed in my professional career. In so many cases, those things happened because people believed in me,” Kilpatrick says.

Kilpatrick began her career at Guidant Corporation, leading the research and development of medical devices for cardiac and vascular diseases. She later become CEO of Evidation Health, which pioneered the use of person-generated health data in clinical research for the biopharma sector, becoming executive chair of their board in 2020. Currently, she is an early-stage medtech investor at Sonder Capital and serves on the board of multiple organizations, including Sleep Number and Sutter Health.

In 2010, she co-founded MedtechWOMEN and hosted an inaugural conference to connect

and spotlight women voices in the industry called MedtechVISION, now held annually. She is an advisor to many startups as well as a business coach for the Biodesign Innovation Fellows program at Stanford University. Her approach was influenced by Tech. “My time there was truly formative for developing my own approach to leading innovation—in particular, leveraging diversity of backgrounds, perspectives, and ideas as a means to champion it,” she says.

Kilpatrick and her wife, Kacey  Fitzpatrick, are members of The Hill Society, with their support focused on diverse graduate students and

Venture Partner, Sonder Capital and Former CEO and Executive Chair, Evidation Health

faculty in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, the Women in Engineering program, and the Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems. Kilpatrick chaired and serves on the College of Engineering Advisory Board and previously served on several other Tech advisory boards. She was inducted into the Council of Outstanding Young Engineering Alumni, the Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni, and the Engineering Hall of Fame.

“To receive this award in the context of embodying the spirit and values of Georgia Tech is very special for me,” Kilpatrick says.

JJen Abrams, PP 17, was living out the Institute’s motto of Progress and Service well before she obtained her Tech degree. She was in the Marching Band, the Student Alumni Association, Student Ambassadors, FASET, and the Student Government Association, serving as the SGA undergraduate president.

Since then, Abrams has served on the Alumni Association Board of Trustees, GT Women Alumnae Network, and the Georgia Tech Black Alumni Organization. She also worked in athletic development at Georgia Tech.

“As a student leader, I saw this opportunity to step through a door of engaging to make a very fine institution even better, and I can’t

OUTSTANDING YOUNG ALUMNA

JEN ABRAMS, PP 17

Strategy and Transformation Consultant, Guidehouse

seem to stay away,” Abrams jokes. “That opportunity to see the insides of Georgia Tech is what has made the most impact. It’s given me a fire in my belly never to settle for less, to always push for better for myself and others, to be intentional with my time, and to know that I have the ability to make an impact.”

As a graduate student at the University of North Carolina, she worked on the Building Veteran-Healthy Communities team, improving the well-being of veterans. She received the Gillings School Service Award from UNC for her practice-based public health contributions to the Gillings School of Global Public Health.

Abrams also received the Ivan Allen Jr. Legacy Award, the Black Women in STEAM Ursula Burns

Award for Leadership from the National Society of Black Engineers, and the Joseph M. Pettit Outstanding Sophomore Leadership Award from Omicron Delta Kappa.

Abrams, a self-described “born and bred Yellow Jacket,” was inspired to work hard by her parents, who are both Tech alumni, and other Black Tech graduates. During Covid-19, she was the youngest person on her team running one of the system’s largest regional vaccine clinics. “Like any good Tech grad, I was given a problem, and I was going to do my best to find a solution.”

“While I am humbled, honored, and touched by the selection, I hope to also be a good steward of this recognition from my fellow alumni.”

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Top right: Sheetal Wrzesien, CS 94, and Kirk Wrzesien, TE 93. Bottom: Dene Sheheane, Mgt 91.

GREGG GARRETT

HONORARY ALUMNUS Chief Executive Officer & Cofounder of TeleNet Marketing Solutions

GGame day is a big deal in the Garrett family, starting from the moment they wake up and ending well after the final whistle blows.

“It’s become a part of the fabric of our lives,” Gregg Garrett says. “We’ve been fortunate to have a suite at Bobby Dodd Stadium now for 20-plus years. We call it our happy place.”

Garrett’s passion began in his early childhood with his father, a huge Tech football fan. When Garrett was 6, he also attended a football camp led by Coach Pepper Rodgers. “I just always felt an identification or affinity for the school.”

After graduating with a Fine Arts degree from Valdosta State University, Garrett joined an Atlanta marketing firm and became VP of sales and marketing in five years. In 1999, he cofounded TeleNet Marketing Solutions to help businesses grow their sales pipelines through lead generation. The company recently celebrated their 25-year anniversary. “I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by incredible, talented individuals who’ve joined

us here. And to see them grow in their careers and personally.”

Garrett also fostered a sense of community for Tech fans. In 1992, he started the Golden Sports Report, an independent sports publication, which quickly gained popularity. He sold the publication in 2000 to the Georgia Tech Athletic Association.

Garrett is a longtime supporter of the Alexander-Tharpe Fund, giving at the Golden Jackets level, the highest level of donor recognition. Among his many contributions, he established the William Wesley Garrett Football Scholarship, named in honor of his father.

A proud Georgian, Garrett’s civic

involvement includes service on the Georgia Public Telecommunications Committee and the Gwinnett Development Authority. “I think it’s important that we all do our part to help our communities grow,” he says. “As I’ve become more familiar with Tech beyond athletics, I’ve also become more interested in how much Georgia Tech impacts the state.”

It’s another reason why this recognition is meaningful, he says. “I told someone that I’ve been trying to figure out for 45 years how to get a Tech degree without taking a physics class, and I finally did it!” he jokes. “I’m incredibly honored and incredibly proud.”

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Top: Students Paula Elaigwu and Alli Zuge. Middle: Cynthia Culbreath, IE 93, MS IE 95. Bottom: Guest, Paula Elaigwu, Alli Zuge, Jaila Kimbro, Bianca Chuma.

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JUST FOR FUN: TECH-INSPIRED HOBBIES

THESE YELLOW JACKETS IN ALUMNI AFFINITY GROUPS AND NETWORKS SHARE HOW TECH INSPIRED THEIR FAVORITE HOBBIES.

BY SHARITA HANLEY

GGEORGIA TECH IS KNOWN FOR its stellar education, but the Institute helped these alumni discover their favorite hobbies, too, some of which are a natural o shoot of what they studied, while others are more surprising. Whatever you enjoy, one of the best ways to have fun and meet Yellow Jackets with similar interests in your area is to join an Alumni Affinity Group or Regional Network. Visit GTalumni.org/Networks for more information.

OLIVIA POOL, CHBE 18

Northern California Network

Olivia Pool enjoys home brewing, a tasty hobby that involves a series of chemical reactions she learned as a student. “My favorite biochemical reaction in brewing is fermentation.”

HOME BREWING TIP:

“Get cheap gear and join a local homebrew club,” Pool says.

Pool won a“World Cup of Beer” ribbon for an Irish Stout that she submitted in her first local homebrew competition.

M. JOHN RAFFERTY, JR., EE 02

Emerald Coast Network

M. John Rafferty, Jr. collects antique sports cards. “I own hundreds of trading cards of Tech student-athletes who I went to school with, plus many more before and after my time at Tech.”

COLLEEN COX, MGT 94

Atlanta Intown Network

Colleen Cox spends a large amount of her free time attending Tech sporting events, especially football and baseball. “My blood definitely runs gold and white, and the GT spirit is contagious,” she says. “I loved watching my daughter cheer at Tech’s football and basketball games. Seeing her cheer and do the Fight Song, especially the line ‘If I had a daughter, sir, I would dress her in white and gold,’ was amazing and made my mom and me tear up.”

COLLECTOR’S TIP:

“Join the Georgia Tech Antique Collectors Facebook group if you’re interested,” Rafferty says.

Cox (right), her husband, John Cox III, AP 87, EE 91, and daughter Reagan Cox, IE 23, enjoy a Tech game. Cox’s son, John Cox IV, IE 25 (not pictured), is also a Yellow Jacket.

RODNEY ARROYO, M CRP 82

Detroit Metro Network

After his Tech roommate encouraged him to see legendary jazz saxophonist Dexter Gordon at E.J.’s club in Atlanta, listening to jazz quickly became one of Rodney Arroyo’s favorite things to do. “I also saw Miles Davis, McCoy Tymer, and Lionel Hampton while I was at Tech. My favorite jazz artists include John Coltrane, Horace Silver, and Pat Metheny,” Arroyo says.

JAZZ TIP:

“If you’re new to jazz, check out Dave McMurray’s Grateful Deadication 2, which features Grateful Dead songs with a hard bop and soulful style,” Arroyo says.

CHARLENE SMITH, MGT 89

Chinese Alumni Network

Charlene Smith enjoys cycling, tennis, and knitting. “Believe it or not, I cycled to class and took Tennis 101 at Tech,” she says.

CYCLING AND TENNIS TIP:

“Go to your local bike shop and ask for local groups in the area. Search Facebook for groups that ride in your area. Join ALTA or USTA tennis teams in your area,” Smith says.

EILEEN WEBB, CHE 84

Reno Tahoe Network

Eileen Webb loves to ski. After she was introduced to skiing by a former boyfriend, who was also a Yellow Jacket, Webb couldn’t help but enjoy the sport.

LET US WRECKSPLAIN

“What Years did the Thursday night pep rallies happen and when/why did they stop?”

From 1971 to 1975, the

NIGEL GLOVER, CHE 77

The rallies began with the “William Tell Overture” and featured T-Man and T-Squared skits, flash pots, music played on reel-to-reel tape players, and appearances from coaches, cheerleaders, and star players.

SKIING TIP:

“Get the right gear, take lessons, and if you’re tired but want to do another run, take the easiest way down to the bar, hot tub, hotel, or car,” Webb says.

Got a campus-related question you’re dying to ask? Submit it at gtalumni.org/ Wrecksplain and we’ll find the answer.

By 1975, the rallies were just a memory. Some believe they fizzled out when organizers graduated, while others speculate they ended with T-Man’s mysterious disappearance.

Charlene Smith and her husband, Aaron Smith, NE 86, met at Tech.

Ramblin’ Reck Club organized Thursday night pep rallies in the North Stands.

TECH’S YOUNGEST ROLL CALL DONOR

THIS 9YEAROLD’S GIFT IS A REMINDER THAT EVERY GIFT, NO MATTER THE SIZE, COUNTS.

BY SHARITA HANLEY

WWHEN 9-YEAR-OLD Trey

Turnipseed III donated to Roll Call, it wasn’t just a nice gesture—it was the continuation of a family legacy deeply rooted in appreciation for the Institute. Trey’s $3 gift may have been small, but its significance speaks volumes about the values passed down through generations.

“My grandson loves Tech and Buzz,” shares Trey’s grandfather George Ben Turnipseed, CE 69. “Trey’s father and one of his aunts went to Tech, and he sees and knows how much I love Tech. My nephew, Michael Cheever, Mgt 96, and grandson Coleman Poje, IE 17, also graduated from Tech. We’re just Tech people through and through, and he’s picked up on that.”

e family’s Tech spirit runs so deep

in Yellow Jacket style.

“He wanted to go to a Tech football game with friends,” explains Turnipseed, a 52year season ticket holder. “We ate at The Varsity and went to the game. A erward, we went by the Alumni House and got our pictures taken with Buzz and the Ramblin’ Wreck. He had a ball.” Trey also became a Junior Jacket that day and told his grandfather, “It was the best birthday ever.”

attend Tech was solidi ed by its co-op program, which allowed him to work while completing his degree.

Trey’s gi to Roll Call was inspired by watching his family. “Trey learns by seeing people do things,” Turnipseed says. “He saw his father donate and said, ‘I want to give some money to Georgia Tech.’”

“Being a co-op student allowed me to pay my tuition fees. It took ve years to graduate, but I’m grateful for the experience to this day.”

Less than 10 years a er graduating, Turnipseed launched his own company, Turnipseed Engineers. Since then, he has spent decades making an impact in the engineering community.

Trey’s small yet powerful gesture underscores a lifelong commitment to Georgia Tech, embodied by his grandfather. Turnipseed’s own journey with Tech began as a young boy attending games with his father. His choice to

that Trey celebrated his ninth birthday con Schol

In 2019, his contributions were recognized, and he was elected to the Georgia Tech Engineering Hall of Fame. “Next to God, my parents, wife, and family, Georgia Tech is the best thing that happened to me. at’s why I give back to Tech,” he says.

In addition to being a 56-year consecutive Roll Call donor, Turnipseed mentors students, and established and funds the G. Ben Turnipseed Scholarship, ensuring future generations of engineers have access to the same opportunities that shaped his life.

Engineer Day at Trey’s elementary school.

RAMBLIN’ ROLL

CLASS NOTES & ALUMNI UPDATES

WE CAN DO THAT

KATE GUNDERSON,MS AE18, graduated in December from the National Test Pilot School’s Flight Test Engineer Professional Course. She was one of only two candidates to receive a full fellowship and the only female student in her class. Gunderson also earned a Master’s of Science degree in Flight Test Engineering. This year, she will start working in developmental flight testing. She writes about her experience and her mission to empower women in STEM on her blog, The Plane Kate.

CLASS NOTES

STANLEY CONNALLY, JR., ME 93, was named chief operating officer of Southern Company. Previously, Connally served as executive vice president of operations of Southern Company and chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Southern Company Services.

GRETCHEN GOLDMAN, MS ENVE 08, PHD ENVE 11, was named president of the Union of Concerned Scientists. Goldman previously served in the Department of Transportation and the White House as the assistant director for environmental science, engineering, policy, and justice in the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

ATLANTA MAYOR NAMED GEORGIAN OF THE YEAR ANDRE DICKENS, CHE 98, WAS RECOGNIZED BY GEORGIA TREND ALONGSIDE SIX FELLOW ALUMNI AS AMONG THE MOST INFLUENTIAL GEORGIANS IN 2025.

SIX ALUMNI NAMED GEORGIA’S MOST INFLUENTIAL IN 2025

SOO HONG, ECON 03, was appointed to the Georgia State Judicial Nominating Commission. Hong is a founding partner at Blevins & Hong, PC.

DAVID KIM, BME 09, was named partner at Friedland Cianfrani. Kim joined the firm in 2023 as special counsel and has played a significant role in several of the firm’s most important cases, with an emphasis on patent and trademark litigation.

ATLANTA MAYOR ANDRE DICKENS was recognized as the 2025 Georgian of the Year. Georgia Trend highlighted Dickens for his work ethic and nevergive-up attitude.

Dickens graduated in 1998 with a degree in chemical engineering from Georgia Tech and credits the Institute with shaping his problem-solving mindset and playing a formative role in his journey as Atlanta’s 61st mayor. Dickens’ leadership skills shined at Tech, where he served as president of his fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi, and president of the African American Student Union. Dickens has served as a trustee of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association and was recognized by the Alumni Association at the Gold & White Honors Gala in 2024 with the Dean Griffin Community Service Award.

In addition to Dickens, Georgia Trend named six Tech alumni to their annual list of the “100 Most Influential Georgians”:

BRIAN BLAKE, EE 94, President of Georgia State University

ÁNGEL CABRERA, MS PSY 93, PHD PSY 95, President of Georgia Tech

LISA CUPID, ME 00, chair of the Cobb County Board of Commissioners

RODERICK McLEAN, MS EE 93, Vice President and General Manager of Air Mobility & Maritime Missions at Lockheed Martin

KENNETH LIANG, CE 17, and his company Orbital Mining Corporation won second place in NASA’s Watts on the Moon Centennial Challenge, receiving $500,000.

Dickens also will be recognized on May 1 as a 2025 Community Champion by Christian City, a nonprofit based in Union City, Ga.

JANNINE MILLER, MBA 13, Executive Director of SRTA, GRTA, and Atlanta-Regional Transit Link

DR. VALERIE MONTGOMERY

RICE, CHEM 83, President & Dean of Morehouse School of Medicine

Clockwise from Left: Andre Dickens, ChE 98; Brian Blake, EE 94; Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95; Lisa Cupid, ME 00; Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice, Chem 83; Jannine Miller, MBA 13; and Roderick McLean, MS EE 93.

CLASS NOTES

FORBES RECOGNIZES YELLOW JACKETS IN “30 UNDER 30”

FORBES’ “30 UNDER 30 ” list highlights young entrepreneurs and innovators across a range of industries and fields. Each year, a number of alumni, faculty, and students make the list, and the 2025 class is no exception. Check out these impressive Yellow Jackets who were recognized across nine categories:

EDUCATION

SOHAN CHOUDHURY, CLS 21, cofounder Flint

JINSEO PARK, CS 21, cofounder Flint

GARRETT SMILEY, CLS 20, founder Sora Schools

MARKETING & ADVERTISING

TAMARA ZUBATIY, PHD HCC 24, cofounder Barometer

HEALTHCARE

ANIRUDH JOSHI, BME 17, cofounder Valar Labs

GAMES

NESTOR GALARZA, CS 22, CEO, Xnestorio

ART & STYLE

MARIZZA DELGADO, Georgia Tech

student pursuing a master’s in Analytics, Miss New York, and Data Scientist II at Rent the Runway

SCIENCE

ZIJIE JAY WANG, Georgia Tech PhD candidate

ENERGY & GREEN TECH

FABIA FARLIN ATHENA, MS ECE 22, PHD ECE 24, Stanford Global Energy Fellow

TRANSPORTATION & MOBILITY

SARAH HAMER, IE 20, cofounder RetailReady

ELIZABETH RAMANGRUBBS, BA 17, founder Supply Chain Gals

LAWSON SUMNER, ME 20, cofounder Ampere EV

MANUFACTURING & INDUSTRY

BRUNO GEOLY, CLS 22, cofounder Lumindt

MIA RATH, AE 20, MS MSE 22, cofounder Lumindt

JOHNSON NAMED BLACK ENGINEER OF THE YEAR

MAJ. GEN. RON JOHNSON, MS OR 85, received the Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) at the 39th Annual BEYA STEM DTX Conference. Johnson is chief of staff and senior vice president of Strategic Initiatives at Georgia Tech and a Professor of the Practice in the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering. The award is BEYA’s highest honor and recognizes Johnson’s contributions to the STEM community and his impact on countless engineers and technologists. “Ronald L. Johnson’s career exemplifies excellence in leadership,

a commitment to education, and an unwavering dedication to advancing diversity in STEM,” says Tyrone D. Taborn, founder of BEYA.

Johnson’s distinguished 32-year career in the United States Army included several key leadership roles with the

GRACE NELSON, MBA 19, launched Magenta as a fundraising consulting business that partners with mission-focused organizations. Nelson is celebrating Magenta’s fifth year in business.

KERIEMA (SMITH) NEWMAN, CHE 98, was named the executive director of the Region 4 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division. Newman has been with the EPA for 19 years. As director, she leads her division in enforcing environmental laws across eight states.

ADAM SCHLESINGER, MS ECE 07, was named project manager of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services project, which works with American companies to deliver science and technology to the lunar surface. Previously, he was Gateway Program habitation and logistics outpost project lead engineer.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He served as the second-highest-ranking senior engineer staff officer and as the director of the U.S. Army Installation Management Agency. He was also the first Commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Gulf Region Division and U.S. deputy director of the Program Management Office in Iraq. After retiring from the Army in 2008, he became the first-ever senior vice president for referee operations with the National Basketball Association. He returned to Tech in 2013 as a Professor of the Practice.

JIM SCOTT, EE 91, was appointed CEO of UltiSat, focused on delivering communications solutions for defense, humanitarian, and critical infrastructure operations. Scott was previously president of DRS Global Enterprise Solutions before pursuing a six-plus-year stint as a high school technology educator and football coach. He was a walk-on receiver for Tech football. He and his wife, Holly Scott, IE 91 (pictured), have three children and a grandchild on the way.

JEFFREY D. SINGLETON, AE 88, was named deputy assistant secretary of defense for Science and Technology Futures in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. Singleton also represents the broader U.S. research and technology enterprise as the U.S. principal and head of delegation on the NATO Science and Technology Board and on the NATO Defense Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic Board of Directors.

LIEUWEN ELECTED TO ROYAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING

TIM LIEUWEN, MS ME 97, PHD ME 99, Georgia Tech’s executive vice president for research (EVPR), is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a foreign fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering, and a fellow of four major societies. Yet none of his previous recognition involved meeting a member of British royalty, until now. This past November, Princess Anne presented Lieuwen with a Foreign Fellowship in the Royal Academy of Engineering.

“I’m used to being in a room with a bunch of engineers giving you your scroll; this was a whole different experience for me,” says Lieuwen, Regents’ Professor and David S. Lewis, Jr., chair in the College of Engineering.

Lieuwen was one of only three Americans to receive the Fellowship in the 2025 class. He was chosen for his significant contributions to clean energy and propulsion systems as well as his commitment to international collaboration.

Prior to his role as EVPR, Lieuwen served as executive director of the Strategic Energy Institute, where he led research to find new kinds of fuels, help companies modify designs for renewable energy, and ensure future models don’t sacrifice sustainability for performance.

CHRISTA SOBON, MS PSY 96, was promoted to senior director of Operations Management for Cox Automotive, where she’s worked for 11 years. Sobon also serves on the Georgia Tech College of Sciences Advisory Board.

ERIN SULLIVAN, PHD MSE 15, joined the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA) as a research staff member in the Joint Advanced Warfighting Division of IDA’s Systems and Analyses Center.

Much of Lieuwen’s professional career has been spent at Tech, where he first learned as a grad student that he could study the things that fascinated him as a kid—jet engines, small engines, and anything having to do with combustion. (“It was probably something primordial about making fire,” he jokes.) His PhD advisor, Regents’ Professor Emeritus Ben Zinn, pointed him toward the field of combustion.

Today, Lieuwen is focused on solving some of the toughest challenges facing our world, including how to design systems in a clean-energy economy.

Clean energy might seem like an unusual turn for an engineer who was fascinated with combustion, but Lieuwen disagrees. “A lot of people have this idea that as we move into this decarbonized world, that we’re going to move away from fuels and that combustion will go away. That’s not true,” Lieuwen says. “Their role will evolve, and they’ll be major parts of a clean-energy economy, but we’ll just use different fuels that are renewable like hydrogen.”

While we haven’t found solutions yet, Lieuwen says that he’s proud to see Georgia Tech chip away at finding answers. “It’s gratifying to know that the things we’re doing are making a difference for people who are flying all over the world, for power plants that are generating cleaner air, and for not only people in the U.S., but people all around the world.”

Princess Anne of the British royal family presented Lieuwen with the Fellowship.

CLASS NOTES

GREEN TAPPED FOR SAVANNAH RIVER NATIONAL LABORATORY

JOHNEY GREEN JR., MS ME 93, PHD ME 00, will become the next laboratory director of the Savannah River National Laboratory, the national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management.

Green is the associate laboratory director for mechanical and thermal engineering sciences at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. He serves on the Georgia Tech Research and Economic Development External Advisory Board and previously served on the board of the George

MONTGOMERY RICE RECEIVES LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

DR. VALERIE MONTGOMERY RICE, CHEM 83, received the Lifetime Achievement Award as part of the 2025 Health Care Champion Awards from the Atlanta Business Chronicle. The awards honor frontline health care heroes and innovative and influential leaders.

Montgomery Rice is the president and dean of the Morehouse School of Medicine. She’s the sixth president of the school and the first woman to lead the institution. She also served as the founding director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at Meharry Medical College. In 2020, Montgomery Rice was recognized for her pioneering career in health care with the Dean Griffin Community Service Award at the Gold & White Honors Gala.

Engineering.

WEDDINGS

KENDRICK TREADWELL, EE 10, a senior program manager at Google and Georgia Tech Alumni Association “40 Under 40” honoree, was awarded Google’s Lifetime Achievement Citizenship Award for his transformational impact in the Atlanta office. This award recognized him for making outstanding contributions to the Atlanta office’s culture, programs, and community engagement.

WILLIAM WELLS, AE 91, joined the Institute for Defense Analyses as a research staff member in the Information Technology and Systems Division.

W. Woodruff School of Mechanical

Josh Kelley, Mgt 02, and Kenny Huang were married on May 6, 2023, in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. They reside in Chicago, Ill.

WRECKS AT WORK

POWERING UP GREEN ENERGY

SAIFULLAH MALIK, ME 12, is director of Operations for Redwood Materials’ Commercial Cathode team, where he builds cathode active materials operations from the ground up. Here he’s signed the last steel beam for a unit in Reno, Nevada.

ARCHITECTS AT WORK

In the next issue, the Alumni Association is celebrating Wrecks in architecture. Send us your on-the-job selfies at GTalumni.org/wrecksatwork.

BIRTHS

1. JULIENNE KUNG, EE 11, and THOMAS PARK, EE 11, welcomed their daughter this past September. Julienne and Thomas met when they sat beside one another in class at Georgia Tech and married in Chicago in August 2013. The family lives in Peachtree City, Georgia.

2. MAGD RIAD, IE 01, and his wife, Ashley, welcomed their daughter Georgina Adele Riad on Sept. 25, 2024. Georgina joins big sister, Vivienne, and big brother, Luca. The family lives in Atlanta.

OUT & ABOUT

REUNION DOWN UNDER

ANNA, ME 03, and STEVE PINDER, IE 02, and their kids relocated from Midtown Atlanta to Melbourne, Australia, in 2023. This past December, they were joined by friends the McKeehans and the Whites. As students, they were heavily involved across campus, but their bonds solidified through the FASET Cabinet (shout-out to Amy Stalzer!). They celebrated New Year’s Eve 2025 by bringing six kids to the other side of the world to explore Sydney, Melbourne, and Tasmania, including (pictured) the top of kunanyi/Mount Wellington in Hobart, Tasmania. Their friendship started decades ago and has continued through years of Buzz Bashes. Pictured: ANNA (FINCHER) PINDER, ME 03, STEVE PINDER, IE 02, JENNIFER (SMITH) McKEEHAN, IE 05, TOM WHITE JR., IE 04, CHRISTINA NGUYEN WHITE, ID 05, and George McKeehan (friend of Tech), and eight kids, ages 5 to 17.

YELLOW JACKETS EVERYWHERE

Georgia Tech Foundation Trustee Chris Jones, AE 86, organized a tour of the Smithsonian Museum for Tech students in Washington, D.C., last semester. During the tour, they met a tour guide who attended Georgia Tech, too!

END OF THE WORLD

KEITH ASPRAY, CE 75, traveled with his partner, Katherine, to Antarctica. They kayaked and did a polar plunge, whale and penguin watching, and trekking. Here he is on Half Moon Island with his Georgia Tech flag.

ENGINEERING MARVELS

SUSAN MITCHELL, ME 85, recently traveled to Europe with her husband, ROBERT MITCHELL, ICS 84, her brother, JAMEY LEATHERS, ME 81, and her 90-year-old father, JAMES LEATHERS, ME 55. All four grads marveled at the world’s steepest cog railway up to Pilatus, Switzerland, at 7,000 feet.

IN MEMORIAM

WE REMEMBER & HONOR THE FOLLOWING

A LIFETIME OF SERVICE

REMEMBERING HUMANITARIAN, PRESIDENT, AND RAMBLIN’ WRECK JIMMY CARTER, CLS 46, HON PHD 79. CARTER DIED DEC. 29, 2024, AT AGE 100.

EVEN MORE THAN HIS TIME IN THE OVAL OFFICE , Jimmy Carter will be remembered for decades of work as a humanitarian, promoting peace, health, and human rights throughout the world. Georgia Tech alumni share a special connection to President Carter, who was born and raised in Georgia, attended Tech in the 1940s, and later received an honorary degree from the Institute.

At 100 years old, Carter was the nation’s longest-living president. He attended Georgia Tech and the U.S. Naval Academy before becoming a submariner and later entering state politics. He served one term as Georgia’s governor from 1971 to 1975, before making a bid for the presidency.

Carter was elected and became the 39th president in 1977. His term will be remembered for several foreign policy agreements that occurred during his administration, including the Camp David Accords, a peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. In 1979, he returned to Georgia Tech to address students at the Alexander Memorial Coliseum (now McCamish Pavilion) and receive an honorary doctorate.

At the ceremony, Carter joked, “A number of years ago I decided that my being elected president was the only way I

Jimmy Carter transferred to Georgia Tech in 1942.

In 1979, Carter visited Georgia Tech to address students at the Alexander Memorial Coliseum (now McCamish Pavilion) and receive an honorary doctorate.

Carter addressed “fellow Tech students and alumni” in 1979, saying, “I have always been proud that I attended Georgia Tech and I’ve always been grateful for what I learned here. I have attended as a full-time student four different colleges in my life. Georgia Tech is by far the most difficult.”

would ever get a chance to get a degree from Georgia Tech!”

A er leaving o ce in 1981, Carter and his late wife, Rosalynn, founded The Carter Center in partnership with Emory University. The Center is a nonpartisan organization working to improve health and promote peace and human rights through national and international public policy. Among The Carter Center’s many programs around the globe, the Center spearheaded efforts to eradicate Guinea worm disease and engaged in multiple con ict mediations.

In 2002, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his e orts to nd peaceful solutions to international con icts

and advance democracy and human rights. Hardworking and dedicated to service, Carter volunteered for more than 35 years at Habitat for Humanity, championing the organization’s mission to build a ordable homes. He continued building houses well into his 90s. In addition, Carter taught Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church starting in the 1980s.

Carter received the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Progress and Service in 2002. In 2017, the Carters became the rst couple to receive Georgia Tech’s Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage.

In accepting the prize in 2017, Carter said, “In every respect, my heart is with Georgia Tech, and this award has a special meaning for me.”

Carter, sporting his GT cap in Atlanta, was proud of his alma mater.

On the cover of the 1979 Alumni Magazine

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter founded The Carter Center in 1982 to advance democracy, promote peace, prevent diseases, and resolve conflicts around the world.

Reflecting on President Carter’s Legacy

President Jimmy Carter’s decades in public life will be warmly remembered around the world for his determined commitment to peace, human rights, public health, and more.

A Lasting Legacy in the Middle East

“President Carter will be remembered for brokering the Camp David Accords between Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, bringing peace between the Middle East’s two most important rivals at the time. e fruits of President Carter’s personal interest and presidential commitment to brokering this deal has le a lasting legacy in the Middle East.”–Lawrence Rubin, associate professor, Sam Nunn School of International A airs

Surprising Deregulation Impact

“Many people think that Jimmy Carter’s presidency failed to accomplish much, but most people would be surprised to hear that he was the most deregulatory president in American history. During his administration the airlines, trucking, railroads, many aspects of energy, and even basement beer-brewing were largely deregulated. Legislation signed by Carter removed federal control over such areas as fares, routes, and market entry of new airlines and reduced federal oversight, and improved exibility enabled business to operate on the basis of ‘just-in-time delivery.’ is reduced inventory costs and saved companies more than $100 billion.” –Richard Barke, associate professor, School of Public Policy

Editor’s Note: ese excerpts are part of a series of re ections produced by the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. Read the full story at features.iac.gatech.edu/carter-legacy.

Enduring Energy In uence

“One of his most substantial and enduring achievements was the creation of the U.S. Department of Energy in 1977. e department, formed in response to the energy crises rocking the American economy and psyche, was intended to consolidate various federal energy programs scattered across several agencies into a single department, with the aim of better coordinating national energy policy. Since its establishment, it has been at the forefront of e orts to increase energy e ciency, reduce reliance on foreign oil, promote renewable energy, and much more. Its research and development programs have led to signi cant energy technology advancements.”–Marilyn A. Brown, Regents’ Professor and Brook Byers Professor in the School of Public Policy

Moral and Political Courage in Action

Scan the QR code to listen to interviews with Jimmy Carter conducted by the Living History Program.

“Jimmy Carter made an indelible impact on Georgia, our nation, and the world. He had an abundance of courage: moral, physical, political, spiritual, and intellectual. He set an example of integrity bolstered by his strong faith and evidenced by his servant leadership and good works. He was a fearless peacemaker and a champion of human rights, who inspired us to strive for dignity, respect, and fairness to all. He had a spine of steel and intrepid focus and determination. Colin Powell and I had front row seats to these unique Carter traits in Haiti in 1994. I will never forget nervously watching President Carter negotiate every word of the Haitian military’s peaceful turnover of authority, while the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne prepared to land on the roof of the military headquarters, where we were nishing the agreement. Carter was a remarkable human being and a remarkable leader, and he had a remarkable partner in Rosalynn.” –Sam Nunn, IM 60, HON PhD 08, former U.S. Senator and Distinguished Professor of the Practice

1940 s

Josiah V. Benator, IM 43, of Atlanta, on Nov. 28, 2024.

Harry E. DeWeese, ME 49, of Monterey, Calif., on Oct. 9, 2024.

Charles G. “Chuck” Giffin Sr., EE 49, of Missouri City, Texas, on Oct. 6, 2024.

Newt M. Hallman, ChBE 49, of Mount Prospect, Ill., on Sept. 19, 2024.

John H. Hurst, IM 49, of Macon, Ga., on May 2, 2024.

Julian W. Keck Jr., ME 47, of Brooksville, Fla., on Sept. 4, 2023.

1950 s

James S. “Jim” Agnew, IM 59, MS IM 66, of Durham, N.C., on Dec. 12, 2024.

Thomas J. Aldridge, IM 58, of Rome, Ga., on May 1, 2023.

John D. Beck, IE 59, of Ooltewah, Tenn., on Nov. 7, 2024.

Robert A. “Alex” Brown, ME 59, of Alpharetta, Ga., on Oct. 19, 2024.

Charles F. Carlyle, IM 58, of Griffin, Ga., on Oct. 27, 2024.

William A. “Bill” Cashin Jr., EE 55, of Durham, N.C., on Nov. 2, 2024.

Anthony M. “Tony” Daniel, IE 59, of Pell City, Ala., on Nov. 13, 2024.

WADE MITCHELL: FOOTBALL HALLOFFAMER

WADE MITCHELL, TEXT

57 , of Atlanta, on Jan.

6. Mitchell helped lead Tech football to a 36-7-2 record, four bowl victories (1954 Sugar, 1955 Cotton, 1956 Sugar, and 1957 Gator), and four wins over archrival University of Georgia in his four years as a quarterback, safety, and kicker for the Yellow Jackets from 1953 to 1956. He was a three-year starter at quarterback (1954–’56), and a two-time all-Southeastern Conference selection (1955–’56), and served as a team captain for the Jackets as a senior in 1956.

others. He also served on the Atlanta Board of Aldermen (now City Council) from 1969 to 1973. In recognition of his service, he was named “Buckhead Boy of the Year” in 1994.

In his final game as a Yellow Jacket, Mitchell was named MVP of the 1957 Gator Bowl. Mitchell also scored the Jackets’ only touchdown in a 7-0 win over Pitt in the 1956 Sugar Bowl, a game notable for Mitchell joining teammates, coaches, students, and administrators in voicing opposition to efforts to block Tech from playing in the game against Pitt, a racially integrated team.

He was selected in the 12th round of the 1957 National Football League draft but instead chose to serve in the U.S. Navy. After his service, he attended Harvard Business School and had a successful 31-year banking career in Atlanta, retiring from Truist Bank as executive vice president in 1993.

Mitchell was active in many philanthropic boards, including the Georgia Tech Foundation, LifeLink Foundation, the United Way of Atlanta, the Atlanta chapter of the American Red Cross, the U.S.O. Council of Georgia, Shepard Spinal Center, and Big Brothers Big Sisters, among many

His accomplishments on the gridiron led to his induction into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1976, the Gator Bowl Hall of Fame in 1996, and the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2004. He was also a three-time academic all-SEC selection, was a first-team academic all-American in 1955, and remains Tech football’s lone representative of the Academic All-America Hall of Fame, which inducted him in 1996.

He is also a member of the Georgia Tech Engineering Hall of Fame, and as an ROTC officer at Tech, received the Golden Sword Award.

Mitchell is preceded in death by his wife of 58 years, Mary Lu, and they are survived by a son, Wright, a daughter, Catherine, and five grandchildren.

—Georgia Tech Athletics

1956 co-captains Wade Mitchell and George Volkert.

James J. Diffley, IM 56, of Mount Pleasant, S.C., on Sept. 22, 2024.

Richard T. Douty, MS CE 57, of Columbia, Mo., on Oct. 14, 2024.

Alan F. Durfee, EE 53, of Ocala, Fla., on Dec. 5, 2024.

Frank E. Edrington, IM 55, of Peachtree Corners, Ga., on Oct. 6, 2024.

Charles H. Eitel Jr., IE 52, of Franklin, Va., on Nov. 19, 2024.

Don L. Farmer Jr., EE 52, of Richmond, Va., on Oct. 2, 2024.

Holt V. Garrard, IE 57, of Cumming, Ga., on Sept. 15, 2024.

James M. Gassaway, EE 58, IM 58, of Port Saint Lucie, Fla., on Oct. 7, 2024.

Fletcher E. Gaulden, Arch 55, of Greenville, S.C., on Oct. 20, 2024.

Donald A. Givens, EE 54, of Ringgold, Ga., on Oct. 28, 2024.

William M. “Bill” Goldberger, ChBE 50, of Columbus, Ohio, on Sept. 21, 2024.

Joseph M. Googe, EE 51, MS EE 52, PhD EE 63, of Knoxville, Tenn., on Sept. 26, 2024.

Kenneth M. Grant, IM 59, of Winchester, Tenn., on Oct. 27, 2024.

Robert B. Greenbaum, Arch 50, of Largo, Fla., on Oct. 6, 2024.

Charles H. Haney, CE 51, of Monroe, Ga., on Aug. 18, 2022.

GOODMAN BASIL “GB” ESPY: PHYSICIAN & GLOBAL HUMANITARIAN

DR. GOODMAN BASIL ESPY III, ME 57, of Atlanta, on Nov. 7, 2024. Espy proudly attended Georgia Tech, working parttime to push out countless slaw dogs and ’rings at The Varsity to help pay his way through college. At Tech, he tutored football players at the personal request of legendary coach Bobby Dodd. After graduating from Tech, Espy went on to earn his medical degree from Tulane in 1962. He served as a medical officer in the U.S. Army in the mid-1960s and was stationed at Fort McPherson. He completed his internship and residency at Charity Hospital in Louisiana. Shortly thereafter he moved back to Atlanta, where he started his practice and served as president of OBGYN Associates in Marietta from 1967 to 2014.

Espy served as assistant physician for the Georgia Tech football team from 1966 to 1983 and was assistant chief medical officer at the Atlanta 1996 Summer Olympics. An avid

lifelong student and teacher, he was a visiting professor at Tech and lecturer at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital. He was a member of Georgia Tech’s Woodruff School Advisory Board for 20 years and an advisory board member for the bioengineering graduate program. He was inducted into Georgia Tech’s Engineering Hall of Fame in 2023.

and Iraq to the U.S. for major surgeries and for prolonged recoveries. He donated medical equipment and supplies to underserved areas around the world and personally funded and oversaw their delivery and implementation. He also quietly sponsored tuition and college costs for countless individuals, believing in the transformational power of higher education.

Espy’s faith, love for others, and passion for building a better world through service, personal sacrifice, and skill as a medical doctor inspired him to coordinate and embark on numerous medical missions. These missions led him to Southeast Asia, Africa, Haiti, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and other parts of the world. He brought children from Albania

He was preceded in death by his daughter, Anne Neal Espy; his parents, Goodman Basil II and Dacy Pugh Espy; and his brother Patrick Newton Espy.

He is survived by his daughters Margaux (Jaime) Hockin, Brittany (Sean) Ward, his grandchildren, and brothers Isaac (Carol) Espy and Paul (Suellen) Espy.

Lovick O. Hayman, AE 59, of Tomball, Texas, on Oct. 30, 2024.

John P. Hine, TE 58, of Rome, Ga., on Sept. 16, 2024.

James L. Holcomb, IM 56, of Atlanta, on Nov. 5, 2024.

Earl B. Jackson, EE 58, of Dixon, Calif., on Sept. 30, 2024.

Walter E. Kaufmann, ME 51, of Denville, N.J., on Nov. 6, 2024.

James A. “Jim” Kennedy Jr., IE 57, of Woodstock, Ga., on Nov. 18, 2024.

Glenn F. Kirk, ME 54, of Roswell, Ga., on Oct. 2, 2024.

John E. Knighton Jr., ChBE 53, of Fort Myers, Fla., on Oct. 7, 2024.

Richard B. Lane, EE 52, of Arnoldsville, Ga., on March 3, 2024.

Biagio “Gino” Litrico, IM 56, of

Fernandina Beach, Fla., on Oct. 8, 2024.

Marvin M. Macuch, ME 52, of Decatur, Ga., on Jan. 26, 2024.

Ernest A. McCurley, EE 50, of Bethlehem, Ga., on Nov. 26, 2024.

William H. McGee, IM 59, of Hilton Head Island, S.C., on Sept. 27, 2024.

James M. Meeks, IM 56, of Kennesaw, Ga., on Nov. 7, 2024.

BERNIE MARCUS: HONORARY ALUMNUS & COFOUNDER OF THE HOME DEPOT

BERNIE MARCUS, HON PHD 15, of Atlanta, on Nov. 4, 2024. Marcus, cofounder of The Home Depot, was a passionate supporter of education, research, and innovation. Over nearly two decades, The Marcus Foundation provided strategic and significant support to Georgia Tech as well as numerous charitable causes.

Marcus’s most visible contributions at Tech are the Marcus Nanotechnology Building, a state-of-the-art facility that features the largest cleanroom laboratory dedicated to the fabrication and assembly of biomedical and semiconductor devices in the Southeast, and the Marcus Center for Therapeutic Cell Characterization and Manufacturing, which has been pivotal in advancing the manufacturing process of cellular medicines, making them more accessible and affordable.

Marcus’s support also extended to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship among students. The CREATE-X initiative, backed by an investment from The Marcus Foundation, has

empowered over 17,000 students to launch more than 500 startups, powered Georgia Tech’s startup culture, and has inspired entrepreneurial engagement both nationally and internationally.

In recognition of his profound impact, Marcus was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Philosophy degree by Georgia Tech in December 2015. This honor acknowledged his revolutionary contributions to the home improvement retail industry, his transformative philanthropy, and his advancement of Georgia Tech’s research enterprise.

expanded around the world, employing more than 500,000 associates.

The son of Jewish immigrants, Marcus was born in 1929 and was raised in Newark, New Jersey. After being fired from Handy Dan Home Improvement at age 49, Marcus cofounded The Home Depot, which opened its first stores in Atlanta in 1979. The doit-yourself home improvement stores

Philanthropy was core to Marcus’ upbringing, and he and his wife, Billi, pledged to give away most of their money during their lifetime. Among their many civic and philanthropic contributions, the couple built the Georgia Aquarium, Grady Hospital’s Marcus Trauma and Emergency Center, and the Marcus Heart and Vascular Center at Piedmont Atlanta Hospital, as well as contributing a grant to the Construction Education Foundation of Georgia.

Richard M. Mosrie Jr., MS IM 57, of Cumming, Ga., on Sept. 29, 2024.

George D. Moss Jr., TE 57, of Hilton Head Island, S.C., on Oct. 15, 2024.

Lewis Price Sr., TE 55, of Rising Fawn, Ga., on Oct. 1, 2024.

Francis D. “Denny” Pryor, IM 51, of Kingwood, Texas, on Sept. 1, 2024.

Richard W. Ralston Jr., ChBE 53, of Hixson, Tenn., on Oct. 16, 2024.

Robert C. Ranew, ME 57, of Greenville, S.C., on Sept. 2, 2024.

Minor G. “Garland” Reynolds Jr., Arch 59, Arch 60, of Gainesville, Ga., on Sept. 30, 2024.

Leon H. Robertson, IM 58, MS IM 59, of Overland Park, Kan., on June 4, 2024.

William T. Rowe, MS AE 51, of Anaheim, Calif., on Sept. 26, 2024.

William E. Rupp, EE 52, of Asheville, N.C., on Oct. 12, 2024.

Edgar O. Seaquist Jr., ME 55, of Annapolis, Md., on Oct. 30, 2024.

Benjamin M. “Mike” Smith, CE 58, MS SanE 60, PhD SanE 68, of Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 18, 2024.

Thomas M. Smith, IM 57, of Carrollton, Ga., on Nov. 10, 2024.

Robert J. “Jack” Stripling Jr., TE 51, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., on Dec. 7, 2024.

Richard J. Tata, IE 56, of Modesto, Calif., on Oct. 6, 2024.

Grayson D. Tate Jr., AE 58, MS AE 58, of Wilmington, N.C., on Nov. 6, 2024.

Billy J. Taylor, TE 59, of Rome, Ga., on Oct. 27, 2024.

Eben F. Tilly Jr., IM 52, of Boulder, Colo., on Dec. 2, 2024.

Oscar Zeller, IE 59, of New Smyrna Beach, Fla., on Sept. 23, 2024.

1960 s

Hilton J. Arnold Jr., IM 62, of Inlet Beach, Fla., on Nov. 7, 2024.

Joseph B. Arnold, Phys 65, of McMinnville, Ore., on Sept. 26, 2024.

Warren L. Batts, EE 61, of La Jolla, Calif., on Sept. 2, 2024.

Michael Bayer, MS IE 60, of Chattanooga, Tenn., on Nov. 19, 2024.

Arthur R. Blethen, IM 66, of Dallas, Ga., on Aug. 21, 2022.

Lucien C. Bomar Jr., EE 69, MS EE 84, of Duluth, Ga., on Oct. 9, 2024.

James H. Bowman, CE 60, of Defuniak Springs, Fla., on Nov. 2, 2024.

Daniel H. “Dan” Bradley, IM 61, of Savannah, Ga., on Dec. 3, 2024.

Allen S. Braswell, EE 62, of Belleair, Fla., on Oct. 30, 2024.

John J. Bredenberg Jr., IE 64, of Greensboro, N.C., on Oct. 11, 2024.

Jere A. Burruss, CE 60, of Gainesville, Ga., on Oct. 15, 2019.

David B. “Dave” Carmichael, IE 60, of Prescott, Ariz., on Sept. 27, 2024.

Charles S. Cooper, Phys 67, of Arlington Heights, Ill., on Sept. 30, 2024.

Burton M. “Burt” Courtney, CE 61, MS CE 65, of Thomasville, Ga., on Nov. 18, 2024.

Max L. Dufeny Jr., IM 60, of Tampa, Fla., on Aug. 22, 2024.

Jerald F. “Jerry” Duval, EE 62, of Clifton, Texas, on March 31, 2024.

Thomas C. “Tom” Grozan, AE 68, of San Luis Obispo, Calif., on Sept. 30, 2024.

Raleigh D. “David” Hackstadt, Bio 68, of Tampa, Fla., on Oct. 27, 2024.

Thomas E. Hammond, Psy 65, of Granville, Vt., on Nov. 3, 2024.

James S. Hampton, ChBE 66, of Harrison, Ohio, on Oct. 12, 2024.

William A. “Andy” Harvill, ME 68, of Sapphire, N.C., on Oct. 28, 2024.

Frank A. Herman, EE 69, of Scottsdale, Ariz., on Oct. 28, 2024.

Donald E. Hill, MS CE 65, of Loganville, Ga., on Nov. 1, 2024.

Douglas B. Horne, CE 69, of Acworth, Ga., on Nov. 12, 2024.

Don C. Hutcherson, AE 62, of Aledo, Texas, on March 28, 2024.

John S. “Jacki” Jennings, IE 65, of Tucker, Ga., on Nov. 16, 2024.

Linda F. Johnson, Math 69, of Buford, Ga., on Nov. 23, 2024.

Steve “Stephen” Lang Jr., EE 64, of San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 2, 2024.

William H. “Bill” Langdon, IE 67, of Marietta, Ga., on Oct. 13, 2024.

Thomas L. Mann Jr., ME 65, of Fort Monroe, Va., on Sept. 19, 2024.

L. B. “Bradley” Marling, CerE 67, of North Richland Hills, Texas, on Oct. 16, 2024.

Kenneth W. Meeks, CE 68, MS CE 70, of Cumming, Ga., on Oct. 29, 2024.

Rex Miller Jr., ME 65, of Statesboro, Ga., on Nov. 1, 2024.

Louis A. Mitchell, Chem 68, of Temple, Texas, on Nov. 14, 2024.

Mahmood M. “Mike” Mohajery, MS ME 68, of Longmeadow, Mass., on Nov. 26, 2024.

MARIO DI LELLA: CAMPUS MINISTER FOR 38 YEARS

BR. MARIO DI LELLA, of Beacon, N.Y., on Nov. 13, 2024. Di Lella was campus minister at the Catholic Center at Georgia Tech for almost 38 years, starting in 1970 and retiring in 2008. He was a professed Franciscan friar for 76 years and a priest for 71 years. He attended St. Bonaventure Elementary School and graduated from St. Bonaventure High School in 1945. Thanks to the influence of the friars serving at St. Bonaventure Parish, he decided to join the friars’ formation program at St. Joseph Seraphic Seminary in Callicoon, New York. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 12, 1953.

Di Lella’s first assignment in 1954 was to a mission parish in Moultrie, Georgia, as the first permanent

pastor. He entered the U.S. Air Force as a reservist on active duty in November 1958 and was promoted to full colonel in 1978. He retired from the Air Force Reserves in 1987 and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for outstanding service as a military chaplain. In addition, he served as pastor of St. Augustine Church in Thomasville, Georgia, from 1964 to 1970, and was religious superior of the Franciscan friary there. Most of Di Lella’s years as a friar were dedicated to campus ministry. In addition to his 38 years of service at Georgia Tech, he spent four years at the University of Florida at St. Petersburg. In 1984, he received the Graduate Student Center Staff Member of the Year Award at Georgia

Thomas O. Morris, ME 62, MS ME 67, of Rockwood, Tenn., on Oct. 1, 2024.

Harold G. Preble Jr., ChBE 65, of Diamondhead, Miss., on Nov. 21, 2024.

Patrick W. Price, CE 62, of Cairo, Ga., on Nov. 24, 2024.

Larry H. Prisant, IM 61, of Albany, Ga., on Oct. 6, 2024.

Richard L. Proulx Sr., IM 65, of Tampa, Fla., on Oct. 26, 2024.

Lee R. Reid Jr., IM 62, of Hattiesburg, Miss., on Aug. 13, 2024.

William A. Robison, CE 60, of Ormond Beach, Fla., on Oct. 10, 2024.

Tech, and the following year, spearheaded construction of a new Catholic Center building on campus. Di Lella received the Gold & White Honors honorary alumnus distinction from the Georgia Tech Alumni Association in 1989.

Teddy W. Russell, CE 63, of Lebanon, Pa., on Nov. 27, 2024.

James L. “Jimmy” Scates, ME 66, of Jackson, Miss., on April 4, 2021.

Howard V. Seymour, TE 67, of Saint Simons Island, Ga., on Sept. 26, 2024.

Jimmy H. Shuman, ME 61, of Atlanta, on Dec. 1, 2024.

Robert M. Snuggs, Phys 64, MS Phys 66, PhD Phys 70, of Gainesville, Va., on Dec. 3, 2024.

David G. Stafford, IM 61, of Hartwell, Ga., on Nov. 25, 2024.

Robert D. Starr, Arch 63, of Atlanta, on Sept. 28, 2023.

Russell C. Surles, TextChem 66, of Spartanburg, S.C., on Sept. 23, 2024.

Norman H. Thompson, M CP 61, of Hollywood, Fla., on Oct. 15, 2024.

Dom R. Underwood, Cls 61, of Gainesville, Fla., on Nov. 20, 2024.

Michael B. Williams, ME 69, of Maryville, Tenn., on Oct. 21, 2020.

EUGENE MILLER: MAN OF MANY HATS

EUGENE MILLER, CHEM 45, of Boca Raton, Fla, on Nov. 21, 2024. Known as “a man of many hats,” Miller had a diverse career as a journalist, business leader, professor, Naval officer, and government executive. At age 17, he enlisted in the Navy V-12 program and was assigned to attend both Bethany College and Georgia Tech. He received his commission as Ensign in the Navy Supply Corps, and in 1945 was assigned on the USS Stribling (DD-867). He retired from active duty in 1946 and began a career in the Naval Reserve, retiring in 1966 with the rank of commander.

After completing his graduate studies at the Columbia University School of Journalism, he became a reporter for the Greensboro Daily News. This was the start of a journalism career that included serving as local correspondent for 45 trade

magazines as well as Business Week and Newsweek magazines and eventually being named a vice president of McGrawHill Publishing Company. He wrote a twice-a-week personal business column, “Your Purse Strings,” which appeared in Newsday, the Long Island daily news outlet, and was syndicated by the paper to 50 newspapers throughout the country.

Catherine L. “Cathy” Wilson, ChBE 67, of Hampstead, N.C., on July 23, 2024.

Donald C. Woods, IM 64, of Saint Simons Island, Ga., on Sept. 28, 2024.

Ping P. Yang, MS Chem 69, PhD Chem 72, of Porter Ranch, Calif., on Oct. 7, 2024.

1970 s

Ronald P. “Ron” Bowman, IE 71, of Raleigh, N.C., on Nov. 14, 2024.

Billy O. Brown, MS ICS 77, of Carrollton, Ga., on Nov. 28, 2024.

In 1951, he married Edith Sutker. They had three children, Ross, Scott, and June. In 1965, he divorced, and later married Thelma Gottlieb, adding her two sons, Paul and Alan, to the family.

He started his own business,

Eugene Miller and Associates, a public and investor relations consulting firm, and later joined the United States Gypsum Company (now named USG Corporation). He retired from USG Corporation as vice chairman and director in 1991. In his business career, he served as a director of 14 public and private companies. A lifelong learner, Miller obtained numerous degrees and became a professor at the College of Business at Florida Atlantic University.

Miller is survived by his wife, Thelma Miller, his sons, Ross Miller and Scott Miller, his daughter, June Miller, stepson, Alan Gottlieb, 10 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

Albert R. “Dick” Bunn, Arch 73, of Atlanta, on Nov. 17, 2024.

Steven L. “Steve” Carter, MS ICS 77, of Tallahassee, Fla., on Dec. 4, 2024.

Christopher E. Case, Mgt 72, of Claxton, Ga., on Oct. 1, 2024.

David G. Draut, CE 73, of Easton, Md., on Dec. 2, 2024.

Arthur M. “Mac” Erwin Jr., BC 77, of Lexington, S.C., on Oct. 24, 2024.

Christopher B. Fite, IM 71, of Taylors, S.C., on Oct. 8, 2024.

Larry C. Frosteg, MSCI 73, of Pelham, Ga., on Dec. 6, 2024.

Billy V. “Vann” Houston Jr., IE 79, of Marietta, Ga., on Nov. 5, 2024.

John T. Hyder, IM 73, of Saint Paul, Minn., on Oct. 10, 2024.

David H. Jameson, IM 72, of Peachtree Corners, Ga., on Nov. 9, 2024.

William L. “Lloyd” Johnson III, Mgt 76, of Washington, Ga., on Oct. 26, 2024.

James W. Lee, M CP 71, MS CE 71, of Winter Park, Fla., on Aug. 17, 2024.

PATRICK GEORGE M c KEOWN: PROFESSOR & AUTHOR

PATRICK GEORGE “PAT” M c KEOWN, AE 65, MS IM 67, of Fort Myers Beach, Fla., on Dec. 5, 2024.

McKeown attended Georgia Tech, where he was a lettered swimmer and was inducted into the honorary engineering societies Sigma Gamma Tau and Tau Beta Pi. He was also a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.

In 1973, he completed a PhD in Operations Research at the University of North Carolina. In 1976, he accepted a position at the University of Georgia in the newly minted Management Science department.

After meeting exactly six months earlier, he married the love of his life, Carolyn Myers, of Franklin, N.C., on Aug. 6, 1967, and they enjoyed 57 wonderful years together.

McKeown, who was professor emeritus in the Terry College of Business of the University of Georgia,

taught in many international locations, including France, Finland, Portugal, South Africa, Germany, Latvia, and New Zealand, in addition to writing over 30 textbooks in the field of computer literacy and electronic commerce. He co-authored one of the first books about the World Wide Web, which was translated into multiple languages. He received the Terry College Distinguished Service Award

Paul S. Li, MS ESM 70, of Jacksonville, Fla., on Sept. 20, 2024.

James J. “Jim” Mayes Jr., BC 70, of Philadelphia, Pa., on Sept. 20, 2024.

Steve N. Millspaugh, Cls 71, of Roswell, Ga., on Oct. 2, 2024.

Charles B. “Chuck” Mudd Jr., MS CE 72, MS CP 72, of Tampa, Fla., on Nov. 9, 2024.

Dennis E. Munczenski, Mgt 73, of Hixson, Tenn., on Sept. 30, 2024.

Robert S. Newsham Jr., ChBE 70, of New Orleans, La., on Oct. 14, 2024.

in 1997 and was awarded a Fulbright Scholar appointment to Portugal in 1998. In 1999, McKeown became the founding department head of the new Management Information Systems department of the Terry College of Business.

He and Carolyn both retired in 2003 and took up residency for most of the year at their second home in Fort Myers Beach, where McKeown had spent much of his boyhood. There they enjoyed biking, fishing, and Gulfside living for the past 21 years.

McKeown was preceded in death by his parents, Maxwell Bertelle and Jane Harris McKeown. He is survived by his wife, Carolyn (Myers) McKeown; daughter, Ashley McKeown (Todd Ahlman), grandchildren Keegan Patrick Ahlman and Kathryn Jane Ahlman, son, Christopher Patrick McKeown, and sister, Beth Elsey.

Thomas A. Reed, MS AE 72, of Mesa, Ariz., on Sept. 28, 2024.

William H. “Bill” Scoggins, CE 72, of Frisco, Texas, on Sept. 17, 2024.

Clark W. Smith, IE 70, MS IE 71, of Savannah, Ga., on Sept. 27, 2024.

John P. Stanford, M CP 71, of Santa Fe, N.M., on Sept. 3, 2024.

Michael J. Stokes, CE 73, of Panama City, Fla., on Nov. 17, 2024.

Tamer Uzun, MS CE 70, of Atlanta, on Nov. 1, 2023.

THOMAS “TOM” PRIEST: PROUD YELLOW JACKET

THOMAS “TOM” PRIEST, IE 94, of Suwanee, Ga., on Oct. 22, 2024. Priest was known for his infectious humor, love of family, support of Georgia Tech, and love of golf and running. A natural motivator and mentor, he had a gift for helping others reach their full potential, whether in education, athletics, or personal growth. He had a wide circle of friends, with everyone who met him drawn to his warmth and wit. His love of comedy and ability to make others laugh left lasting impressions on all who knew him.

As vice president of Sales and Marketing at Pratt Industries, where he’d worked for over a decade, Priest was respected for both his professional excellence and his dedication to supporting his colleagues. He earned a degree in Industrial Engineering with highest honors from Georgia Tech and an MBA from Harvard. His passion for education went beyond his own achievements, as he consistently encouraged and inspired his children and others in their academic and life pursuits.

a member of several honor societies, SGA, and the Ramblin’ Reck Club. As the Wreck driver in 1992, he drove the Institute’s mascot onto the Georgia Tech football field before home games.

Vijay G. Varki, M Arch 78, M CP 78, of Miami, Fla., on Sept. 11, 2024.

Robert E. Watson Jr., TE 78, of Tolland, Conn., on Oct. 18, 2024.

1980 s

Robert E. Armstrong, HS 83, of Lima, Ohio, on Oct. 3, 2024.

Donnie W. Blankenship, PhD Chem 82, of Evans, Ga., on June 3, 2024.

Teddi S. (Lane) Harrell, IE 85, of Peachtree Corners, Ga., on Oct. 18, 2024.

Mark R. Hefner, EE 81, MS IM 83, of Durham, N.C., on Sept. 2, 2023.

Philip L. Holdbrooks, IE 85, of Cumming, Ga., on Nov. 19, 2024.

Lorraine H. Kelley, M CP 87, of Rockford, Ala., on Jan. 21, 2024.

Mark P. Lowe, EE 84, of Silver Creek, Ga., on Oct. 21, 2024.

Farhad Marvasti, MS IM 82, of Westlake Village, Calif., on Nov. 12, 2024.

At Georgia Tech, he was an RA and

Priest is survived by his wife, Andrea, children Hannah, Connor, and Riley, his father, Jim, brothers, Anthony, Alan, and Lee, his nephews, Davis, Adam, and Josh, and nieces, Lucy and Audrey. All three of his children have followed in his footsteps and are studying at Georgia Tech.

Ronald “Ron” Neislar, M CP 81, of Athens, Ga., on Nov. 24, 2024.

Ethan T. Sailers Sr., Mgt 86, of Carrollton, Ga., on Oct. 15, 2024.

Martha M. Scott, ESM 84, of Live Oak, Fla., on Oct. 27, 2024.

Robert S. “Bob” Terry, EE 86, MS EE 88, of Lawrenceville, Ga., on Oct. 29, 2024.

William A. Wilson, ME 84, of Little Rock, Ark., on Oct. 10, 2024.

1990 s

James E. Gaby, MS EE 91, of Hopkinton, Mass., on Sept. 27, 2022.

Peter W. Hart, PhD ChBE 92, of Atlanta, on May 11, 2024.

Michael S. Heyda, CS 95, of Zeeland, Mich., on Aug. 30, 2024.

Scott E. Leonard, Mgt 96, of Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 5, 2024.

John J. Siedlecki, MS EE 97, of Mason, Ohio, on Oct. 1, 2024.

Michael D. Teems Jr., ID 90, of Atlanta, on Nov. 25, 2024.

2000 s

Marie K. Ducheine, MBA 08, of Lawrenceville, Ga., on July 19, 2024.

Andrew P. Ramsey, MSE 08, of Frostburg, Md., on Oct. 11, 2024.

2010 s

Timothy J. “Tim” Murray, ME 17, of Raleigh, N.C., on Oct. 14, 2024.

Donophan C. Price Jr., MBA 12, of Senoia, Ga., on Nov. 8, 2024.

Richard Y. Wong, MBA 15, of Suwanee, Ga., on Nov. 23, 2024.

FRIENDS

Robert G. Bell, of Fernandina Beach, Fla., on Sept. 14, 2024.

Richard L. Dagenhart, of Atlanta, on Dec. 5, 2024.

Margaret B. “Peggy” Dominey, of Atlanta, on April 2, 2024.

Wayne S. Willis, of Garland, Utah, on Nov. 1, 2024.

PENELOPE ABELLERA: STUDENT LEADER

PENELOPE ABELLERA, IAML 24, of Dunwoody, Ga., on Nov. 25, 2024. Penelope Abellera passed away surrounded by a group of loving family and friends after a battle with osteosarcoma. Abellera was set to graduate from Georgia Tech a month after her death in December. She graduated posthumously with highest honors at the winter commencement, where her family received her degree in her honor. Abellera deeply impacted everyone she met with her sheer determination, intelligence, sense of humor, vision for a better future, and giant heart. She graduated from Dunwoody High School in 2020 and then went on to major in International Affairs and Modern Languages and minor in Sustainable City Planning at Georgia Tech. She was a varsity cheerleader, campus tour guide, an intern at The Carter Center, and a leader within her sorority, Alpha Phi, where she served

as the sorority’s director of events and director of diversity. She cared deeply about fighting injustice and protecting the environment.

Abellera was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in late 2022. Throughout her illness, she served on the junior advisory board of MIB Agents, a pediatric osteosarcoma support group.

In lieu of flowers, her family has requested donations be sent to The Penelope Abellera Osteosarcoma Fund at MIB Agents.

EDITOR’S NOTE

For the In Memoriam section of the Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, we will include an abbreviated version of each obituary in print. Full obituaries can be found at gtalumni.org/InMemoriam. To report a death, please email updates@gtf.gatech.edu.

ENTERTAINMENT THROUGH THE DECADES

WHETHER AT THE YMCA BUILDING, JUNIOR’S GRILL, OR A GREEK LIFE DANCE, STUDENTS KNEW HOW TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WHAT LITTLE FREE TIME THEY HAD.

BY JACK PURDY, BA 22

FFRIENDS, SLEEP, OR GOOD GRADES. e joke goes that as a Georgia Tech student, you usually only get two of the three. That doesn’t leave much room for downtime.

“During the week we didn’t have time to do anything else but study,” said Jay Reynolds, ME 1926, in a Living History interview conducted in 1995.

While the student experience has changed since Reynolds was a Ramblin’ Wreck, Tech students through the decades have always cherished their downtime.

Post World War II, that often consisted of intramural sports, Greek events, football games, Fox Theatre productions, student clubs and socials, Braves games, a lazy night in the dorm, date nights, and more recently, a TV show to binge-watch.

EARLY YEARS: THE YMCA

Before Tech had an official student center, the YMCA building on North Avenue was a common spot to gather. Between 1912 and 1915, the building became a focal point of campus life, hosting everything from the offices of the Technique and the student yearbook to a barber shop, a lecture hall, and a space for religious and social gatherings. In fact, by 1915, according to Engineering the New South, Bible studies classes at the YMCA drew over 350 Tech students, nearly half of the undergraduate student body at the time.

By the 1930s, the YMCA was also serving as a matchmaker. “That’s how [students] attracted young ladies, they attended the Tech Bible classes,” Rayford Kytle, Jr., ChE 1936, said in a Living History interview conducted in 1996.

In 1979, when the building was rededicated as the L.W. “Chip” Robert, Jr. Alumni House, it was noted in the dedication program that “at one time, the building housed every student organization on campus.” Glee Club, the oldest student organization on campus, practiced in its auditorium. The first DramaTech productions were held at the YMCA. Dances occurred on Fridays. Tech’s Camera Club had a darkroom in the basement. The ping-pong and pool tables were always in use. The Marching Band even practiced in the basement while the concrete stands of Grant Field were being built.

Outside of the YMCA, ballroom dances became so popular in 1912 that in December, school leaders had to limit the number of dances that each student organization could organize and required they end by midnight. Still, the Cotillion Club was allowed five dances while other clubs and fraternities held one per year. 1960 s

While the YMCA was a hub for those who weren’t in Greek life, “fraternities held unquestioned control over Student Government, the Technique, the Ramblin’ Reck Club, and nearly all aspects of Tech ‘traditions’ and extracurricular life,”according to Engineeringthe NewSouth

By 1966, the Blueprint, Tech’s student yearbook, declared fraternities the main source of entertainment for students. Intramural football games between the fraternity houses drew sizeable crowds.

Georgia Tech student crowds watch an intramural football game in the early 1960s.

1970 s

In 1975, Tommy Klemis, Cls 71, took over Junior’s Grill at the corner of Techwood Drive and North Avenue and later in the Bradley Building under Tech Tower. Klemis’ 36-year run as co-owner turned him into a beloved campus figure and Junior’s into a legendary campus haunt.

Ivey Laminack, Phys 79, says, “I remember one day Tom and I were talking, and he said, ‘Strange thing is, I never thought this would be, but Junior’s is turning into a social spot. Girls will come in and read a book. Guys come sit beside them and make small talk. It’s turned into a social institution.’”

Now if pizza—not chicken tenders—was your goal, Laminack says you walked down North Avenue to M.J. Pippin for a Chicago-style deep-dish. “That was where I learned to love pizza. You ordered it and it would literally take 45 minutes for them to bake it,” he recalls.

From the outfits on the pages of the 1980s Blueprint, Georgia Tech wasn’t saved from the ’80s fashion scene. For Jonathan Elmore, Arch 90, Grumpy’s, a bar near campus, was a favorite. He especially liked their “Bladder Busters” challenge.

“They would form a line out front, and it was always some football player at the door and then another football player or two at the bathroom door. You’d line up on the sidewalk, they’d open the door, and you had your money ready. It was like five bucks. Everybody would pile in and they would shut the front door. Basically, everybody drank free with wild abandon until someone had to pee,” says Elmore, who is now Mayor of the City of Avondale Estates.

Junior’s Grill was a popular spot from the 1970s through 2011, when it closed.

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1990 s 2000 s

In the 1990s, nothing beat going to an Atlanta Braves game. Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, their original Atlanta home, was only two miles from campus, and the team was in the midst of its greatest stretch in program history. For a few bucks, a student could sit in the upper deck and take in any number of MVPs and hall-of-famers—or if they were lucky, the 1995 World Series Championship. Between the Braves and Georgia Tech baseball’s run to the 1994 College World Series, the ’90s was a perfect decade for Tech students to spend free time at a baseball game.

We couldn’t possibly capture every fun or quirky way that Tech students spent their leisure time through the decades. Let us know how you spent your time between classes—share your memory at GTalumni. org/Unwind.

The Music Listening Room, located in Tech’s former Student Center, was beginning to be outdated by the early 2000s as using an mp3 player or laptop became a more popular way to access music. Still, it was a “loud, dark room” where students could go to listen to CDs or vinyl, says Matthew Robertson, CM 08, who worked in the Music Listening Room in the mid-2000s. “It was kind of the opposite of the library,” adds Robertson. It was one of the last places on campus where you could listen to a large library of physical music. Plus, it was an escape from the normal hustle of classes.

“There were different music stations that people could come listen to CDs or vinyl,” Robertson says. “People could request albums at the front counter and we would cue them up at one of the headphone listening stations around the room. At this point CDs were our primary format, but we still had turntables and vinyl records from the earlier era.”

2010 s TO PRESENT

As campus grows, so do the ways students spend their free time. Today, Tech boasts 300-plus clubs and organizations for hobbies, cultural interests, arts, and athletics. With over 52,000 undergraduate and graduate students enrolled as of Fall 2024, there is a niche for everyone, from meditation to bridge to—at one point—Lettuce Club.

Anthony Limiero, AE 22

PAGE

FILMED AT TECH

HERE’S A WATCH LIST TO PLAN YOUR NEXT MOVIE NIGHT.

BY JENNIFER HERSEIM

LOCATED IN THE HEART OF “Y’ALLYWOOD,” Georgia Tech has served as the backdrop for many popular movies and shows. Some campus spots you might recognize immediately—Is that the Clough Building they’re calling Google’s headquarters?—while other familiar places are transformed by movie magic.

TECH MOVIE BUFFS:

Can you match the location on campus where these movies were filmed? Take the quiz at GTalumni.org/GTMovies

“One of the most common requests we get is for the Academy of Medicine because it can be turned into a government building or serve as a residence,” says Julie Birchfield, director of Community Engagement, who leads Tech’s Film

YELLOW JACKET REFERENCES

Logistics, Activations, and Relationship Building.

Birchfield and her team coordinate with lm crews to scout locations, manage logistics, and importantly, limit the interruptions to student life and campus activity.

This isn’t a complete list of films shot on campus—Georgia Tech often can’t speak about current projects—but it’s a start to plan your next movie night.

Beyond the movies filmed on campus, there are even more references to Georgia Tech on the big screen.

In Fly Me to the Moon (2024), a historical romantic comedy set in the Apollo 11 era, a character played by Scarlett Johansson meets a senator from Georgia and claims to be a Tech engineer.

“You probably don’t remember me, but you spoke at my sophomore year at college—Georgia Tech ’55,” her character says. “You’re a Buzz?” the senator replies.

Clearly, the writer wasn’t a Tech alum with that line, but there was a Buzz, er, Yellow Jacket, on set.

By day, Paul Todd, IM 86, is the group manager for Op-

Genius MLK/X (2024)

Beauty in Black (2024 TV series)

Superintelligence (2020)

Cobra Kai (2018 TV series)

The Accountant (2016)

The Internship (2013)

Trouble with the Curve (2012)

The Blind Side (2009)

One Missed Call (2008)

Stomp the Yard (2007)

Drumline (2002)

Road Trip (2000)

Scream 2 (1997)

Love Potion No. 9 (1992)

The Bear (1984)

erational Excellence at Georgia Tech’s Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership (GaMEP). A big movie fan, Todd moonlights as a background actor and played a NASA scientist in the film. You can spot him in mission control wearing a thin tie, pocket protector, and wire-rimmed glasses behind Johansson’s co-star, Channing Tatum.

“It’s been fun to see behind-thescenes of how movies and TV shows are made, and I’m struck by how much effort it takes to make a movie, even a single scene,” he says.

The first rule in background acting, Todd says, is to not talk to the actors on set. “I joke that Scarlett Johansson and I are close working partners, but really I was just in the same room,” Todd says. “If I do meet her one day, now I can tell her that I’m a fellow alum.”

Several scenes in Cobra Kai were filmed in the Kappa Sigma fraternity building.

Paul Todd, IM 86, played a NASA scientist in this scene with actor Channing Tatum in Fly Me to the Moon (2024).

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