Philanthropy

Longtime �鶹ӰԺ residents make investment in AI research

Anonymous — Mon, 04 Mar 2024 22:21:11 +0000

Longtime �鶹ӰԺ residents make investment in AI research Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 03/04/2024 - 15:21

Grace Wilson

Dick and Jane Stebbins have established an endowed professorship to enhance the University of Colorado’s global competitiveness. The professorship will advance research in computer science in the College of Engineering and Applied Science, with a focus on artificial intelligence.

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Catalyze CU’s 2022 cohort wraps with Investor Day, life-changing impact for participants

Anonymous — Tue, 18 Oct 2022 15:16:06 +0000

Catalyze CU’s 2022 cohort wraps with Investor Day, life-changing impact for participants Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 10/18/2022 - 09:16

Casey Darmody

It doesn’t matter how much public speaking you’ve done or how experienced you are in the spotlight. Pitching your company in front of prospective investors will get your palms sweating.

“I’m an instructor at CU and a former Miss Colorado competitor, so I’m usually pretty good with public speaking. This was the first time that I have actually had some terrible nerves,” said Laura Moore (Psych’11), founder and CEO of Silk by Laura LLC.

Moore’s pitch at Investor Day was the culmination of her experience with Catalyze CU. Silk by Laura LLC was one of four ventures in the 2022 Catalyze cohort, a 12-week summer startup accelerator for ideas and technologies by students, faculty and staff at CU �鶹ӰԺ.

“Investor Day was amazing, even more than I anticipated,” said Moore. “I’m still very well connected with many of the investors, and I received validation that my pitch is the right pitch and I’m headed in the right direction.”

This year’s Investor Day was a new culminating event for Catalyze CU. The program has previously celebrated the conclusion of each cohort with a Demo Day capstone.

“This year's cohort all achieved some level of traction, including some companies with initial sales. We decided a dedicated Investor Day would be a great way to finish the program since investment would be the next natural step,” said Karen Crofton, Catalyze CU program director and Stephen M. Dunn Director of Engineering Entrepreneurship & ESCEND®.

The 2022 cohort was also the most diverse in the program’s history, with a majority of participants from backgrounds that are underrepresented in the venture community.

Supportive programs like Catalyze are crucial to building an inclusive innovation community. Program participants get the customized help they need to break through barriers for things like startup capital and gaining access to valuable founder and investor networks. Level the playing field makes entrepreneurship more welcoming and accessible for everyone.

Local investors evaluating the teams’ pitches included Rachel Anderson, associate at Caruso Ventures; Peter Adams, managing partner at Rockies Venture Fund; David Brown, partner at Zintinus; Kevin Allen, managing director at New Community Transformation Fund; and Shannon Flahive (MBA’21), senior venture associate at Ensemble Innovation Ventures.

“The quality of the pitches was inspiring,” said Flahive. But just as impressive to her was the wide range of support that the university provides for aspiring entrepreneurs.

“I think it’s incredible that CU �鶹ӰԺ offers these programs for students. This type of program and resourcing is not widely available. CU �鶹ӰԺ does a fantastic job supporting entrepreneurial pursuits from both a programming and monetary perspective,” she said.

For Leo Nguyen (IDEN’23), another participant in this year's cohort, the program’s impact was deeply personal.

“I wanted to be an entrepreneur when I was younger but thought I didn’t have the resources or knowledge to do it. This was one of my most life-changing experiences. It empowered me to pursue entrepreneurship and to pursue greater things,” said Nguyen.

Nguyen gave up a competitive summer internship opportunity to participate in Catalyze CU. The program guided his team through the full spectrum of business planning, from market research to financial modeling and developing a pitch. He’s convinced the experience was more valuable than any internship.

“Even though I gave up my summer internship to do this, it was 100% worth it. You learn from so many people, like CEOs and venture capitalists. The mentorship and support you get—you can’t put a price on that,” said Nguyen.

That’s exactly the experience that Crofton hopes to share with future cohorts of Catalyze CU participants.

“It’s a lot of work for the teams,” she said. “But the lessons and connections our entrepreneurs gain through Catalyze CU will stay with them for a lifetime.”

Four Catalyze CU startups pitched their ventures to local investors in the culmination of the 12-week accelerator program.

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Diddams formally joins engineering as Robert H. Davis Endowed Chair in Discovery Learning

Anonymous — Fri, 26 Aug 2022 19:41:05 +0000

Diddams formally joins engineering as Robert H. Davis Endowed Chair in Discovery Learning Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 08/26/2022 - 13:41

Josh Rhoten

Scott Diddams, far left in blue, works with colleagues in a lab on campus.

Quantum Engineering Initiative

Professor Scott Diddams has officially joined CU Engineering as the Robert H. Davis Endowed Chair in Discovery Learning in the Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering.

Diddams came to CU Engineering in fall 2021 as a visiting professor while transitioning from his previous role as a fellow at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and adjoint professor in the CU �鶹ӰԺ Department of Physics. He will now serve as faculty director of the new Quantum Engineering Initiative and in other key areas of the college’s research enterprise.

The Robert H. Davis Endowed Chair in Discovery Learning was first announced in 2016 as part of a $2.5 million combined gift from Colorado’s Gallogly family and members of the Engineering Advisory Council, with additional matching funds from the CU �鶹ӰԺ Chancellor’s office.

The position honors former Dean Robert Davis and was designed to help attract and retain brilliant scholars by providing them dedicated resources for innovative research and teaching opportunities. The endowment is also designed to provide opportunities for students, especially undergrads, to engage in discovery learning by participating in college’s research activities.

Diddams served as a fellow at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and was an adjoint professor at CU �鶹ӰԺ before joining engineering this fall. Diddams is well known for developing a world-leading research program in the field of optical frequency combs and quantum metrology. He has earned many awards in his career, including the Department of Commerce Gold and Silver Medals for "revolutionizing the way frequency is measured,” as well as the Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering (PECASE) and the IEEE Rabi award.

“The endowment is and was truly an honor, and I am pleased to see it being used to bring in such a top-caliber researcher who will lead something as important to the college as the Quantum Engineering Initiative, while also bringing an outstanding team and catalyzing our efforts in student engagement in research,” Davis said.

Current Dean Keith Molenaar echoed those sentiments.

“Professor Diddams is one of the most important and active researchers in the field of quantum sensing today,” he said. “His research touches on some of the most pressing and important issues of our time. However, it is his strong passion to teach and mentor students that brought him from NIST to the College of Engineering and Applied Science. Scott will help CU �鶹ӰԺ to become a national leader in quantum engineering education through his curriculum development efforts and approach to active learning.”

Diddams said he is happy to be joining the college and highlighted significant improvements and changes to the quantum research facilities in the college, such as the newly renovated north wing of the Engineering Center, where his labs will be housed, and the Colorado Shared Instrumentation in Nanofabrication and Characterization (COSINC) facility.

“I am especially looking forward to working with and learning from my excellent faculty colleagues across campus and also having close contact with engineering students interested in discovering and developing quantum technologies for applications beyond the research lab,” he said.

Professor Scott Diddams has officially joined CU Engineering as the Robert H. Davis Endowed Chair in Discovery Learning in the Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering.

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Alumnus Jim Shaw’s engineering scholarship is inspired by own experience

Anonymous — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 14:31:42 +0000

Alumnus Jim Shaw’s engineering scholarship is inspired by own experience Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 08/17/2022 - 08:31

Chemical engineering students at CU �鶹ӰԺ have the opportunity to apply for a senior year scholarship inspired by alumnus James “Jim” Shaw’s own experience in his final year of undergraduate studies.

“A scholarship in my senior year made an enormous difference, allowing me to graduate without student debt,” Shaw says. “I want to similarly help a senior each year. I know from experience that a little help can go a long way.”

When Shaw (MChemBioEngr'71) received his senior year funding in 1969, he had recently transferred from the Coast Guard Academy to Oregon State University and married. A scholarship helped him and his wife finish college in four years. In 1970, they headed to CU �鶹ӰԺ for his graduate work in chemical engineering.

“CU Engineering has treated me well from the beginning. So, when I can, I try to reciprocate,” Shaw adds.

After completing a Master of Science in chemical engineering in 1971, Shaw worked for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) — helping to establish engineering rules behind then-new Clean Air Act (1970) and Clean Water Act (1972).

In 1974, he became environmental director of a mineral division of Union Pacific Corporation. He retired from industry work in 2015.

Shaw first became a donor to CU �鶹ӰԺ the year after his graduation, and currently contributes to several areas at the university. His passions at CU include the College of Engineering and Applied Science, athletic programs and the marching band. As a planned giving donor, Shaw has arranged for his will to administer the James W. Shaw Scholarship in the future, enabling his legacy and impact to live on indefinitely.

Students can apply in their junior year for the James W. Shaw Scholarship through the CU �鶹ӰԺ scholarship application process. A scholarship committee will evaluate applications and select recipients.

“If you are a really hard-working student, doing your best to set yourself up to make this world a better place, I want to be sure to help some of you,” Shaw says. “After all, the world is better when people help each other, and it feels great to give a hand to a CU student. Let me just say, if I’d won the lottery this year, I’d be giving even more to CU.”

After a scholarship made a difference during alumnus Jim Shaw's senior year, he has tried to pay it forward by supporting CU Engineering seniors in the same way.

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'Double Buff' leaving lasting impact on College of Engineering and Applied Science

Anonymous — Tue, 09 Aug 2022 17:20:26 +0000

'Double Buff' leaving lasting impact on College of Engineering and Applied Science Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 08/09/2022 - 11:20

Julie Chiron

As the college’s chief financial officer — among many other roles — Doug Smith (MCivEngr’75) has made a lasting impact that will be felt well beyond his retirement this summer.

True to the �鶹ӰԺ motto, Let Your Light Shine, Smith has led construction projects that quite literally brought in the light to nearly every building of the College of Engineering and Applied Science. He also has built programs and hired people essential to the institutional DNA of the college.

After a long and successful career in the private sector, Smith was contemplating retirement when he received a call in 2013 from Rob Davis, then dean of the college. The two had worked together for years on the college’s Distinguished Engineering Alumni Awards, an award Smith himself would receive in 2016.

The call’s theme would become a familiar refrain throughout Smith’s tenure: “We have a need and you have the expertise. Can we make this work?”

Smith accepted Davis’s job offer and joined the college as an assistant dean focusing on industry and donor relations and alumni engagement.

“Doug has nearly boundless energy,” said Davis, currently Tisone Endowed Chair in chemical and biological engineering. “So it was not hard to convince him to come out of his brief retirement and join the CU Engineering team. Since then, he has served effectively and efficiently in a wide range of roles, from overseeing large building projects to leading cross-campus entrepreneurial programs to providing budget oversight and program improvements for our college — and he still takes a month off each summer to play golf!”

Smith’s area of influence quickly expanded to include building out a communications team and revamping the college’s distance learning program.

Building on the fly

It was Smith's first big building project, however, that set the stage for his greatest contributions to the college.

In 2016, he assumed responsibility for renovating the Engineering Center south wing. He began by reaching out to leaders in several departments to reimagine the space.

“We were talking about: How can we open up the building? How can we create lab spaces that people want to be in?” Smith said.

That line of questioning became the foundation for many future decisions about the expanding and evolving footprint of the college. Corridors were widened, large windows were installed, and student study areas popped up near large lobbies with cafes. The college began to look and feel different.

“It’s become open,” said Smith. “It was a closed deal. Everything was just kind of in a box. It’s just been opened to the light, to the world, to inclusiveness in so many ways.”

Never one to rest on his successes, Smith next took on the challenge of building a new aerospace engineering sciences building on CU �鶹ӰԺ’s East Campus. The university agreed to fund the construction if the college could raise money to fund the programming.

The generous contributions of Ann Smead and her husband, Michael Byram, made that possible. To celebrate their support, CU �鶹ӰԺ named the aerospace engineering sciences department in honor of Ann and H.J. “Joe” Smead, a CU �鶹ӰԺ engineering alumnus, industry executive and Ann’s husband until his passing in 2003.

“Doug is an outstanding project manager,” said Ann Smead. “He is a true professional and never let any situation upset him. Michael and I enjoyed our time with him as we watched him manage the construction.”

Smith said completing this project is one of his proudest moments, made prouder still because it ended up being the most cost-effective building on campus per-square-foot. This allowed the college to accelerate a planned addition that was added during construction, sort of like adding a wing to an aircraft while it’s flying. Both were completed together, and the building opened in August 2019.

And Smith had learned a lesson. After the aerospace department vacated the Engineering Center, he pushed to have a series of renovations completed while the space was unoccupied and doggedly pursued a funding strategy with campus. The renovated north wing of the Engineering Center will open this fall, featuring a new student services hub and modernized spaces for several departments, including an avalanche lab and a quantum engineering lab.

Can we make this work?

Early in Smith’s tenure, Davis asked him if he knew anything about business incubators and accelerators.

Smith’s previous career involved business startups and turnarounds, but those terms were new to him. So he reached out to Brad Feld and David Cohen of Techstars, a �鶹ӰԺ-based startup accelerator, for guidance. When two alumni, Fletcher Richman (ElCompEngr’14) and Ashley Tillman (EnvSt’11) approached him in April 2014 with the proposal for an accelerator, he was ready.

The hitch? They asked if it could launch in May.

“I told them I was willing to try,” said Smith. “Let’s see if we can make it work.”

Smith secured funding from the dean, and the trio announced the accelerator at the New Venture Challenge. They recruited six teams and launched the Catalyze CU startup accelerator in the summer of 2014. Two of those teams, Mallinda and Shinesty, have grown into thriving businesses, as have many other program alumni.

That experience launched Smith’s engagement in entrepreneurial activities. He established an entrepreneur-in-residence role at the college, which has evolved into the ESCEND™ program. Led by Karen Crofton, Stephen M. Dunn Director of Engineering Entrepreneurship and ESCEND™, and Jessica Leeker, Dunn Professor of Engineering Management and Entrepreneurship, the program supports engineering students in their entrepreneurial journey.

“I haven't met one student, faculty or staff member who hasn't been positively impacted by Doug,” Crofton said.

Smith’s influence hasn’t been confined to CU Engineering. On the heels of his success launching Catalyze, he was approached by law students, who asked him to be an advisor for the Deming Center Venture Fund. He’s been engaged with the group since 2014, meeting with them two times a week about investment strategies, due diligence and portfolio management. During his tenure, the fund has realized an internal rate of return around 17 percent.

He said working with the students has been one of the highlights of his time at CU.

“It’s just so fun,” Smith said. “There are engineering, law and business students who are a part of it. It’s their fund. I advise and coach them. Teach them a little bit. I’m there every week advising and coaching them, but it’s their deal.”

A trusted advisor

Smith has been the person deans turn to when they need results. When Bobby Braun became dean of the college, he told Smith he wanted him to be the guy who gets things done and appointed him chief financial officer — “that way, people will know you have the money.”

“What’s so funny about that is that I’ve had lots of CFOs in my career,” Smith said. “And when I tell them I am the CFO, they just laughed because they always thought I pushed the CFOs so hard to spend everything we could. It’s just a real irony of my career.”

When the pandemic hit, Keith Molenaar, then acting dean, came to Smith with an idea to renovate the BOLD Center while students were away. It was May 2020, and Molenaar wanted it completed by August.

“He asked me if we could get this done,” said Smith. “I said ‘I don’t know, we’ll see.’ And we did.”

The project was a success in part due to the contributions and effort of another alumnus, Marco Campos (CivEngr'98), who with his company Campos EPC, provided $1 million in funding with the aim of expanding services for first generation and underrepresented students.

“That was the most unbelievable thing,” Smith said. “The architects listened to the BOLD team. It was such a cool space for students, and to be able to do that during the pandemic made it a special project.”

A lasting legacy

One day, all three deans came calling. But it wasn’t to ask for another miracle from Smith. They wanted to create a scholarship in his and his wife’s name to honor his contributions to the college.

“I’ve had a lot of bosses,” Smith said. “That’s just not usually what they say to me. They think I'm a pain in the neck and want me to stop pushing the boundaries.”

The Douglas G. and Cynthia S. Smith Engineering Scholarship Fund will provide undergraduate scholarship awards for engineering students.

“The college is indebted for Doug’s contribution as an Engineering Advisory Council member and in his second career as an associate dean,” Molenaar said. “He brought a new perspective to our decision-making through his deep experience with large engineering firms and projects. Doug has been a trusted resource for the last three deans in the areas of building construction, finance and leadership programs. Although he is leaving us, his thumbprint will be on the college for many years to come.”

Donate to the scholarship fund

The next career: Retirement

With a profound sense of accomplishment and proud of his many contributions to the college and CU, Smith will return to the plans he was making in 2012 before that fateful call from Rob Davis.

He’ll continue to have his hands in building projects with his church and plans to spend more time at his second home in Scotland playing golf. He’s also partnering with a former CU student and his company, Simple Homes, to build a house in Granby, Colorado.

Smith also plans to remain engaged with the college as an alumnus. Most of the people who know and have worked with him are certain about one thing: CU hasn’t seen the last of Doug Smith.

True to the �鶹ӰԺ motto, "Let Your Light Shine," Doug Smith (MCivEngr’75) has led construction projects that quite literally brought in the light to nearly every building of the college.

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Giving Back, Giving Forward

Anonymous — Fri, 22 Jul 2022 18:06:38 +0000

Giving Back, Giving Forward Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 07/22/2022 - 12:06

Since they graduated from CU in the early ’80s, Cliff (CivEngr, Hist’82) and Carol (Jour’81) Pearson have seen a lot of the world — 75 countries and counting, in fact.

But their hearts remain in �鶹ӰԺ.

That’s why they’re investing in the next generation of Forever Buffs by funding scholarships for students in the College of Engineering and Applied Science. They also recently created a new scholarship for students in the Department of History, within the College of Arts and Sciences.

“Education creates well-rounded human beings with a multitude of skills,” said Cliff, who is also a member of the Engineering Advisory Council. “Depending on how you take those skills and run with them, it can dictate what your success will be in life.”

This year, the Cliff and Carol Pearson Endowed Scholarship Fund is celebrating its 10th anniversary. This fund provides scholarships to undergraduate engineering students who are enrolled in a double-degree program or participants in the engineering school’s Broadening Opportunity through Leadership and Diversity (BOLD) Center.

The Pearsons have also established scholarships for first-generation students in both history and engineering — the two fields that Cliff studied at CU �鶹ӰԺ. In his retirement, one of Cliff’s goals is to reduce income inequality, and he says that first-generation scholarships are a great opportunity to do that. Recently, the Pearsons increased their planned bequest supporting first-generation engineering students to $1 million.

“In school, I had Pell Grants and work-study programs that helped me pay for college,” said Carol, a second-generation Buff whose father and two brothers also attended CU. “I’m happy to help students in financial circumstances similar to those I grew up in.”

By establishing and sustaining these scholarship programs, the Pearsons are opening doors for engineering and history students, especially first-generation students in both areas and others traditionally underrepresented in engineering.

“Both of the Pearsons’ engineering awards have had a tremendous impact on the awardees,” said Jenna Greenwood, the engineering college’s program manager for scholarships and college affordability. “They have provided the financial support needed for students to continue their educational journey and spend less time figuring out how to pay for their degree.”

“We are so grateful to Cliff and Carol Pearson for their generosity in establishing this scholarship fund in history, which will help our undergraduates make their education more affordable and perhaps encourage them to follow their interests and pursue a well-rounded liberal arts education,” added Marcia Yonemoto, chair of CU’s history department. “We’re looking forward to receiving our first round of applications for the Pearson Scholarship this summer.”

To the Pearsons, supporting student scholarships is a tangible way to not only invest in future generations of leaders and innovators, but also to give back to a place that is so meaningful in their lives.

The pair met while working as resident advisors at CU and attribute much of their success to their roots in �鶹ӰԺ. Cliff also received a small tuition scholarship while he was a student and considers his and Carol’s current and future giving a way to pay it forward.

“One of our hopes in providing scholarships is to help students avoid incurring significant debt, so that when they graduate, they’re set up for success,” said Cliff.

“I hope that all the Pearson Scholars graduate from CU and have wildly successful careers — then give a little back to CU.”

Pearson Scholars in Action

When you sit down to chat with the 2021–22 Pearson Scholars, it’s clear they’re motivated and thoughtful students. A recent conversation with scholars Jovani Guzman (MechEngr’24) and Tobin Price (MechEngr’22; MS’23) illuminated their stories and some of the ways they’re aiming to make a difference in the world.

What are you studying here at CU?

Jovani Guzman: I just finished my third year as a mechanical engineering student, as part of a five-year track. I’m involved with the Engineering GoldShirt program and the BOLD Center, which is a very collaborative space. Anyone is welcome when they go there. It’s made me feel much more comfortable being part of the engineering college. I’m also part of the Golden Buffalo Marching Band, where I play sousaphone.

Tobin Price: I recently graduated with my bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering with a minor in music. I’m currently working at LASP (Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics) as the command controller, and I’m planning to continue for another year here at CU in grad school — I’ll be doing an accelerated master’s program on the mechanical engineering professional track.

What’s a recent project or accomplishment that you’re excited about?

Guzman: For me, it’s all about networking right now. As part of my “Mechanical Professions” class, I was able to speak with several professionals in the engineering field, including a former systems engineer who now leads an international engineering team. Being able to talk to those people and seeing how industry works from their perspective makes me look forward to building more connections.

Price: The last semester of your senior years offers all sorts of cool classes. For my senior design class, my team designed and manufactured an atmospheric Doppler lidar scanner — basically a laser deflector unit to measure atmospheric conditions, in affiliation with NOAA [the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]. We created a system that measures wind speeds and knows exactly where it’s pointing to 0.02 degrees of accuracy.

What are you passionate about outside of school?

Guzman: Music is a big part of my life. That stems from high school, when my former band director told me about a Venezuelan conductor who was also impoverished and went through a program for their music, which really turned their life around. It really inspired me to help people.

Price: I love being outside — running, rock climbing, hiking. It’d be really cool to go into a field that helps protect the planet. And I also love music. I’ve played the alto sax for about 10 years, and I also produce electronic music and have been DJing parties and weddings around �鶹ӰԺ for the past year.

What makes you hopeful for the future?

Guzman: With my Hispanic background, family is a very important aspect within our culture. So I’m driven by a hope for stability in my family. Someday, when I graduate and obtain a job that pays well, I can gain stability for my mother and father — and hopefully raise a family of my own, feeling safe about my own future and for my next of kin.

Price: I find hope in knowing that there are genuinely good, kind, empathetic people out there. There’s been a lot of nastiness in society the past couple years, but seeing people who are genuine in their intent to help others is really inspiring to me. I’m also inspired by the professors at CU and how engaged they are in every student’s personal success.

Why does education matter to you?

Guzman: Education opens doors. It feels like there’s a lot you can’t do without a certain level of education, which can be tough for those of us who can’t always afford that education — to gain opportunities for a better life. It’s also about learning more about the world. You’re not just learning things for a future job; you’re also learning about ethics and history, to allow for reflection as you move forward.

Price: I agree with Jovani — there are a lot of opportunities that are blocked off by the education barrier, so that’s a good reason why education is important. It’s also good for personal growth. Especially in a difficult field, education helps us strive to be the best person we could be. Learning new things is a very noble pursuit.

How do scholarships support your education?

Guzman: Financially, scholarships help cover tuition costs. Because of that, I’ve had a lot more time to just be a student. I don’t have to put so much time toward working to pay for tuition out of pocket. The additional time I have as a student has also allowed me to do things like be part of the marching band and interact with students through the GoldShirt program.

Price: I’ve been able to make it through my four years of undergrad without incurring any student loans, thanks to scholarships. It takes the financial pressure off of paying for tuition, along with the living situation in �鶹ӰԺ, food and other expenses. It’s been a blessing to not have to worry about that the way I see some of my peers having to do.

To Cliff and Carol Pearson, supporting student scholarships is a tangible way to not only invest in future generations of leaders and innovators, but also to give back to a place that is so meaningful in their lives. Learn about the Pearsons' investment and meet two engineering students currently receiving their awards.

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Lucky Vidmar: Engineering and ethics intertwined

Anonymous — Fri, 22 Apr 2022 17:43:25 +0000

Lucky Vidmar: Engineering and ethics intertwined Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 04/22/2022 - 11:43

Grace Wilson

Lucky Vidmar (CompSci'94; M'97) is working to empower ethics-focused engineers through the Moulakis Lecture Series on Responsible Engineering in the Herbst Program for Engineering, Ethics & Society.

Vidmar left Croatia and came to CU �鶹ӰԺ in 1990, on the eve of war in his home country. Today he is the head of intellectual property litigation for Microsoft.

Throughout his journey, Vidmar said learning how to think critically about the information he was taking in was as essential as the “nuts and bolts” of code and mathematics.

“It's more important than it's ever been that engineers should be more well-rounded. There's so much power in the tools that engineers make. And with that power comes a lot of responsibility,” Vidmar said.

That is why he wants CU Engineering students to be known as graduates who enter the workforce ready to think about responsibility and ethics, rather than being forced to confront them for the first time in industry.

“That ability is a great differentiator,” he said.

Opening Questions

As a young man, Vidmar became more well-rounded by seeking the answers to some of life’s biggest questions in the Herbst Program.

The Herbst Program, founded by donors Clancy and Linda (Vitti) Herbst, uses group conversations about great works of philosophy and literature to address the complexities of the human condition. Herbst seminars help students hone critical thinking and communication skills in the overlap between engineering, ethics and society.

Vidmar signed up for a Herbst seminar course as a break from engineering, but then, he said, “it became more enmeshed in my engineering self than I had realized. At the time I thought it was two different sides of me, but I realized later that it was actually one and the same.”

In those early days, Vidmar found connection to the founder of the Herbst Program, Professor Athanasios "Thanasi" Moulakis.

As Teaching Professor Leland Giovannelli, one of the Herbst faculty from those early days remembers,

"Lucky was charming and personable, with a razor-sharp wit — just like Thanasi. They understood each other: they were both polyglot Europeans with a thorough grounding in Old World culture.

This was obvious when Thanasi and I gave our junior-level Herbst students a brief introduction to European opera. After some explanatory remarks, we played selections from the heroine’s arias in Cherubini’s opera Medea.

Most students, strangers to this art form, wondered about the process: 'How can she project her voice like that? How can she sing without getting tired? Why can’t she use amplification?'

Lucky asked a very different kind of question: 'That sounds like early Maria Callas; is it?' He was right, of course. Thanasi beamed."

Listen to Maria Callas sing Act III: Numi, venite a me from "Medea" (1953)

Intertwining Strengths

Vidmar said that, after college, it was the critical thinking skills he had developed, in tandem with his high level of technical expertise, that brought him success as an intellectual property lawyer.

“As a junior lawyer, I was talking to engineers, trying to understand what we were protecting, looking at source code and translating that for lawyers, judges and juries who didn't always have that knowledge,” Vidmar said.

Now, in a management role, Vidmar said his focus has shifted from particular cases to the larger picture of intellectual property.

“It feels good to play a small role in developing the future of intellectual property—not just for mega companies like Microsoft but creating a system that's fair and workable and energetic for everyone. I believe, and lots of us at Microsoft believe, that if everybody's better off, we will also be better off. It’s pretty simple,” Vidmar said.

Honoring Lessons

Vidmar said he wants to help engineering students start thinking about the big picture sooner. That is why he and his wife Aubrey Ardema are supporting the creation of the Moulakis Lecture Series within the Herbst Program to help CU engineering students approach their chosen profession in a responsible and ethical way.

The Moulakis Lecture Series seeks to honor Vidmar's friend and mentor—who was also his teacher in four separate Herbst courses. Moulakis overcame fierce opposition to engineers reading classical literature, and led the Herbst Program for 11 years. Later, Moulakis championed the same cause in other institutions, languages and countries before his untimely passing in 2015.

Giovannelli said she believes the series is a fitting tribute to this inspiring educator whose words still have relevance 33 years later,

"It is important… to ask ourselves if education is doing what it ought to do, if only because the ingenious technological processes and products of modern science… also threaten to destroy our world.
Fear of nuclear and ecological catastrophe naturally focuses the mind on the necessary limits of human endeavor. But quite apart from that, no education focused on mere survival or devoted to some blind process of growth would be worthy of the name.”
- "Beyond utility: liberal education for a technological age" by Athanasios Moulakis (page 1)

Lucky Vidmar (CompSci'94; M'97) is working to empower ethics-focused engineers and honor his friend and mentor through the Moulakis Lecture Series within the Herbst Program for Engineering, Ethics & Society.

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Honoree hopes new endowment will lead to quantum breakthrough

Anonymous — Tue, 01 Feb 2022 20:22:48 +0000

Honoree hopes new endowment will lead to quantum breakthrough Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 02/01/2022 - 13:22

Emily Adams

CU �鶹ӰԺ Professor Emeritus Karl Gustafson has high expectations for the quantum engineering researcher who will soon hold the faculty chair recently endowed in his name.

“I hope that someone might have a fundamental breakthrough in some way other than just writing papers,” he said. “It's too easy to write papers, but very hard to actually build a piece of hardware, like a quantum computer or do something else in quantum.”

Karl Gustafson

Recently created by an anonymous donor, the Karl Gustafson Endowed Chair of Quantum Engineering will be embedded in the Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering. It is intended for a faculty member with multidisciplinary research and teaching interests, who is focused on the hardware side of quantum computing and devices.

“This gift, honoring Professor Gustafson for his distinguished career, will further enable CU �鶹ӰԺ and the College of Engineering and Applied Science to lead the way in quantum discoveries and application,” Acting Dean Keith Molenaar said. “We are deeply grateful to the donor and pleased that Karl’s legacy will be tied to the multidisciplinary impact of this faculty chair.”

Gustafson said he was initially surprised when the donor – a former student of his – reached out to him about making a gift in his name.

“It is quite an honor. It’s an honor for me; it's an honor for the university,” he said. “It's kind of a very pleasant capstone on my career.”

While he worked closely with the donor to outline the terms of the gift, it was Gustafson who insisted on the word “multidisciplinary,” as it’s the term that most accurately describes his own career.

Gustafson retired in 2020 after a 52-year career in the Department of Mathematics and holds three degrees from CU �鶹ӰԺ – in engineering physics, applied mathematics and business finance. Shortly before a major stroke in 2016 prevented him from traveling and publishing, he gave three significant keynote addresses around the world – one in each of those fields.

“The Department of Physics is enormously proud that Professor Gustafson is one of our alumni, and deeply grateful to the donor for endowing this chair position in Quantum Engineering in Karl’s honor,” said Michael Ritzwoller, the chair of physics. “Karl’s illustrious career spanned mathematical physics, applied mathematics, and engineering both within and outside academia, and we hope the endowed chair holder can follow in his giant footsteps.”

Gustafson advised more than 20 PhD students across science and engineering disciplines, and published more than 300 papers and more than a dozen books in topics ranging from computational fluid dynamics to financial engineering. His ties to CU Engineering include serving as a founding member of the multimillion-dollar NSF Optoelectronic Computing Systems Center from 1988 to 2000.

He has also long been interested in quantum mechanics and computation and keeps up-to-date on developments in the field even in retirement.

“My impression is that we may not get quantum computation for a while. It's a very hard problem,” Gustafson said. “The software exists, the algorithms exist, all kinds of theory, thousands of papers. But no one can really build a quantum computer. You'll read a lot of hype about people claiming they have. But they'll only be able to do 20 or 30 qubits, and that's not a very big computer.”

However, Gustafson said quantum is a fascinating field partly because of that search for the unknown. He thinks back to the Einstein-Bohr debates, which pitted a “stubborn analytical person” against “a mystic.” Gustafson said Bohr usually defeated Einstein in the thought experiments because he explained what we didn’t know and claimed that we may never know.

“I tend to hope that Einstein was right,” Gustafson said. “I tend to believe there's an underlying reality that we can maybe discover.”

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Alumnus Will Brown donates engineering scholarship in honor of his mother

Anonymous — Tue, 21 Dec 2021 15:47:48 +0000

Alumnus Will Brown donates engineering scholarship in honor of his mother Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 12/21/2021 - 08:47

Rachel Leuthauser

Will Brown and his mother Connie Brown.

College of Engineering and Applied Science students who want to contribute to the energy industry have a new scholarship opportunity inspired by a woman whose dedication to her family and career helped shape one of the college’s own alumni.

Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering alumnus Will Brown (MechEngr’92) has established the Connie Faye Brown scholarship in honor of his mother. The scholarship is a gift to benefit mechanical, chemical or electrical engineering students, since it was Connie who inspired Brown to pursue that same education.

“My mom pushed me in that direction because she worked for Phillips Petroleum Company for 40 years in human resources,” Brown said. “She worked with engineers every day and thought it would be a good career for me. She was a stabilizing force, the breadwinner in our family and a solid influence on me.”

Brown, a first-generation engineer, graduated with his bachelor’s degree in 1992. He then began working in the oil and gas industry, just as his mother did.

He later went on to earn an MBA with a concentration in finance from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs and is now the vice president of business management for the Kinder Morgan Natural Gas Pipelines West Region.

Although Connie has since passed, Brown said her example of hard work, strong values and sound decision-making while supporting her family is what propelled him to where he is today. He hopes his gift to the college will motivate engineering students to live and work with those same values.

“I think she would have been speechless,” Brown said when asked how his mother would react to the scholarship. “I think she would have really enjoyed listening to and reading any correspondence from the scholarship recipients. That would have been a neat part of her life.”

Students can apply for the Connie Faye Scholarship through the CU �鶹ӰԺ scholarship application process. A scholarship committee will evaluate applications and select the recipients, with priority given to first-generation engineering students.

“I want to help provide opportunities for other CU �鶹ӰԺ Engineering students,” Brown said. “My education from CU �鶹ӰԺ has helped me build my 30-year career and opened a lot of doors.”

Looking back at his impactful education and successful career, Brown agreed that it’s a good thing he took his mother’s advice – to become an engineer.

Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering alumnus Will Brown (MechEngr’92) has established the Connie Faye Brown scholarship to benefit mechanical, chemical or electrical engineering students.

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Alumni and friends support college with over $125,000 on Giving Tuesday

Anonymous — Tue, 14 Dec 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Alumni and friends support college with over $125,000 on Giving Tuesday Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 12/14/2021 - 00:00

More than 280 alumni and friends of the College of Engineering & Applied Science rallied together for Giving Tuesday on Nov. 30, raising more than $125,000 to support engineering students.

The final total far exceeded the college’s initial goal of $30,000, and Acting Dean Keith Molenaar said he is grateful for the support from the CU Engineering community.

"I am humbled by the generosity shown by our donors, alumni and friends on Giving Tuesday,” Molenaar said. “Because of their contributions, we are able to better support the next generation of Buff Engineers and to continue to provide world-class education.”

This year, donors were given the opportunity to support the college-wide Dean’s Fund for Excellence, departmental Excellence Funds and the BOLD Center. Molenaar provided a dean’s challenge of $5,000, to be split amongst the funds with the most unique donors. The winners of that challenge were:

Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering – $2,500
Ann & H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences – $2,000
The BOLD Center – $500

Alumnus and Engineering Advisory Council Chair John Mollenkopf (MechEngr’83) also provided a generous match of $25,000. For more information on further giving opportunities in the college, please visit our giving webpage.

The final total far exceeded the college’s initial goal of $30,000.

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