Tau Beta Pi Scholars

 2001 - 2002 

	Nagel No. 10 - Raissa P. Douglas  A junior at Howard university, Raissa is the top student in the civil engineering department and is president of the university chapter of the ASCE. She has been working to reenergize the chapter, planning ASCE week, F.E.-review courses, and the steel-bridge design competition entry. On campus she is secretary to her college and the AIAA chapter, parliamentarian for the Ladies of the Quad Social Club, and a volunteer for the Red Cross, an area elementary school, and a domestic violence help center. Raissa was elected to TBP’s DC Alpha Chapter and is a member of SWE and NSBE.
	Nagel No. 11 - Ziga Ivanic Discipline, dedication sacrifice, and teamwork are key qualities of Ziga’s success. An exceptional  hockey  player, he left Slovenia at the age of 16 to attend high school and play sports in Canada. For four years he was in the Canadian Junior Hockey League. Later recruited to Norwich University, he helped the ice hockey team garner the 2000 NCAA National Championship, and he is captain of the men’s varsity tennis team. The top scholar at the university, he won the school’s 2000 math problem-solving competition and competed nationally. He is active in the ASME chapter and TBP’s Vermont Beta Chapter.
	Nagel No. 12 - Sylaja Murikipudi A biomedical engineering major at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, 20-year-old Sylaja is the top-ranking student in her class. For two years she has been a lab assistant, working on developing and testing novel drug and gene-delivery vehicles, and a summer intern with a major paper company involved in developing methods of modifying polymer properties in composites and finished products. She is a trustee scholar and the recipient of several foundation and named scholarships. Sylaja plans to pursue a Ph.D. in materials science. She is a member of SWE.
	Nagel No. 13 - Eric R. Tkaczyk Eric is the first-place winner of the 1996 national Estonian math olympiad, was an exchange student in Germany in 1997-98, and will complete dual degrees in mathematics and electrical engineering from Purdue University in December 2002. At age 20, he is the top-ranked student in an engineering class of 1,800 students and is president of the Math Club. Eric was elected to Eta Kappa Nu, is a student member of the NSPE, and has already published three scientific papers and been recognized by Intel for his chip-design quality-control. He plans to obtain a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering.
	Dodson No. 7 - Preeti J. Aroon Studying efficiently at the University of Kentucky, 23-year-old Preeti will be receiving a B.S.Ch.E. and a B.S. in Spanish next May. She has recently returned from Spain, completing required courses for her second major. Preeti is a national merit scholar, ranks first in her engineering class, serves as Tau Beta Pi’s representative to the engineering college, and is president of Omega Chi Epsilon. She is treasurer of the SGA’s Amnesty International chapter and a freelance editorial columnist for the Lexington Herald-Leader. She plans to specialize in pharmaceuticals or environmental engineering.
	Dodson No. 8 - Mark C. Fersdahl The top-ranking electrical engineering junior among 78 students at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Mark will be completing his B.S. in December 2002. While a co-op student last summer at the U.S. Geological Survey’s EROS data center, he helped to monitor imagery and data from the Landsat 7 satellite. His poster showing devastating fires in Montana and the ability of space-borne sensors to aid in fire fighting was shown to members of the U.S. Congress. Mark was elected to Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu, and Phi Eta Sigma honor societies and enjoys campus intramural athletics./font>
	Dodson No. 9 - Zachary L. Mader >A Mechanical engineering majorat the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Zach is the top-ranking engineering student in a class of more than 250. After graduation, he plans to work for a major engineering company in an aerospace or robotics division. On campus, he is active in the Intervarsity Christian Fellowship as a small-group leader, executive-team member, and prayer coordinator. He is a student member of the ASME and enjoys playing intramural basketball, football, volleyball, and softball.
	Dodson No. 10 - Thomas H. Petersen Teaching assistant and tutor, Tom is a 4.0 student majoring in electrical engineering with a minor in bioengineering. His senior research thesis involves applying signal processing theories to neural modeling of the human retina. He has worked in both the chemical engineering research lab and the neural-modeling lab during the school year and for Bell Laboratories during the summers. He is a student member of the IEEE. The lead cellist with Princeton University’s orchestra, Tom also plays in the school’s string quartet and is a founder of the Nassau String Quartet.
	Dodson No. 11 - May B. Shek May is in the top   percent of an engineering class of more than 2,000 students at the University of Houston. The 20-year-old chemical engineering major is writing an honors thesis relating polymers to space applications. She is Vice President of TBP’s  Texas Epsilon Chapter, secretary to the college’s engineering ambassador program, a workshop facilitator in thermodynamics I, a  research assistant for her department, and a student piano accompanist to choral groups. A student member of the AIChE and SWE, May was elected to Alpha Lambda Delta, Phi Eta Sigma, and Omega Chi Epsilon honor societies.
	Soderberg No. 3 - Collin J. May Collin is majoring in biomedical engineering at Yale University, graduating in May 2002. This summer, he hopes to travel to Vietnam with a surgical team to assist in a humanitarian effort. He will then work at the Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The co-inventor of a chemical-delivery device, he hopes to work for a biotechnology company. Collin is captain of the rugby football club and volunteers at the local elementary school and an area hospital emergency room. He  is a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity and the Yale Premedical Society.
	Stabile No. 2 - Christopher W. Reis An electrical engineering  major at the University of Cincinnati, Chris  will graduate in June 2002. A 4.0 student, he has been elected to Tau Beta Pi and Eta Kappa Nu honor societies and is a student member of both the IEEE and NSPE. On campus, he has served as a teaching assistant for the department of mathematical sciences and a student leader at the St. Monica/St. George Newman Center. After graduating, Chris plans to pursue further studies, possibly interdisciplinary, in intelligent systems involving photonics and MEMs.
	Alabama Power No. 2 - Christopher P. Lilley Chris is majoring in mechanical engineering at the University of South Alabama in Mobile.  Now 28 years old and married, he already holds two degrees from the University of Alabama—a B.A. in criminal justice and a B.S. in psychology. He plans to take the F.E. examination in the fall and seek employment with either NASA or a large oil company. On the president’s list for four semesters, Chris was elected to Tau Beta Pi’s Alabama Epsilon Chapter and Pi Tau Sigma. He is an active student member of the ASME and participates in his parish.
	Fluor No. 1 - Michelle E. DiCola After graduating from Pennsylvania State University, Michelle plans to begin  working toward her doctorate in chemical engineering. Her goal is to discover ways to produce polymers and plastics that create less waste, while making products that are cheaper to manufacture. She has had two co-op internships at Dow Corning, where she received outstanding performance recognition. Michelle is president-elect of TBP’s Pennsylvania Beta Chapter and volunteers for Kappa Theta Epsilon. A student member of WISE and AICHE, she is also a mentor and grader.
	Jacobs No. 1 - Rachel J. Schiller The top-ranking engineering student in a class of nearly 600 students at the University of Missouri–Rolla, Rachel plans to graduate in May 2002 with a major in civil engineering. In 2003, she plans to complete a master’s degree. For a recent research project for the state’s department of transportation, she is exploring new clay soil-erosion control methods, a topic which may result in her master’s thesis. Twenty years of age,  Rachel was elected to Chi Epsilon and is Corresponding Secretary for TBP’s Missouri Beta Chapter.
	Merck No. 1 - Karen Y. Dane A chemical engineering major at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, 21-year-old Karen is president of the AICHE campus chapter and active in TBP’s Colorado Delta Chapter and SWE. She is a participant in the Women and Minorities in Engineering Program and plays recreational soccer. She was one of only a few sophomores to be selected for the NSF-sponsored research experience for undergraduates program last summer. Karen worked in bioremediation and plans to earn a master’s degree in biotechnology.
	Record No. 1 - Lesley J. Schaefer Lesley is majoring in industrial engineering at Kansas State University.  She is the top-ranking student in an engineering class of 480 and was elected to Alpha Pi  Mu, Tau Beta Pi, and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies. Additionally, she is  a student member of the IIE, SWE, the judicial board, and the marching and pep bands. She enjoys intramural sports and volunteers for the Red Cross, Big Sisters, and her church. Upon graduation, Lesley will work toward her master’s degree, focusing on ergonomics/human factors.