Katelyn McCutcheon, left, receives the Engineering Student of the Year award from E&S Dean Leo Hanifin at the 2010 Slide Rule Dinner.

Civil & Mechanical Engineering graduate Katelyn McCutcheon was selected valedictorian of the 2010 graduating class and presented her remarks at the McNichols Commencement, May 15. She was recognized for her high academic standing and her extracurricular contributions. McCutcheon holds a 3.99 GPA and made the Engineering & Science dean's list each semester. She was named the 2010 Michigan Society of Professional Engineers Student of the Year. From 2007-2009, McKutcheon was named to the Athletic Director's Honor Roll and also received the UDM Engineering & Science Scholarship Key Award. In 2008 and 2009, she received the Jiunn P. Chenn Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement in Mechanical Engineering. She is student dean of the Honors Program and former member of the UDM softball team. She is currently president of Pi Tau Sigma, the national Mechanical Engineering Honor Society, and is a member of Alpha Sigma Nu, the national Jesuit Honor Society, and the UDM student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

UDM Society of Auto Engineers (SAE) student chapter members attended the SAE Dinner, Feb. 10 to hear auto industry leaders and journalists discuss the state of the auto industry. Seated at center are UDM faculty advisor Nassif Rayess (fifth from right) and 2010 valedictorian Katelyn McCutcheon (fifth from left).

Mathematics major Allison Cullen was recently accepted into three Research Experiences for Undergrads (REU) programs. These are National Science Foundation-funded summer research programs, where the host institutions select a small group of students from across the nation.

You can now view on YouTube the segment of the TV show A Wider World, which features the UDM Engineering capstone design projects that help disabled people. The show was broadcast on PBS stations around the country last November.

As winners of the Ford-UDM Innovation Contest, UDM Architecture students Derek Wendt and Dean Storm visited IDEO, a design and innovation firm in Chicago that helps design products, services, environments, and digital experiences for businesses as well as provides management consulting. The students had the opportunity to review prototypes of Ford SYNC applications during an "expert user" test.

A team of UDM Electrical and Mechanical Engineering students received the second place award at the Robotics Innovation Competition and Conference, held at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in November. UDM's team created a robot, SEALE (Stability Enhanced Assistive Lift for the Elderly) that helps elderly or disabled people get up from a sitting to a standing position. Faculty advisors were Engineering Professors Sandy Yost, Mohan Krishnan and Nassif Rayess.

Engineering & Science faculty and students were on hand at the Catholic League's annual Prep Bowl, Oct. 24 at Ford Field. UDM's champion robot, Thor, was on the field to perform the ceremonial coin toss.

UDM students bring Thor onto Ford Field for a Prep Bowl coin toss.

UDM Engineering students shine at ASEE

UDM Engineering students shined at the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) 2010 North Central Sectional Conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in March. Raymond Gage III presented his paper: "Small Businesses Present Opportunities for Engineering Students." He also co-presented another paper with faculty mentor Darrell Kleinke. Mark Fazi wrote and presented "Faces on Design: A Student Perspective on Three Assistive Technology Projects." "Faces on Design" was nominated for best paper and was recognized in the top five selections. Also recognized in the top five was a paper co-written by Fazi and UDM student Obafemi Osunfisan, "SEALE: Stability Enhanced Assistive Lift for the Elderly." Fazi and Osunfisan received certificates of recognition from ASEE.