Allyn Risley, KU School of Engineering alumnus and a School of Engineering Advisory Board member, came and spoke about his experiences at KU and later in the petroleum industry on Tuesday, November 15th, as part of the annual SELF Speaker Series. He began his career at ConocoPhillips and worked there for 32 years where he became an expert in Liquified Natural Gas. His knowledge of the oil industry was fascinating, and his stories were fun and entertaining. He currently works as president of LNGas. Risley has done great things for the School of Engineering and has clearly kept KU close to his heart.
The SELF Foundations Workshop occurred on January 12th and 13th. All SELF classes shared a meal, Thursday, January 12th, before the sophomores were excused to participate in the 2012 Leadership Challenge. Freshmen began the afternoon with a presentation from Dr. Perry Alexander of EECS. The juniors’ and seniors’ first activity of the workshop included a scavenger hunt, where teams incorporated important locations into clues for freshmen members to find. Fellows were then led to M2SEC, the new engineering research facility, and taken on a guided tour by employees of JE Dunn and Treanor Architects. The afternoon was completed with a presentation and discussion with Dr. Cory Berkland, a Chemical Engineering researcher and professor. The presentation discussed how to market your ideas and touched on Dr. Berkland’s journey into the engineering profession.
On Friday students gathered at the School of Engineering for an early breakfast and then split into their respective classes for a variety of activities. The freshmen class heard from Dr. Ron Barrett about Aerospace Engineering and then about bridge fatigue from Dr. Caroline Bennett and her CEAE graduate students. Then they visited the EcoHawks shop and heard from Dr. Chris Depcik of Mechanical Engineering. Juniors discussed their upcoming Capstone Project and its impact for the School of Engineering. Finally, seniors participated in a financial discussion from Melissa Cole, a Benefits Specialist at KU, and Leticia Gradington from Student Money Management Services at KU. After traveling to Shawnee for lunch at Eggtc., Fellows had the opportunity to visit Perceptive Software, a Kansas City- based software company. Students received advice for job-seekers from Perceptive human resources representatives. The workshop was concluded with several games of dodgeball: Perceptive vs SELF. Perceptive won every game. This year’s High School Design Competition was hosted on November 8th. Students competition had the choice of entering the main competition—Rock Hop Jayhawk—or a Lego Mindstorm Challenge. The students competing in Rock Hop Jayhawk had to build a device that would leap horizontally, vertically, and at an angle. Overall, there were 19 schools and more than 50 teams at the competition this year. Junior Hanna Cosgrove was the project leader for the Competition. Odessa High School took home the top prize at the Lego challenge. The top two teams at Rock Hop Jayhawk were from Maur Hill- Mount Academy and Lawrence High. Photo is courtesy of the Lawrence Journal-World.
Story from the Lawrence Journal-World The senior class of the Self Engineering Leadership Fellowship Program plans to share their insights on the energy and environment in Brazil at a lecture set for 7 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 16 at Spooner Hall. The Fellows completed part of their capstone project this summer by traveling to Brazil, visiting Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The group gathered information about Brazil's energy infrastructure, environment, engineering industry, and economy by visiting with professors, an environmental lawyer, companies and universities/research centers.
If you would like to stream the Lecture Series Live, visit the host site here https://desktopconnect.ku.edu/brazillecture2/. Allyn Risley, President of LNGas and a 1972 KU School of Engineering graduate, will give personal reflections on engineering and business in the petroleum industry. His address, sponsored by the Self Engineering Leadership Fellows Program, is slated for 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 15, in the Spahr Engineering Classroom.
Mary Adams is a senior in architectural engineering from Rolla, MO. She is involved with Engineers Without Borders, Theta Tau Professional Fraternity and does research in a materials lab. Fellows from the Class of 2012 shared these thoughts about Mary:
“She works tirelessly on everything she is involved in. And when no one else is willing to step up, Mary always does.” “Over the four years she has put in a ton of work, a lot of which goes unnoticed. It would be great to see that recognized.” “Mary is very active in many activities in the school and university. She is an excellent student, person and Fellow. She is always willing to help when it is needed.” Conway Ekpo, KU School of Engineering alumnus, came and spoke about his experiences as a student and how it translated to his career as a lawyer in New York City. He began his career as an architectural engineer at Turner Construction, but after practicing for a few years in the business changed his focus to study law. He attended Rutgers University’s School of Law and began his career in New York City soon after graduating. The experiences and perspective that he shared were not only inspirational, but also shed light on the versatility of an engineering degree.
Erik Deddens, ‘13 Seniors in the SELF Program are holding a lecture series, which will focus on the rapid transformation under way in Brazil. The 15 seniors in the SELF Program spent 10 days in Brazil this August. The group traveled to Rio De Janeiro and Sao Paulo, visiting Brazilian energy giant Petrobras, Brazilian aircraft design and manufacturing company Embraer and Ford Motor Company’s Brazil headquarters. The students also experienced the culture and natural beauty of the country. Lecture Series Topics include: “Economic growth and engineering expansion” and “The growing South American nation’s environmental stewardship and energy management.”
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