Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, Vol. 93 No. 1 Spring 2017

BIRTH OF A BITTER

RIVALRY A L U M N I

LIFE AT THE SOUTH POLE BEING CHARLIE BLACKMON'S THE COURAGEOUS CARTERS

BUZZ IN CHARGE

M A G A Z I N E

VOLUME

93 NO.1 SPRING

2017

THE

Traditions ISSUE

Paging

George P. Burdell

L

Tech’s most famous student remains alive and well on campus, as do dozens of the Institute’s most time-honored traditions.

GTALUMNIMAG.COM VOLUME 92 NO.2 2016

“Georgia Tech has given us both so much.”

— Beth Sowell, IE 1977, MS MOT 1996, and Gary Sowell, IE 1973 Savannah native Gary Sowell grew up as a Georgia Bulldog fan,

Engineering (ISyE) for many years, but the time was right for

and he had every intention of attending college in Athens — that

them recently to increase that support through a bequest

is, until his father told him he was too good in math and needed

provision. One endowment fund will be used to one day establish

to set his sights on Georgia Tech.

a professorship in ISyE, and the other will create a need-based

He received the local alumni scholarship his freshman

scholarship for undergraduates with the qualifications, but not

year and, at the age of 16, enrolled in the School of Electrical

the resources, to attend Tech and earn a degree in the program

Engineering. Gary ultimately transferred to industrial engineering

that has been ranked number one in the nation for 26 years

and, upon graduation, accepted a position with BellSouth in

running.

Jonesboro, Georgia.

There he met Beth Sowell, a native of Oak Ridge, Tennessee.

The other portion of the couple’s estate gift will be allocated to endowed scholarships in football and men’s basketball. Gary

Her path had also taken her to Tech, following one year of

has been a season ticket holder for both sports for years, and he

studying at the University of Tennessee. She too graduated with

has attended games regularly since graduation. Giving back and

a degree in industrial engineering and devoted a decades-long

supporting these programs is deeply meaningful to him. “We get

career to BellSouth. They both moved up through the ranks over

so much enjoyment from attending athletic events,” he explained.

the years; Gary retired as director of Information Technology, and

“This is just one way that Tech has enriched our lives. This gift

Beth as general manager of Network Operations.

reflects our profound gratitude.”

“With the terrific education that Tech gave us, we both

For Gary and Beth Sowell, as for so many alumni, their

obtained great jobs right out of college and had long, successful

philanthropy is driven by gratitude. “With our gift,” they said, “we

careers,” Beth said. The two have provided unrestricted support

are able to give back to Tech for the huge part it has played in

to the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems

making our lives so rewarding.”

2 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE Volume 93 No. 1honorary 2017 Founders’ |Council is the society recognizing donors who have made estate or life-income gifts of $25,000 or more for the support of Georgia Tech. For more information, please contact: 404.894.4678 • founderscouncil@dev.gatech.edu • www.development.gatech.edu

PUBLISHER’S LETTER Tech’s Biggest Tradition: Strength of Character SPEND A LOT OF TIME in the Atlanta airport like I do, and you’re eventually liable to hear a familiar message come over the PA system— a semi-private joke that should make any Yellow Jacket break into a wide, conspiratorial smile. “Paging Mr. George P. Burdell … Mr. Burdell, can you please meet your party at Concourse T, Gate 3?”

Such announcements happen in more unlikely places, too. Without fail, George P. Burdell is summoned at the Kentucky Derby every year. And those in the know will recognize his name whenever he’s called out at other prestigious events across the country. It’s a definitive sign that a fellow Yellow Jacket is in the building.

Tech’s most famous alumnus, of course, is also one of the Institute’s most favorite, long-lived traditions. I’m happy to report that Burdell not only is still enrolled at Tech, but also that he’s up to his usual mischief and educational pursuits (see page 46).

Most university rituals and customs begin with the student body, and Burdell is just one of many decades-old traditions kept alive and well today on campus by the current generation of Yellow Jackets. The Ramblin’ Wreck still kicks off Tech football games with a bang, The Whistle still sounds loudly at five before the hour every hour every school day, and freshmen still wear their RAT Caps reluctantly yet proudly.

Institute mainstays like the Tech Tower (recently renovated), our mascot Buzz and our legendary fight song Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech still remain inspirational icons for students, faculty and staff alike.

But the most important tradition at Georgia Tech is none of the above. Instead it’s the strength of character you build by surviving the academic rigors of a Tech education, the work ethic and critical thinking and problem solving and perseverance and passion that you build during your time as a student here. This tradition was here in 1885, and it continues to this day.

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In this special issue of the Alumni Magazine, we take a deeper look at a wide range of Tech’s traditions. We’ll help you look at the Institute’s most famous icons in brand new ways (page 44), share the story of how Tech’s “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate” with the University of Georgia started way back in the 19th century (page 52), pull the mask off what it’s like to play Buzz (page 100), and show you how today’s Yellow Jackets work to keep the Institute’s timehonored traditions alive (page 72).

The rest of the issue, meanwhile, tackles stories that demonstrate Georgia Tech’s tradition of strong character and achievement: Find out why Tech was the only university to make Fast Company magazine’s Most Innovative Companies list (page 22), how baseball star Charlie Blackmon, BA 11, overcame early adversity to become a pro (page 28), and what it’s like for young engineer Adam West, AE 13, to live and work at the South Pole (page 40).

With such stories, there’s little wonder why demand for a Georgia Tech education continues to escalate. For Fall 2017 admittance, we received roughly 31,000 applications for 2,800 spots in the freshmen class. The academic credentials of those already admitted are staggering: an average of 1468 on the SAT, 11 AP courses and a 4.0 GPA. We’ll certainly have a bright new group of Yellow Jackets come August!

Go Jackets!

JOSEPH P. IRWIN, IM 80 PRESIDENT & CEO GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine Vol. 93, No. 1 PUBLISHER Joseph P. Irwin, IM 80 VP MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS Dawn Churi EDITOR Roger Slavens ASSISTANT EDITOR Melissa Fralick DESIGNER Joshua Baker | joshbkr.com COPY EDITOR Rebecca Bowen STUDENT ASSISTANT Derek Nalodka EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Andrea L. Laliberte, IE 82, MS IE 84, Chair Benton J. Mathis Jr., IM 81, Past Chair David Bottoms, Mgt 01, Chair-Elect/Vice Chair of Roll Call Bird Blitch, IE 97, Vice Chair of Finance Jeni Bogdan, Mgt 89, MS MOT 96, Member at Large Elizabeth Bulat Turner, IAML 04, Member at Large James L. Mitchell, CE 05, Member at Large Tyler Townsend, IE 98, Member at Large Joseph P. Irwin, IM 80, President & CEO BOARD OF TRUSTEES Stanley E. Anderson, IM 75; Dorothy B. Autin, ChE 80; Lee A. Baker, IE 90; Julian A. Brown III, Mgt 97; Frank T. Campos, EE 80, MS MoT 96; Catherine C. Davidson, Mgt 89; Richard DeAugustinis, IE 92; W. Keith Edwards, ICS 89, MS ICS 91, PhD ICS 96; D. Shawn Fowler, Mgt 88; Jeffrey V. Giglio, EE 77; Samuel L. Gude III, MBA 08; Julie E. Hall, Phys 99; Cathy P. Hill, EE 84; Lara O’Connor Hodgson, AE 93; Ronald L. Johnson, MS OR 85; Plez A. Joyner, EE 89; Garrett S. Langley, EE 09; Mark E. Ligler, ME 76; Wonya Y. Lucas, IE 83; Robert D. Martin, IE 69; George R. Mason, IE 92; Valerie Montgomery Rice, Chem 83; Thomas J. O’Brien, IE 81; Shantan R. Pesaru CmpE 05; Amy H. Phuong, IA 05, MBA 14; Vicky S. Polashock, ChE 90, Phd ChE 95; William J. Ready, MatE 94, MS MetE 97, PhD MSE 00; John L. Reese III, BC 80; Kary E. Saleeby, NE 77, MS ME 78; Ricardo Salgado, IE 00; John W. Simmons Jr., EE 88; Mayson T. Spellman, Mgt 05; Jocelyn M. Stargel, IE 82, MS IE 86; James F. Stovall IV, CS 01; Kristen M. Thorvig, STC 98; David P. Touwsma, IE 97 ADVERTISING Holly Green (404) 894-0765 holly.green@alumni.gatech.edu 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. © 2016 Georgia Tech Alumni Association POSTMASTER Send address changes to: Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, 190 North Ave. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30313.

TELEPHONE Georgia Tech Alumni Association (404) 894-2391

TABLE OF CONTENTS D E PA RT M E N T S

WRECK RULES

The 1930 Model A Ford has led the football team onto the field at home games since 1961.

58

Features 44

52

58

68

INSTITUTE ICONS: A CLOSER LOOK

THE BIRTH OF A BITTER RIVALRY

TECH TRADITIONS: THEN & NOW

POSTER PERFECT

Think you know these seven abiding symbols of Georgia Tech well? Think again.

A football game and a train wreck led to 100-plus years of Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate.

A photographic journey through Tech’s favorite traditions and how most have stood the test of time.

If you have to explain what makes Tech’s traditions so special, you can start here.

Cover Photo: Josh Meister

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D E PA RT M E N T S

CENTER OF ATTENTION

Whenever beloved mascot Buzz takes the floor, the Tech faithful go crazy for his irreverent antics.

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Josh Meister

TABLE OF CONTENTS

10 Around Campus

34 In the World

12 The Courageous Carters Find out why Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter won this year’s Ivan Allen Jr. Prize.

14 Film Formulas Tech doctoral student Adam Cox helped recreate the math used in the movie Hidden Figures.

16 Still Full of Spirit and Mischief How today’s students feel about Tech’s long-standing traditions.

18 Talk of Tech Take a glimpse at some of the most compelling faculty and student stories.

36 Digital Survivalist Andy Quitmeyer, MS DM 11, PhD DM 15, stars in a new show about Hacking the Wild.

38 Dollars and Sense Madeline Delianides, EE 83, is a marketing tech wizard for The New York Times.

40 The Deep, Deep South Adam West, AE 13, shares what it’s like to live and work in Antarctica.

The latest news and views from Georgia Tech

Ramblin’ Wrecks generating buzz beyond the Institute

70 Alumni House

All about what’s going on at 190 North Avenue

26 On the Field

The scoop on Tech’s studentathletes and alumni 28 Charlie’s in Charge Former Yellow Jacket Charlie Blackmon, BA 11, is making his mark in Major League Baseball.

32 Fantastic Freshman Francesca Pan became the second Yellow Jacket in women’s basketball program history to be named ACC Freshman of the Year.

72 Alive and Well Student Tradition Keepers are preserving the spirit of Georgia Tech.

76 Alumni Travel 80 Wrecks at Work 82 Ramblin’ Roll 88 In Memoriam

100 Tech History

Memories and artifacts of Tech’s storied past 100 Being Buzz Learn what it’s like to step into the black Converse high tops of our favorite Yellow Jacket.

105 Time Machine 106 Back Page

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FEEDBACK SUSTAINABLE LESSONS

I read every issue of the Alumni Magazine, but I was really amazed at the articles in the Winter 2016 issue (Vol. 92, No. 4) about sustainability! I had no idea what was happening on the campus.

Reading about Tech’s sustainability efforts moved me to become heavily involved in a project at St. Frederick High here in Monroe, La., to significantly reduce energy consumption at the school as part of a renovation of the 54-year-old main building.

We are working with a consulting firm in New Orleans to do a complete energy audit. My initial survey indicates a simple energy management plan could easily save the school 15 percent on utility costs. For example, leaving thermostats on 60 degrees all day in the chapel after a one-hour morning mass is wasteful!

I am also looking into a rainwater collection and distribution system similar to those at Tech, but on a much smaller scale.

I reached out to Tech’s Howard Wertheimer, JuliAnne Williamson and [Alumni Magazine Assistant Editor] Melissa Fralick, and they have all been very helpful in assisting me with these endeavors.

So, I have a lot of balls in the air—and all because of your outstanding articles. I feel like I’m back in 1959, studying ME and sweating out graduation.

ARMAND BREARD, ME 59, MS IM 62 MONROE, LA

IT’S A SMALL TECH WORLD

My daughter Tiffany Poole, a Tech graduate like me, attended a wedding in Arlington, Va., this past November. Her sorority sister Kathleen was getting married, and Tiffany flew in early in order to make the rehearsal dinner on Friday night.

Ru n n i n g a fe w m i n u te s l a te ,

Tiffany hurriedly checked in at the hotel’s front desk to find the dinner location and made her way to the elevators, trying to remember the complicated directions she was given by the receptionist. She heard a couple approaching and held the elevator for them. However, since she was in a hurry, my daughter didn’t initiate any small talk with them like she normally would.

But soon as the couple got onboard the elevator, the woman asked Tiffany: “Are you heading to Kathleen and Sean’s party?” To which Tiffany replied, “Yes, and I guess y’all are too?”

They agreed, and Tiffany offered up that she knew the bride from college. The man mentioned that he was a friend of the groom’s father. Dismissing a connection since the groom is from the D.C. area, Tiffany smiled politely and got ready to exit the elevator.

But just before the doors opened, the man asked: “Remind me where Kathleen went to college?” “Georgia Tech,” Tiffany replied.

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The man then exclaimed: “I went to Georgia Tech!” Tiffany said, “I did, too, and so did my dad.” She then asked the man’s major and the year he “got out.” He answered, “Civil, ’73.” “Oh, my Dad was ME, ’71”.

“Well, what was his name?” “Jack Poole.”

“You’re kidding me—the Jack Poole from Sparta, Ga.?” Tiffany, taken aback, replied “That’s the one!”

“We were college roommates for a few years!” Before she could stop the words from coming out of her mouth, Tiffany said “You’re not Fat Har....”

“Yep, I’m Fat Harv!” he said with a big laugh. Now it was that booming laugh—similar to Bill Cosby’s Fat Albert character—not his weight that earned him that nickname.

Tiffany had heard me tell countless stories about Fat Harv from my days at Tech.

Tiffany then took a selfie with Fat Harv to send to me. How else was she going to prove that my favorite college roommate, James Harvey Markley, CE’73, who had moved to Alaska and then Idaho would be riding the same elevator as his daughter, 45 years after he last saw him? What were the odds?

(Someone at Tech should be able to figure that out!)

Yellow Jackets scatter all over the world after graduation. And Fat Harv was truly the most unforgettable character that I ever met at Tech. I truly regret not staying in closer contact with Harv after Tech—a regret I intend on correcting in the near future.

JACK CHESTER POOLE, ME 71 MARTINEZ, GA

Want to get in touch? Send letters to: Editor, Georgia Tech Alumni Magazine, 190 North Ave. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30313, or editor@alumni.gatech.edu. Share your personal news, birth and wedding announcements (with photos!), out-and-about snapshots and in memoriam notices at gtalumni.org/magazine.

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Around Campus PRESIDENTIAL TOWN HALL Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Cls 46, Hon PhD 79, and First Lady Rosalynn Carter answered a wide range of questions from Tech students in an informal town hall this February. Named this year’s Georgia Tech Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage, the Carters insisted that they have an opportunity to interact with students following the award ceremony held in Atlanta at The Biltmore.

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Roger Slavens

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 11

AROUND CAMPUS

Kudos to the Courageous Carters

L

BY LAURA DIAMOND

Former President Jimmy Carter, Cls 46, Hon PhD 79, and First Lady Rosalynn Carter awarded Tech’s Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage.

LAST MONTH, Georgia Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson awarded the 2017 Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage to Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter at the Biltmore Suites on Tech’s campus in Atlanta.

The former U.S. president and first lady were jointly recognized for their partnership in a courageous collaboration to improve human rights and alleviate suffering around the world. Over the span of more than four decades, their work has focused on improving health, preventing and resolving conflicts and enhancing freedom and democracy.

They are the first couple to receive the award, which recognizes those who demonstrate leadership to improve the human condition despite personal risks and challenges.

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter wore traditional attire during a visit to “Together, they exemplify the far- Ghana as part of the Carter Center’s work to eradicate the Guinea worm disease. reaching global changes that are Carters were presented the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize at a special possible through a lifetime partnership in social courage,” Peluncheon. terson says.

“It’s a pleasure always to be associated with the Ivan AlFollowing a panel symposium featuring grandson and Cartlen family in any way. We’ve been close to the family for a er Center Chairman Jason Carter, and civil rights activist and long time,” says Jimmy Carter, who attended Georgia Tech former ambassador Andrew Young, among other leaders, the

the

BASELINE

1979

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YEAR FORMER PRESIDENT Jimmy Carter received an Honorary PhD from Georgia Tech

#2

GEORGIA TECH’S RANKING among best U.S. universities for coders, according to Hacker Rank The Carter Center

Carter have dedicated their lives to improving human rights and alleviating suffering around the world.

Together they’ve traveled to more than 100 countries to observe elections as part of the Carter Center’s mission to enhance freedom and democracy. The nonpartisan, nonprofit center they founded is close to eradicating Guinea worm disease from the planet.

“Rosalynn and I are humbled and honored to receive this award,” Jimmy Carter says. “Our work to advance peace and health for the world’s least fortunate people through the Carter Center has been Four presidents (from left): Student Government Association Graduate School President David Scripka, former U.S. the pinnacle of our lives. We are grateful President Jimmy Carter, SGA Undergraduate President Nagela Nukuna and Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson. if our experiences offer some inspiration for his sophomore year in 1942 and received an honorary deto others to reach out to do what gree from the Institute in 1979. “In every respect my heart is they can to help make life better ABOUT with Georgia Tech and I’m particularly grateful to Ivan Allen for their neighbors next door or himself and his family, and this award has special meaning those in other nations.

THE AWARD for me.”

“You don’t have to be a former THE IVAN ALLEN The former first lady echoed her husband’s appreciation president or former first lady to JR. PRIZE for Social for former Atlanta mayor Ivan Allen Jr., Com 33, Hon PhD 96, make a difference in the lives of Courage honors the for whom Tech’s Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts is named. others. Anyone can find the courpeople behind the ef“This is a great honor for me, especially to receive an award age to speak out against injustice forts to improve the in the name of Mayor Ivan Allen Jr., for whom I had such and lend a helping hand within human condition. The great admiration,” Rosalynn Carter says. “Mayor Allen was a their own circle.” award is funded in beacon of light for Jimmy and for me and so many others, acThe Carter Center recently anperpetuity by a grant tually, in our whole country, standing up for what was good nounced it is poised to wipe out from the Wilbur and and what was right.” the Guinea worm disease from Hilda Glenn Family Following the event, the Carters hosted an informal town the planet. In the mid-1980s, the Foundation, and rehall with more than 300 Georgia Tech students, as well as hunpainful disease afflicted about cipients are awarded dreds more who watched and participated online.

3.5 million people each year in 21 a $100,000 stipend.

To say that the Carters, who have been married for more than countries across Africa and Asia.

The inaugural 70 years, have accomplished much during their time together Today, the number of cases has prize was awarded in is a vast understatement. As the 39th president of the United dropped to just 25 in three counMarch 2011 to former States, elected in 1976, Jimmy promoted peace in the Middle East tries: Chad, Ethiopia and South Senator Sam Nunn. through the Camp David Accords; increased the number of Sudan.

Other past recipients women serving in the federal judiciary; and nearly doubled the The Carters’ unique focus on include epidemiolamount of land protected by the National Park Service. Meandisease eradication has filled a ogist William Foege, while, Rosalynn’s groundbreaking advocacy on mental health vacuum in the world when few U.S. Rep. John Lewis lessened the stigma associated with mental illness and forced were paying much attention to and humanitarian acdoctors to treat it on par with physical health. tivist Nancy Parrish. this problem. The last disease Since leaving the White House in 1981, Jimmy and Rosalynn eradicated was smallpox in 1980.

16

NUMBER OF WOMEN who completed the inaugural 10-month Leading Woman@Tech program

$100K

AMOUNT OF STIPEND AWARDED with the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage, which is funded in perpetuity by a grant from the Wilbur and Hilda Glenn Family Foundation Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 13

STUDENT NEWS

Film Formulas

BY VICTOR ROGERS

How Tech doctoral student Adam Cox helped recreate the math used in the acclaimed movie Hidden Figures.

“ISN’T YOUR HUSBAND a rocket scientist?” That question—posed to Adam Cox’s wife, Mallory Rose, by a set decoration buyer for the film Hidden Figures—is how Cox became involved with the making of the Oscar Awardnominated film.

“My wife got a text from Lauri Lannan, saying they need to put formulas and charts on the chalkboards and

the

BASELINE

papers for the movie set, and they wanted it to be relevant and accurate to the period,” says Cox, a doctoral candidate in Georgia Tech’s Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering.

Cox quickly agreed to help his wife’s friend for two reasons: “They’re making a movie about space,” he says. “And, they’re making a movie about the engineers—not the astronauts.”

$15 MILLION

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The film focuses on three AfricanAmerican female pioneers—Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson—who were part of NASA’s team of human “computers” who calculated by hand the flight trajectories for Project Mercury and other missions.

Principal photography on the behindthe-scenes film began in Atlanta in March 2016 and finished in May.

INITIAL INVESTMENT made by 10 major companies in new startup accelerator Engage, a partnership with Tech and the city of Atlanta 20th Century Fox

arts@tech Enjoy the Arts on Campus this Spring!

Once Cox was on board, the set decorator sent him keywords from the script so he could see what math the characters were talking about.

“I’m one of the people who—on the second or third time watching the movie—would pause the movie and look at what’s on the board,” Cox says. “So you want it to be right.”

To get it right, Cox went into NASA’s technical research database online and pulled documents that were published around that time: the years 1961 and 1962. “If you’re going to make it accurate, you should get the math that they actually used then, not the math we use now,” he says.

Cox found work that the human “computers” would have been doing, and he sent the set decorator equations they could put on the board as background for certain scenes. “If there’s something [on the chalkboards] that one of the actors wasn’t actively writing during the scene, it’s probably something that I provided,” he says. “What they were writing during the scenes was so integral to the script that they may have set up some of that when they were writing the script.”

In addition to helping with the equations, Cox also provided the set decorator with textbooks from that period. “She said Kevin Costner is very particular [regarding accuracy], and he will say ‘this doesn’t look right’ [if something is amiss on the set].”

So, Cox gathered approximately 30 books—some from his own collection and others borrowed from colleagues including his adviser, Regents Professor Dimitri Mavris. He chose books on math, structures, thermal analysis and aerodynamics that engineers probably would have had in their office in the early 1960s. The books were placed around the film sets.

Cox and his wife saw the movie a few weeks after it opened. Naturally, he looked to see if his contributions made it on screen. They did. “It’s a great movie,” Cox says.

“I’m proud to have had any part in it, especially one related to making it all historically and scientifically accurate.”

Since its December release, Hidden Figures has grossed more than $160 million worldwide and was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress (Octavia Spencer).

GT School of Music Presents

Margaret Guthman Musical Instrument Competition March 9 Arts@Tech Season

Bang on a Can All-Stars March 11

Georgia Tech Chamber Strings & Chorale March 16 Arts@Tech Season

DrumLine Live March 17 Poetry@Tech Presents

Vijay Seshadri April 6

Georgia Tech Symphony Orchestra

Eroica in America April 11 Georgia Tech Bands

Spring Concert April 13 DramaTech Presents

The Musical of Musicals: The Musical April 14-22

Arts@Tech Season

SFJazz Collective April 15 Georgia Tech Choirs

Human Rights April 23

Exhibition

Santiago Calatrava: Exploring the Art of Construction Through March 16

4,380

STUDENTS ACCEPTED in the Early Action decision process from 15,715 applicants for the 2017-18 freshman class

details and more events at

arts.gatech.edu 404-894-2787

STUDENT NEWS

Still Full of Spirit and Mischief Current Yellow Jackets sound off on their favorite Tech traditions.

THE ALUMNI MAGAZINE wanted to know what today’s students think of Tech’s long-standing traditions. So, with some help from the Student Alumni Association, we conducted an online survey to find out. Here’s what a cross-section of students across campus had to say.

WHAT’S YOUR SINGLE FAVORITE GEORGIA TECH TRADITION?

“The Mini 500 is my favorite tradition because of how unique it is. I mean, where else could you find college students racing each other on tricked-out tricycles? It’s the highlight of Homecoming Week.”

JACK WEINKSELBAUM, COMPUTER SCIENCE

RATE THE TOP GEORGIA TECH TRADITIONS

JEN ABRAMS, PUBLIC POLICY

The Wreck (Contraption) Parade fills me with love for Georgia Tech, its culture and its students. In no other college would you see such a fantastic display of engineering prowess and school pride that’s shared with an entire city.”

TAYLOR VANNATTA, BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING

HOW IMPORTANT ARE TECH’S TRADITIONS TO YOUR COLLEGE EXPERIENCE?

(SCALE OF 1 TO 5, 1 BEING AWFUL AND 5 BEING AWESOME)

4.74 The Ramblin’ Wreck 1930 Model A 4.70 Ramblin’ Wreck Fight Song 4.69 Buzz

19.7% Football Game-Day Traditions (Marching Band, Gold Fellas, Swarm, Budweiser Bob, Horse, etc.)

14.8% Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech Fight Song 13.0% Homecoming Events (Freshman Cake Race, Mini 500, Wreck Parade, etc.)

11.5% George P. Burdell 9.8% The Ramblin’ Wreck 1930 Model A Ford 9.8% The Whistle 8.2% Buzz 6.6% THWG (Rivalry with UGA) 6.6% Special Student Events (Midnight Bud, Family Weekend, etc.)

0.0% RAT Caps

“Our traditions aren’t as ritualistic as a military school’s, and they’re often really goofy. That’s why the inside joke of George P. Burdell is our finest example of what Georgia Tech stands for.”

4.59 Football Game-Day Traditions 4.48 George P. Burdell 4.27 Homecoming Events

60.7% Extremely Important 26.2% Very Important 13.1% Somewhat Important 0.0% Barely Important 0.0% Not Important at All 86.9% of students surveyed said Tech traditions are very or extremely important.

4.15 Special Student Events

“Buzz is the perfect embodiment of Georgia Tech— mischievous, clever and full of spirit. Buzz is so much more than your typical college mascot!”

3.38

NICOLE ROMER, ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

4.25 The Whistle 4.18 THWG

RAT Caps

“The Whistle has become such a part of my daily life that I miss hearing it when I’m away from campus. I will always remember that sound for the rest of my life.”

SHAHNAZ KASAM, MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

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TALK OF TECH CREATING THE NEXT: ONLINE MASTER’S IN ANALYTICS GEORGIA TECH RECENTLY ANNOUNCED a new online master of science degree that will be offered at a quarter of the cost of its on-campus program. The Institute’s top 10-ranked program in analytics will be delivered in collaboration with edX, the leading nonprofit MOOC provider.

Tuition for Georgia Tech’s Online Master of Science in Analytics (OMS Analytics) degree will be available for less than $10,000 beginning in August. Currently, the on-campus program ranges from $36,000 for in-state students to $49,000 for out of state.

OMS Analytics will accept 250 students for the first semester and will grow over time as the program scales to meet demand and student needs. Full-time students can complete the program in one year, and most working professionals can earn the degree in two.

The new degree program will follow the same model as Georgia Tech’s highly successful online Master of Science in Computer Science (OMS CS) program that demonstrated to the world that quality education could be accessible at a lower price.

OMS CS launched in 2014 and currently enrolls nearly 4,000 students.

“The field of data analytics is growing very fast. It is applicable in practically all forms of business from retail to health,” says Rafael L. Bras, Tech provost, executive vice president of academic affairs and K. Harrison Brown Family Chair. “We have far more qualified applicants than our residential program can admit. Building on

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TECH GENERATES $2.87 BILLION ECONOMIC IMPACT ON GEORGIA EVERY FIVE YEARS, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG) conducts a study to measure the tangible economic impact—collectively and individually—of its 28 higher education institutions. The numbers for 2015 reveal that, once again,

GEORGIA TECH LEADS THE PACK our pioneering and very successful OMS CS program, Georgia Tech will continue to innovate by offering unique access to topquality education at an affordable price, particularly for working professionals.”

Georgia Tech is ranked in the top 10 by U.S. News and World Report and QS World University Rankings in computer science, quantitative analysis in business, and statistics and operational research.

“The [new] degree is among the first truly interdisciplinary graduate programs of its kind,” says Joel Sokol, OMS Analytics program director and associate professor in the Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Georgia Tech. “Analytics has quickly become a key facet of business strategy because it ties together new opportunities through computing, advanced quantitative methods, and the need for better business intelligence and decision support.” —LAURA DIAMOND

1468

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AVERAGE SAT SCORE for Tech’s early action applicants, who also took an average of 11 AP courses

with an annual $2.87 billion impact on the state’s economy.

Wrapped into this number are

7,860 15,468

ON-CAMPUS JOBS AND AN ESTIMATED

OFF-CAMPUS JOBS

brought about by Georgia Tech spending. The total also reflects the multiplier effect of “re-spending,” which presumes that every dollar spent by an institution or its students generates another 46 cents for the local economy. These metrics are applied uniformly across USG institutions by the Selig Center for Economic Growth in the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business—and the bottom line tells a positive and important story for each school.

500+

NUMBER OF 2017 InVenture Prize applicants; six teams competed in the finals

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TALK OF TECH GARY MAY CONFIRMED AS NEXT CHANCELLOR AT UC DAVIS

RESEARCHING FROGS’ DEADLY KISS A FROG USES ITS WHIP-LIKE TONGUE to snag its prey faster than a human can blink, hitting it with a force five times greater than gravity. How does it hang onto its meal as the food rockets back into its mouth?

A new Georgia Tech study, led by mechanical engineering PhD student Alexis Noel, says the tongue’s stickiness is caused by the frog’s unique, reversible saliva in combination with its super soft tongue. A frog’s saliva is thick and sticky during prey capture, then turns thin and watery as prey is removed inside the mouth.

The tongue, which was found to be as soft as brain tissue and 10 times softer than a human’s tongue, stretches and stores energy much like a spring. This combination of spit and softness is so effective that it provides the tongue 50 times greater work of adhesion than synthetic polymer materials such as sticky-hand toys.

David Hu, a professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, is Noel’s adviser and has also studied how mosquitos fly in the rain, how dogs shake off water and why eyelashes need to be an ideal length. He says the frog study could help engineers design reversible adhesives at high speed.

“Most adhesives that have been created are stiff, especially tape,” says Hu, who is also a faculty member in the School of Biological Sciences. “Frog tongues can attach and reattach with soft, special properties that are extremely stickier than typical materials. Perhaps this technology could be used for new Band-Aids. Or it could be used to create new materials in soft manufacturing.” —JASON MADERER

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#8

RANKING OF ATLANTA in top U.S. metro areas for STEM professionals, with much thanks to Tech, according to WalletHub

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LIVE LONG AND PROSPER, GARY MAY. The much-beloved dean of Georgia Tech’s College of Engineering has finished his mission with the Institute and is moving onto a new post as the next chancellor of the University of California, Davis.

Since 2011, May served as the chief academic officer of the College of Engineering, where he led over 400 faculty members and supported more than 13,000 students during his tenure. May, EE 85, also held the Southern Company Chair since 2015.

“For the past five years, Dean May has led the nation’s largest and most diverse college of engineering,” says Georgia Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson. “His commitment to mentoring students and developing programs to attract and retain female and underrepresented minorities in STEM fields has benefitted students, not only here at Georgia Tech but throughout the nation. His efforts to increase interdisciplinary collaboration and help graduates gain entrepreneurial confidence have had wide-ranging impact, including facilitating the growth of Technology Square. We are grateful for his vision, energy and thought leadership while here at Georgia Tech.”

An interim dean for Georgia Tech’s College of Engineering will be named soon, and the search for a new dean has already begun. May will begin at UC Davis on Aug. 1.

“I have greatly enjoyed helming the College of Engineering, one of the best jobs in all of academia, but the leadership of an institution such as UC Davis represents a truly exceptional opportunity,” May says. “It is impossible to reduce to mere words how much Georgia Tech has meant to me and to my family. I have literally spent more than half of my life on this campus—55.92 percent to be exact—and that experience has shaped me into the person that I am today. I am grateful to my colleagues, students, staff, and fellow Tech alums for their friendship and the memories that will remain etched in my mind as long as I live.”

#33

TECH’S GLOBAL RANKING in the Times World University Rankings, up from No. 41 last year

TALK OF TECH ADMISSIONS ADVICE:

HOW TO ASK BETTER QUESTIONS OF PROSPECTIVE COLLEGES

INNOVATIVE INSTITUTE FAST COMPANY MAGAZINE featured Georgia Tech on its annual “World’s Most Innovative Companies” list—the only university in the world named to the list.

“We are a top-ranked institution, but we are absolutely not the typical, staid, high-ranked educational institution,” says Tech Provost Rafael L. Bras. “Just as we innovate in research, we do so in education. We take risks and explore new ideas—that’s what innovation is all about.”

Citing Georgia Tech’s groundbreaking Online Master of Science in Computer Science (OMS CS) degree, Fast Company ranked Georgia Tech No. 3, just behind Microsoft and Duolingo, in the education sector.

MANY PROSPECTIVE students will be making college visits this spring. Rick Clark, Georgia Tech’s director of undergraduate admission, shares how they can ask better questions—and better follow-up questions—to gain deeper information about universities on their short lists.

COMMON QUESTION: “What is your faculty:student ratio?”

This number is not fully indicative of the student experience.

BETTER QUESTION: “What is your most common class size?”

This question gets you right into the classroom. Schools rarely publish average SATs or GPAs, but rather bands or ranges.

Likewise, you want to look at their ranges and variances within class size. Georgia Tech’s most common class size is between 26 to 33, and around 7 percent of our courses have more than 100 students in them.

FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS: “How does class size vary from freshman year to senior year?

Is that true for all majors? What does that look like for my major?”

COMMON QUESTION: “What’s your graduation rate?”

Schools do not answer this the same way.

Some will give you a four-year grad rate, some a five-year rate, and some the six-year rate. The variance is not an effort to be misleading or nefarious; they have been trained to respond with an answer that is most

representative of their students’ experience.

BETTER QUESTION: “What are your fourand six-year graduation rates?”

FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS: “At those two intervals, what percentage have either a job offer or grad school acceptance letter? How does grad rate vary by major? What percentage of students who double major or study abroad or have an internship finish in four years?”

COMMON QUESTION: “What is your retention rate?”

That’s a great question and an important one. Most put the national average somewhere in the 60 to 65 percent range.

However, it varies by school type and student type. If a college says its first-year retention rate is 85 percent, ask them to articulate exactly who is leaving.

FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS: “Why are those other 15 percent leaving? Is it financial? Is it because the football team lost too many games? Is it academic and they’re not prepared for the rigor of the school? Is it because the school is too remote or too urban or too big?” Tech has a retention rate of 97.3 percent, which is among the top 25 schools nationally and top five for publics. But we are constantly looking at who is leaving, in an effort to better support our students.

TECH ALUMNUS BRIAN WHITED WINS ACADEMY AWARD FOR ANIMATION SYSTEM MILLIONS OF PEOPLE didn’t watch Brian Whited, CS 05, MS CS 07, PhD CS 09, win his Academy Award this year—the Science and Technical Awards are held two weeks before the televised Oscars broadcast—but that didn’t make his accomplishment any less impressive.

Whited, a software engineer for Disney Animation Studios, was singled out for his development of the Meander drawing system, which merges traditional 2-D with computerized 3-D drawing techniques and gives artists a

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more expressive way of creating animated films. Meander was first on display in Disney’s 2012 Oscar-winning animated short, Paperman, and has been used in the production of all Disney animated movies ever since, including most recently, 2016’s Moana. Not even Whited thought his Georgia Tech PhD dissertation project, titled “Processing Digital Shapes to Smooth Medical Illustrations,” would eventually lead to such a critical improvement of the animated movie-making process.

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TALK OF TECH

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON CODA IN TECH SQUARE WORK HAS OFFICIALLY STARTED ON THE NEW CODA BUILDING, which represents the next phase of Georgia Tech’s Technology Square. The nearly 750,000-squarefoot mixed-use project will create new opportunities in interdisciplinary research, commercialization and sustainability. It will also enhance the area’s innovation

ecosystem, which fosters collaboration between the Institute, startups and established industries. The project will include 620,000 square feet of office space—about half of which will be occupied by Georgia Tech—nearly 40,000 square feet of retail space and an approximately 80,000-square-foot data center.

TECH STUDENTS TO HELP BUILD SMART COMMUNITY FOR 2020 TOKYO OLYMPICS GEORGIA TECH’S ECO URBAN LAB kicked off a “smart city” project in January 2017 for Tokyo’s Urawa-Misono district, one of the sites of the 2020 Olympic Games.

The effort aims to develop a smart and ecologically sound community as a pilot project to demonstrate how a smart city is designed, evaluated and financed in Japan. It involves incorporating experts and stakeholders in the areas of urban design and modeling, urban analytics for big data, IoT (Internet of Things) technology, smart home, smart mobility, eco urban performance evaluation and green finance.

The Tokyo smart city project is an international joint effort, but Georgia Tech will lead the project’s first phase by organizing an international urban

design studio. Professor Perry Yang of the School of City and Regional Planning and School of Architecture will lead the joint studio, along with others, including Professor Ellen Do of the Georgia Tech School of Industrial Design and the School of Interactive Computing. More than 20 students from the School of City and Regional Planning, the School of Architecture, the School of Industrial Design and the College of Computing will participate in this interdisciplinary studio project.

“Tokyo is the largest mega-city of the world, with a population of 37 million,” Yang says. “Its

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enormous scale, system complexity, innovation in design and cutting-edge technologies provides an experimental urban laboratory and a terrific test bed for the smart city concept. We are hoping to develop a design integration model to make sense of this fascinating opportunity in Tokyo, and see how Georgia Tech can make contributions to this international partnership for creating the next.”

The studio is planning an on-site workshop in Tokyo in March 2017 as a study abroad opportunity. Students and faculty of Georgia Tech will travel to Japan and team up with local students and researchers in Tokyo to develop a joint design proposal and to meet with local community and governmental officials, as well as industrial stakeholders.

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On the Field CONGRATS COACH! First-year menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basketball head coach Josh Pastner was named ACC Coach of the Year after leading the Yellow Jackets to a 17-14 regular season that vastly exceeded expectations. Most experts picked Tech to rank dead last in the conference, doubtful to win even a single ACC game. Instead, Pastner helped turn his squad into a formidable foe, knocking off three top 15 teams along the way while building for the future.

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Danny Karnik

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 27

ON THE FIELD

Charlie’s in Charge

A

BY BILL CHASTAIN

Overcoming early injuries and a position change, Charlie Blackmon, BA 11, worked hard to become one of Major League Baseball’s best players.

A CERTAIN BEER COMPANY Suwannee, Ga., and attended Young Harris College on a baserecently replaced its wellball scholarship. But his goal was to transfer to Georgia Tech recognized spokesman with to earn his degree and play ball with and against some of someone younger. It may the nation’s best collegiate athletes. He proved himself a have missed out by not choosgood enough pitcher at Young Harris to draw interest from ing former Tech baseball Georgia Tech’s coaches. Meanwhile, Blackmon took the classstandout and current Coloes—chemistry and calculus—and earned excellent grades rado Rockies center fielder that he needed to qualify him to pursue a mechanical engiCharlie Blackmon to take over neering degree at Tech. the spot as “The Most InterHe transferred to Tech prior to his junior year. But Blackesting Man in the World.” mon was quickly confronted by a major challenge that Blackmon sports a big, threatened his future in the game he loved. bushy beard that would “I got bad tendonitis in my elbow,” Blackmon says. “And I make Yosemite Sam proud just couldn’t seem to get over it.” and any craft-beer brewer jealous. He’s been known to take Blackmon’s sore elbow forced him to redshirt at Tech off on impromptu three-week backpacking trips to Europe, and delay his Division 1 baseball career. He decided to spend where he’d prefer to stay in hosthe following summer playtels than in five-star luxury ing outfield for a team in the hotels he can easily afford. He’d Texas Collegiate League that foralso rather blend in with the lomer major leaguer Rusty Greer THE CHARLIE cals at an Italian karaoke bar to coached.

BLACKMON FILE belt out the high notes of MiThe move paid off. Blackmon E: LEG COL chael Jackson’s “Billy Jean” than led the team in hitting, promptNAME: Georgia Tech and draw attention to his American ing Greer to put in a good word Charlie Blackmon Young Harris celebrity and All-Star status. with Tech coach Danny Hall MLB TEAM: DRAFTED: 2008, It’s this mix of humbleness and that he thought Charlie could Colorado Rockies Round 2, 72nd overall individuality, plus his relentless make the switch from pitcher to POSITION: Center pick by Colorado pursuit of fun—both on and off position player. fielder MAJOR LEAGUE the field—that have fast made him “Danny was open to letting PLAYER NUMBER: DEBUT: No. 19 a fan favorite in Denver. In fact, he’s me play outfield after that,” June 7, 2011 BATS/THROWS: almost reached legendary status in Blackmon says.

YEARS IN THE Left/Left the Mile High City. During a fourth Derek Dietrich, now a second MAJORS: HEIGHT/WEIGHT: quarter time out at a Denver Nugbaseman for the Miami Mar5 (2017 will be his 6th 6’3”, 210 lbs. gets game, he sank a half-court lins, was a freshman at Tech MLB season) BIRTHPLACE: shot, tossing the ball backward and became Blackmon’s roomBEST SEASON: .324 Dallas, Texas over his head—nothing but net. mate during his redshirt junior BA, 29 HR, 82 RBIs, HIGH SCHOOL: Stay thirsty my friend, indeed. season.

6) 111 Rs, 17 SBs (201 North Gwinnett Blackmon graduated from “We had a lot of talks about North Gwinnett High School in the approach to hitting, the

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Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 29

ON THE FIELD mechanics of the swing and so on and so forth,” Dietrich says.

“We learned how to hit and be successful together. I was very fortunate to be around Charlie my first year. It made the transition from high school that much easier. He was a good student and college athlete, someone I looked up to in school.”

Blackmon hit .396 with eight home runs and stole 25 bases as Tech’s leadoff hitter in 2008. He was named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference’s second team and ESPN’s Academic All-America second team.

The Rockies then selected him in the second round of the 2008 June amateur draft. He still had a semester to go to graduate from Tech, but figured he’d find a way to finish up in the future. Further adversity would deliver that opportunity.

“In June 2011, I got called up to the Rockies, and about a month later I broke my foot playing against the Braves, so I was done for the season,” Blackmon says. “After my surgery and I started rehab, the Rockies were good enough to let me go back and finish my degree.”

Blackmon graduated with a business degree in 2011—recognizing that being a mechanical engineer wasn’t going to be in the cards—and earned highest academic honors.

Along the way, Tech helped equip Blackmon for his future.

“Tech was challenging for a lot of reasons,” Blackmon says.

“There are big classes. And there’s so much work done outside of class. You’re really challenged to find out how you learn best.

All those things can be applied to the game of baseball.”

Case in point: Blackmon learned from his early struggle with injuries that he needed to spend a lot of his time working to keep his body healthy to succeed in the big leagues.

Former Rockies teammate Corey Dickerson, who now plays for the Tampa Bay Rays, is on record saying that Blackmon’s

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work ethic and drive was second to none. And it’s precisely these two factors that helped him persevere and earn a full-time starting center fielder gig in the majors with the Rockies in 2014.

Blackmon has had three increasingly impressive seasons since. He was named a National League All-Star in 2015 and, in 2014, reached the pinnacle of his position by hitting .324 with 29 home runs and 82 RBIs, claiming his first Silver Slugger Award.

“Last season, I established a body of work that I am proud of,” Blackmon says. “But I want to keep getting better. What I’m trying to do is win baseball games—that’s the real goal.”

As for putting his Tech education to work, Blackmon has interned with Buckhead Investment Partners in Atlanta, and he says that after he retires from the big leagues, “There’s a possibility I do something in that field.” He quickly adds: “But I hope that’s not for a long time.”

$7.3 MILLION

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AMOUNT OF the one-year contract signed by Charlie Blackmon to avoid arbitration with the Rockies Ross Kinnaird / Getty Images

ON THE FIELD

2017 Georgia Tech Football Schedule COMING OFF A THRILLING 9-4 season that saw the Georgia Tech football team capture victories over the University of Georgia in Athens and the University of Kentucky in the TaxSlayer Bowl, the Yellow Jackets look to build on that excitement in 2017.

Tech will play seven of its 12 regular-season games in Atlanta, beginning with the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game versus Tennessee on Labor Day downtown at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new, state-of-the-art home of the Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United. The Yellow Jackets will also play six Saturday contests at Bobby Dodd Stadium, including

FRANCESCA PAN NAMED ACC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR

the home opener against NCAA Division I FCS power Jacksonville State on Sept. 9, the Homecoming game against Wake Forest on Oct. 21, and the 112th edition of “Clean, OldFashioned Hate” versus archrival Georgia on Nov. 25.

It’s a challenging schedule, as all seven opponents that the Yellow Jackets face in Atlanta advanced to the postseason in 2016, including four bowl champions. The road slate is nearly as tough, as Tech’s five away games include three matchups versus 2016 postseason teams, highlighted by an Oct. 28 contest at defending national champion Clemson.

DATE

OPPONENT

LOCATION

Monday, Sept. 4

Tennessee (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game)

Atlanta (Mercedes-Benz Stadium)

Saturday, Sept. 9

Jacksonville State

Atlanta (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

Saturday, Sept. 16

at UCF

Orlando, Fla.

Saturday, Sept. 23 Pittsburgh*

Atlanta (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

Saturday, Sept. 30 North Carolina

Atlanta (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

Thursday, Oct. 12

at Miami (Fla.)*

Miami Gardens, Fla.

Saturday, Oct. 21

Wake Forest*

Atlanta (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

Saturday, Oct. 28

at Clemson*

Clemson, S.C.

Saturday, Nov. 4

at Virginia*

Charlottesville, Va.

Saturday, Nov. 11

Virginia Tech

Atlanta (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

Saturday, Nov. 18

at Duke*

Durham, N.C.

Saturday, Nov. 25

Georgia

Atlanta (Bobby Dodd Stadium)

Home games denoted in bold. ACC games denoted with asterisks.

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22

NUMBER OF SEASONS Bruce Heppler has served as head coach of the Yellow Jackets men’s golf team

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GEORGIA TECH WOMEN’S basketball player Francesca Pan earned one of the highest postseason honors earlier this March as she was selected the ACC Freshman of the Year by both the Blue Ribbon Panel and ACC Head Coaches.

She’s just the second Yellow Jacket in program history to win this honor. The Italian native led all freshmen in the ACC in scoring during the regular season, averaging 11.0 points per game, and she notched 15 games scoring in doublefigures, including five 20-plus point outings.

Pan started 27 of the 28 games in which she appeared, and she ranked second on the team in scoring. “This is a tremendous honor for Francesca and our Georgia Tech women’s basketball program,” says head coach MaChelle Joseph.

“Her toughness and skill set is what separates her. I have been impressed with her consistency and competitiveness in the toughest women’s basketball conference in the country.”

337

TECH FOOTBALL’S record number of points scored by kicker Harrison Butker during his four seasons with the team Danny Karnik

In the World

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Science Channel

WILD, WILD TECH Imagine you were lost on a jungle island and all you had was a coconut shell, an eyeglass holder and a stainless steel coffee mug. Would you be able to use them to help you stay alive? Georgia Tech alumnus Andy Quitmeyer, MS DM 11, PhD 15, would. On his new Science Channel show Hacking the Wild, Quitmeyer puts ordinary items and everyday technology to use in unexpected ways to survive unforgiving environs and fight his way back to civilization.

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 35

IN THE WORLD

Digital Survivalist

A

BY REBECCA KEANE AND ROGER SLAVENS

Tech alumnus Andy Quitmeyer plays a real-life, high-tech MacGyver of the wild in a new Science Channel show.

ANDY QUITMEYER, MS DM 11, PHD DM 15, wants to single-handedly reinvent what it means to rough it in the great outdoors. His work focuses on constructing maker spaces in the wilderness—on-location environments for designing technological tools to survive, study and interact with nature. Quitmeyer’s groundbreaking explorations have recently gained widespread media exposure through a new six-episode TV program on the Science Channel called Hacking the Wild, which began airing Wednesday nights at 10 p.m. EST in February.

The skills Quitmeyer developed during his studies at Georgia Tech and his international travels are put to good use in Hacking the Wild. In each of the hour-long episodes, he is armed with a “backpack’s worth of wires, laptops and tracking devices” and tasked with hacking his way back to civilization. To do so, he has to use survival skills and his tech expertise to do such things as hack traps and alarms, create a heating system, find and cook his own food, and stay alive in treacherous conditions. His onscreen adventures place him in diverse, hostile-to-human environments ranging from a remote Pacific island to the backcountry of Alaska.

“Andy Quitmeyer is the only person in the world who can survive the way he does—with a unique combination of know-how, tech and stamina,” says Marc Etkind, general manager of Science Channel. “With Hacking the Wild, he mixes primitive skills and modern technology to put a scientific spin on survival.”

Inspiration for the series came from Quitmeyer’s “hiking hacks”—expeditions leading students to explore novel applications of digital technologies in nature.

During his time as a masters and doctoral student with

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“I wanted to run around the jungle all summer and have crazy adventures putting everyday technology and science to work in the unlikeliest of locations.

And now I’m doing it,” Quitmeyer says.

Georgia Tech’s Digital Media program, Quitmeyer helped pioneer the discipline of Digital Naturalism, which investigates the role that digital media and emerging technologies can play in biological field work.

“When I started my PhD, I told my adviser that I wanted to be a real-life Indiana Jones,” Quitmeyer says. “I wanted to run around the jungle all summer and have crazy adventures putting everyday technology and science to work in the unlikeliest of locations. And now I’m doing it.”

His research, supported by sponsors such as the Smithsonian Institution and the U.S. Department of State, took him to Madagascar, the Philippines and elsewhere to pursue innovative projects marrying technology and the natural world. In addition to hosting Hacking the Wild, Quitmeyer serves as an assistant professor at the National University of Singapore.

“My favorite part of all the research I do is pushing everything out of the lab into the wild as much as I can,” Quitmeyer says. “What could you do if you were stuck out in nature with nothing but a laptop? What are the social and technological implications of using a device in a place like this? And what is the impact on the broader scale of nature and the environment? These are the questions I like to ask myself and then answer by going out and finding out.”

Science Channel

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 37

DOLLARS & SENSE

Madeline Delianides, EE 83, Marketing Guru for The New York Times

W

BY OSAYI ENDOLYN

WHEN THE ESTEEMED The New York Times sends personalized emails to subscribers, or publishes a breaking story on Facebook, or suggests “recommended for you” content on its website, the publication and its

digital platforms are relying on the complex execution of a multichannel marketing strategy. Madeline Delianides, EE 83, has been the executive director of marketing operations and creative production for the last two years, overseeing a fast-paced environment where she says speaking two languages—marketing (messaging) and technology (implementation)— has been the linchpin to her success. We asked her how her role has helped the Times succeed where other newspapers have failed.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES’ MARKETING ROAD MAP? I lead a team where we execute all the facets of a Times marketing

“ My role is a hybrid role. I understand what marketers want (identify the customer lifecycle, deliver the right message at the right time). And I can also work with technologies to architect solutions. It’s a skillset that’s hard to find and hire,” Delianides says.

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campaign, everywhere. That encompasses selecting the targeted audiences, thinking about customer loyalty and retention programs, selecting the audiences and treatments across email, social, onsite, and offsite targeting—every communication that we send. The roles on my team span across data management experts, campaign managers, web developers, email producers and program managers.

M E D I A G I A N T S H AV E M OV E D AWAY FROM AD-BASED MODELS, TO SUBSCRIBER-BASED MODELS. HOW DOES THAT DIFFERENCE IMPACT YOUR WORK? I was hired to help the Times usher in a new way of reaching subscribers.

Prospects are different than customers who’ve been coming to your site on a regular basis, and they’re different from people who haven’t been to the site in a while. Marketers want to know what yields the behaviors we want (returning to the site and subscriptions).

So marketing in digital technology puts more pressure on time-to-market. We can’t take six months to get a campaign ready. We have six hours. If there’s a tweet that’s breaking news, we have to be able to respond quickly, thoughtfully, and when it’s appropriate.

technology. A hybrid career wasn’t appreciated. Engineers that have an interest in moving to the business side can find many opportunities now. One reason I got my MBA in finance [from Hofstra University] was because I read how many CEOs have engineering degrees. The same is becoming more relevant at middle and lower levels of management. Without the skill of knowing what problem you’re solving, you risk building solutions that don’t meet the needs of business or wind up costing more money.

WHAT ARE YOUR BIGGEST OPPORTUNITIES AT THE TIMES? This year, we’ll deploy multiple apps and see what they can do. There’s pentup demand in creative ideas that we can’t execute in a scalable way right now. But once we remove the technical barriers, instead of a one-treatment strategy for one large audience, we’ll have five treatments for five audiences.

Ideas are great, but you have to deliver, otherwise you’re hallucinating.

HOW IS YOUR WORK SIMILAR OR DIFFERENT FROM YOUR PREVIOUS VP ROLES IN TECHNOLOGY AND MARKETING AT OPPENHEIMER AND AMERICAN EXPRESS? Whether I was promoting credit cards at Amex or mutual funds at OppenheimerFunds or subscriptions at the Times, the principles were the same. The tools and the communications channels have become more sophisticated—it used to be direct mail and telemarketing.

My role is still a hybrid role. I understand what marketers want (identify the customer lifecycle, deliver the

right message at the right time). And I can also work with technologies to architect solutions. It’s a skillset that is hard to find and hire. But as businesses evolve, you need both sides of the coin.

HOW HAS YOUR ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEGREE FROM TECH SERVED YOU IN YOUR CAREER? At Tech, I learned how to learn. I learned how to break down a big problem into smaller problems.

In the early days of my career, you had to choose either business or

NEWSPAPERS HAVE BEEN DECLARED DEAD, BUT SOME OUTLETS LIKE THE TIMES ARE THRIVING. HOW DO YOU HELP AFFECT THAT? We still have a large print basis and are rapidly growing digital. My job is to support every segment of our marketing team with home delivery or digital subscription offers, from acquisition through retention. My team’s job is to help marketers bring their ideas to market faster and more effectively, whether it’s to implement a fine-tuned segmentation or deliver new content.

HOW DOES THE “WAR ON MEDIA” AND CONVERSATIONS ABOUT “FAKE NEWS” AFFECT YOUR WORK? Maybe there’s an indirect impact, endemic of all news media, where people can get so much news online for free.

That puts more urgency on doing a good job of conveying the value proposition for why our product is worth paying for. The speed and agility of our execution will allow Times leadership to respond quicker. So there’s more pressure on my team to be agile and fast.

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ON THE JOB

The Deep, Deep South

W

BY ROGER SLAVENS

Tech alumnus Adam West, AE 13, shares what it’s like to work and live at the end of the earth—Antarctica.

WHILE MILLIONS OF PENGUINS can claim Antarctica as their permanent home, only a few thousand people typically occupy the world’s southernmost continent at any given time.

Moreover, these human beings are strictly temporary residents, most of them there to conduct research for stints that may last a few weeks or as long as a year or so. Of these scientists and support workers, about 100 to 150 typically live and work during the summer at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, the most inland, isolated base of operations for the United States Antarctic Program. In the winter, which is coming soon, that number drops to fewer than 50.

No one can blame these researchers for their short stays.

Antarctica features one of the most brutal landscapes on the planet. Yearly temperatures average 60 degrees below zero Fahrenheit across the continent, often driven lower by blustery winds. The landmass features treacherous, high-elevation terrain with much of the continent rising higher than 9,800 feet above sea level. And while Antarctica is almost entirely covered in water—a sheet of ice that’s 1.2 miles thick, plus snowfall—it enjoys an arid desert climate that

produces less than eight inches of precipitation a year. On average, the continent ranks as the coldest, driest, windiest and most elevated on earth.

At the South Pole, the environment is even more desolate and fraught with dangers, such as whiteouts and massive snow drifts. Inside the Amundsen-Scott Station, the living space may be warm and safe, but it’s also relatively cramped and mostly disconnected from the rest of the world. For example, though inhabitants have some limited access to the internet, streaming restrictions mean you can’t binge watch the newest hit show on Netflix. Old DVDs and, gasp, even VHS tapes have to suffice for your viewing pleasure during down times.

Still, none of these harsh realities deterred young Georgia Tech alumnus Adam West, AE 13, from signing up for a 13-month tour at the geographic South Pole. In truth, he viewed the challenges as a vital part of a once-in-a-lifetime chance he couldn’t pass up.

“I was working as a flight test engineer for Sikorsky Helicopters in sunny West Palm Beach, Fla., when Sikorsky was purchased by Lockheed Martin,” West says. “Lockheed owned the support contract for the United States Antarctic Program at the time, and while scrolling through internal job listings, I saw a posting to be a research scientist at the South Pole. It was an amazing opportunity and I met all the qualifications, so I applied and ended up getting the job.”

West’s Georgia Tech education and multidisciplinary experience helped him stand out against other applicants.

“Because the number of people at the station is limited, it’s important that scientists can work on a variety of tasks and be adaptable to different situations that may arise,” he says.

Hired as a research scientist by contractor Leidos and on

Because of its unique location, environment and atmosphere, Antarctica is well suited for specialized research on astronomy and astrophysics, geology, weather and climate.

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Adam West, AE 13, basks in the relative warmth of the Antarctic summer as he takes a break from driving a Pisten Bully utility vehicle across the ubiquitous snow and ice.

loan to the Antarctic Program, West provides engineering support on several research projects. His responsibilities include maintaining machinery that collects micrometeorites from the South Pole air, imaging equipment that captures data about the Aurora Australis (the southern counterpart to the Aurora Borealis), and a seismic listening station for the U.S. Geological Survey. Because of its unique location, environment and atmosphere, Antarctica is well suited for specialized research on astronomy and astrophysics, geology, weather and climate.

“Another engineer and I make sure these projects all operate properly and repair them if they break down, as well as assist the principal investigators as needed,” he says. “In addition, I help out with the fire brigade, our liquid nitrogen plant and the station greenhouse.”

WEST ARRIVED on Antarctica in October 2016, flying by military plane from Christchurch, New Zealand—the main route of entry to the continent by air—to the McMurdo Station on the southern tip of Ross Island, and then eventually inland to the Amundsen-Scott Station. The station is named for Roald Amundsen, whose Norwegian team reached the geographic South Pole in December 1911, and Robert F. Scott, whose British team arrived one month later.

The first U.S. research outpost was originally constructed

Doug Howe

at the South Pole in November 1956, but has been moved and rebuilt several times. The current elevated main station is an 80,000-square-foot, two-story building with eight wings constructed in a modular design to accommodate varying levels of habitation, as well as to withstand the considerable meteorological and geological forces at play at its location.

“Three of the wings are dedicated for living quarters,” West says, “and there’s space for a gym, galley, science lab, medical bay, greenhouse and storage. There are also several outbuildings for conducting scientific experiments and storing cargo such as weather balloons.”

The station’s bedrooms are fairly small, measuring about 10-by-5 feet—smaller than Tech dorm rooms to be sure— and fit only a bed, wardrobe and small desk, West says. “I share a living area with about 25 people,” he says. “There’s some joint common space, plus two bathrooms.”

Though snow and ice are plentiful, hot water for showers and laundry is strictly rationed because precious fuel resources must be burned to melt and heat it. “We’re each limited to two showers and one turn at laundry a week,” West says. “It can get pretty funky.”

The dining situation, however, rates far better. “We have professional cooks on staff in our galley, and they make three great meals every day,” he says. “During the summer

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IN THE WORLD global phone calls (prone to dropping), but the station’s residents only have access to the outside world for about 12 hours a day.

ON A TYPICAL DAY, after scarfing down a healthy breakfast, West heads to the science lab to do his daily checks on the experiments he’s supporting. “I track data transfers and often head out into the elements to other buildings to check on equipment that can’t be monitored remotely,” West says.

During the Antarctic summer—which lasts from November to February—the temperatures rarely climb above zero degrees Fahrenheit, and West says he’s been usually able to get away with wearing just his station-issued jacket and windproof overalls. “But as we head into winter, and the temperatures drop, I’m going to have to add more and more layers,” he says.

Winter temperatures at the South Pole can easily plummet to more than 100 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. “I probably have no real idea of what’s coming,” West says.

After he returns to the main station to grab lunch, his remaining tasks depend on the needs at hand. West might train with the fire brigade—someone has to be ready for worst-case scenarios in such a remote setting—or he might help out any departments that need additional manpower. “My work schedule is nine hours a day, six days a week, and there’s definitely plenty of work to go around,” he says.

West says the biggest surprise so far about living at the South Pole was how Top: The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station features an 80,000-square-foot, modular building that combines living quickly the rigorous, careful daily rouquarters and research facilities. Bottom left: Adam West (right), poses at the geographic South Pole marker with two other Tech alumni, James Casey, MS Phys 11, PhD Phys 15, and Nicole Larsen, Phys 09, who are conducting research at tines began to feel normal. “It can be easy the station. Bottom right: Adam West and his coworker Doug Howe (pictured) help maintain the station’s machinery. to forget that you’re at the literal end of the we get lots of fresh veggies and fruits from incoming flights, earth, especially when you’re inside the station,” he says. “But and in the winter—which is coming up soon—I guess we’ll then I get a bit of a shock when I step out of my room at 2 a.m. be eating a lot of frozen foods and the small amount of fresh into a brightly sunlit hallway, since the sun’s up 24 hours durproduce we get from our greenhouse.” ing the summer. Or when I find myself unexpectedly winded At the station there’s a big emphasis on fitness—for both because of the high altitude.” physical and mental wellbeing. A two-level gym features a basLike a true helluva engineer, West knows how to adapt ketball court, weight room and aerobics area with treadmills, and thrive, even as a winter unlike any he’s ever experirowing machines and stationary bikes. “It helps keep us healthy enced approaches. and provides some entertainment,” West says. “And sometimes Disclaimer: Adam West’s statements do not necessarily represent we’ll have organized yoga classes or volleyball games.” the views of the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) or the Three satellites orbit above to provide part-time internet National Science Foundation (NSF), which operates the program. coverage and allow for restricted (slow) web browsing and

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Adam West and Doug Howe

EVERY GIFT HAS A PURPOSE

The 1967 Volkswagen Bus known as Hail Mary hits the road.

“While I

RHETT GRAMETBAUER WANTED TO shake hootball.

HAIL MARY AND A DREAM There are few thing ary, writo become. Maybe I had looked at life all wrong— it was not a change like a light that you can turn on or off—maybe it was like a sunrise that gets more intense over time.

Continue the tradition and make a difference for outstanding students, world-class programs, and the value of your Georgia Tech degree.

MAKE YOUR GIFT TO THE 70TH ROLL CALL:

gtalumni.org/giving

ROLL CALL, GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION | 190 NORTH AVE. ATLANTA, GA 30313 | 404-894-0756 Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 43

INSTITUTE

ICONS

BY ROGER SLAVENS AND MELISSA FRALICK

PHOTOS BY JOSH MEISTER AND ROB FELT

Georgia Tech swarms with traditions— old and new, serious and silly—which celebrate the Institute’s storied history and represent the special character of its students and alumni.

AT THE CORE OF THESE TRADITIONS reside seven enduring hallmarks of the shared Tech experience. Some are mechanical (The Ramblin’ Wreck and The Whistle), symbolizing Tech’s engineering heritage. Some are clever and whimsical (George P. Burdell and RAT Caps),

reflecting Yellow Jackets’ uncommon wit. Some are full of spirit (The Fight Song and Buzz), demonstrating our sense of fun and passion for competition. And one stands resolute (Tech Tower), revealing both our steadfastness and our determination to surmount life’s obstacles.

THE WRECK DEBUTED at Grant Field on Sept. 30, 1961, for a Tech football game vs.

Rice University. It has led the team onto the field every home game since.

WRECK DRIVERS get to select their own hood ornament—either the quail or the wreath (with or without wings)—and keep it as a memento of their tenure.

WHILE THE INSTITUTE officially calls the car the Ramblin’ Wreck (with a W) to keep it consistent with the term used in Tech’s Fight Song and to describe the student body, the student Reck Club uses the original Reck spelling (with an R) to keep it unique and true to its history.

THE 1930 MODEL A FORD has no turn signals but does have working brake lights.

FRESHMEN ARE NOT SUPPOSED to touch the Wreck until the end of their first year, otherwise they are cursed with bad luck and the football team is destined to lose to Georgia that season.

THE RAMBLIN’ WRECK THIS WHITE-AND-GOLD 1930 MODEL A FORD is an official mascot for Georgia Tech and has led the football team onto the field for every home game since 1961. The inspiration for the Wreck was a beat-up 1914 Model T Ford driven around campus by Dean Floyd Field in the 1920s. Students developed an affinity for the old car, which was given the moniker of the Ramblin’ Reck (without

the W) by The Technique student newspaper, and it became something of a legend on campus. In 1960, Dean Jim Dull began looking for an old Ford that could serve as a symbol for the school. One day, he saw an immaculate Ford Model A coupe parked in front of Towers Dormitory. It belonged to Delta pilot Ted Johnson, who had restored the car with his son. Johnson refused to sell

the Ford Model A at first, but Dull was relentless, and eventually convinced him to sell it to Georgia Tech. Johnson later returned the money he was paid, so that his beloved car would be a donation to the Institute. Today, the automobile is cared for and driven by the students in the Ramblin’ Reck Club, and continues to serve as a symbol for the spirit of Georgia Tech.

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BURDELL’S BIRTHDAY is April 1, a date for celebration at Tech every year.

WHEN PRESIDENT Barack Obama visited campus in 2015, he was upset that George P. Burdell wasn’t present to introduce him to the crowd.

COMPUTER REGISTRATION hasn’t hindered Burdell from enrolling in classes at Tech; in 1969, students hacked the system and registered him for every available class, totaling 3,000 credit hours.

GEORGE P. BURDELL GEORGIA TECH’S MOST FAMOUS STUDENT AND SUCCESSFUL ALUMNUS, George P. Burdell enrolled at the Institute in 1927, thanks to William Edgar Smith who accidentally received two student enrollment forms. As a prank on his headmaster at Richmond Academy, George P. Butler—a former University of Georgia football captain—Smith wanted to enroll Butler at Tech but at the last minute changed the name to George P. Burdell. Soon after, Burdell was accepted to Tech and a legend was born. Smith and his classmates continued the prank until Burdell graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1930. Since then, the imaginary Burdell has taken on a truly extraordinary life of his own, earning multiple degrees and lettering in varsity basketball at Tech, flying a B-17 bomber in WWII, serving on the board of directors of MAD magazine and much more.

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IN 2001, George P. Burdell temporarily led Time magazine’s online voting for Man of the Year until the magazine removed him from contention.

INSTITUTE

ICONS BUZZ WON the National Cheerleaders Association Mascot of the Year contest in both 2000 and 2001 (and placed second in 2004 and 2006).

BUZZ MOST UNIVERSITIES HAVE JUST ONE MASCOT—Georgia Tech is blessed with two.

The mischievous, anthropomorphic yellow jacket named Buzz may only have been around since 1980, but he’s proved to be a lively complement to his mechanical counterpart, the Ramblin’ Wreck, and represents the spirit and silliness of Tech’s student body. It’s fitting that Buzz started out as something of a prank by student Richie Bland, Phys 81, who, with some support, hired the seamstresses from nearby Six Flags Over Georgia to create a professional-looking costume in which to roam the sidelines of Tech football games. (On page 100, read more about Buzz’s history and what it takes to play him.) Today, Buzz presides as Tech’s biggest fan, pumping up the crowds at sports games and events with his irreverent antics while winning his way into the hearts of little kids, students and alumni alike.

THE FRONT FLIP is Buzz’s trademark move.

IN 2008, BUZZ RAPPELLED down the 40-story Viewpoint Lofts building in Atlanta as part of an Institute fundraiser.

BUZZ CONDUCTS Tech’s marching band when it plays the Budweiser Song at the end of the third quarter of every home football game.

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TECH TOWER THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE LANDMARK OF THE INSTITUTE, Tech Tower has soared over the center of campus—with much thanks to the hill from which it’s perched— since its completion in 1888, making it Georgia Tech’s oldest building. Originally constructed as the Administration Building, the tower itself rises three floors above

the main structure, which houses four floors and a basement. It’s made of red brick, trimmed with granite, and sports a gabled, copper-shingle roof (originally terra cotta). The letters that spell out T-E-C-H on each side of the top of the tower, installed

by Tech’s class of 1922, provided the edifice with its nickname. Light bulbs were added

to the letters in the 1930s. Today, Tech Tower is officially known as the Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans Administration Building, named after one of the Institute’s most generous benefactors. The building currently houses the Registrar’s Office, the College of Engineering Dean’s Office and the College of Sciences Dean’s Office, among others.

THE TOWER WAS BUILT in the Victorian style with Romanesque Revival features.

THE KESSLER CAMPANILE, a stainless steel plate sculpture created for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and located next to the student center, was designed to look like a modernized version of Tech Tower.

TECH TOWER’S “Ts” have been stolen numerous times over the years, the first time in April 1969.

Due to concerns for student safety, the Institute has implemented heightened security measures and strict punishment to prevent future theft.

THOUGH NEITHER SHE NOR HER HUSBANDS ATTENDED TECH, Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans gave $340 million to the Institute over her lifetime.

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U.S. PRESIDENT TEDDY ROOSEVELT gave a speech on the steps of Tech Tower when he visited campus in October 1905.

INSTITUTE

ICONS WHEN THE GLEE CLUB performed Ramblin’ Wreck on national TV, Ed Sullivan made the group replace “hell” and “helluva” with “heck” and “heckuva.”

FRANK ROMAN also composed and copyrighted two other important Tech songs: Up With the White and Gold (1919) and the Alma Mater (in 1923).

LEGENDARY DANCE INSTRUCTOR Arthur Murray, Cls 23, played Ramblin’ Wreck at early dances on the roof of the Capital City Club in downtown Atlanta.

THOUGH NOT OFFICIALLY confirmed, it’s claimed that Ramblin’ Wreck was the first song ever played in outer space.

GEORGIA TECH was one of the first colleges in the U.S. to have its songs recorded. The Columbia Gramophone Company began selling a selection of Tech songs in 1925, and they became extremely popular and regularly played on the radio.

THE FIGHT SONG RAMBLIN’ WRECK FROM GEORGIA TECH, one of the most well-known collegiate fight songs in America, has a storied history. It’s based on a centuries-old English drinking song called Son of a Gambolier and borrows heavily from other schools’ earlier, obviously less successful adaptations. Legend has it that a Tech football player wrote the lyrics on his way to an Auburn game, but some say it goes back to Billy Walthall, one of Tech’s first graduates, who came up with some of the verses on a baseball trip against rival Georgia. A version of it was first published in The Blueprint yearbook in

1908. Regardless, bandmasters Michael Greenblatt and his successor Frank Roman perfected the merging of the lyrics and tune, and Roman copyrighted it in 1919 as Rambling Wreck. It was performed by the Georgia Tech Glee Club in 1953 on the Ed Sullivan Show, reportedly sung together in 1959 by then U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khruschev, crooned (and strummed on a mandolin) by Gregory Peck in The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit, whistled by John Wayne in The High and Mighty, and forever haunts the dreams of University of Georgia alumni.

RAMBLIN’ WRECK FROM GEORGIA TECH I’m a Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech, and a hell of an engineer— A helluva, helluva, helluva, helluva, hell of an engineer.

Like all the jolly good fellows, I drink my whiskey clear.

I’m a Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech and a hell of an engineer.

Oh! If I had a daughter, sir, I’d dress her in White and Gold, And put her on the campus

to cheer the brave and bold.

But if I had a son, sir, I’ll tell you what he’d do— He would yell, ‘To Hell With Georgia’ like his daddy used to do.

Oh, I wish I had a barrel of rum and sugar three thousand pounds, A college bell to put it in and a clapper to stir it round.

I’d drink to all the good fellows who come from far and near.

I’m a ramblin’, gamblin’, hell of an engineer!

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RAT CAPS THE SMALL, YELLOW BASEBALL-LIKE HATS KNOWN AS RAT CAPS—RAT being short for Recruit at Tech as well as an indicator of low-ranking status—were first introduced in 1915. Initially, freshmen were required to wear them every day on campus

until the Yellow Jackets football team beat the University of Georgia in the then traditional Thanksgiving Day rivalry game. If Tech lost the game, freshmen had to wear their RAT Caps until the end of the year. First year students caught without their RAT Caps were

fair game for hazing such as the “T-cut”—a buzz cut that left hair in the shape of a capital T. Though the original “RAT Rules” died out by the early 1960s, all freshmen still receive the caps, and many alumni keep them as cherished mementos of their time at Tech.

THE BACK PANEL SHOWS THE GOOD WORD: The phrase “To Hell with Georgia.” Sticklers today prefer the “HELL” to be written in all caps, while “georgia” should be all lower case.

THIS RAT CAP, provided by the Georgia Tech Archives, belonged to Elizabeth Herndon, one of the first women enrolled as a full-time student at Georgia Tech in 1952.

ON THE SIDE PANELS OF THE CAP, students jot down the scores of Tech football games during their freshman year. If the Yellow Jackets win, the score is written right-side up; if they lose, it’s written upside down.

ON THE UPTURNED BILL OF THE CAP, students write the acronym RAT, followed by their name, major, hometown and state.

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INSTITUTE

EVERY SPRING, A CEREMONY called When the Whistle Blows honors current Tech students, faculty and staff members who died during the year. After candles are lit, the names of the deceased are read and the Alma Mater is played, The Whistle then breaks the evening silence to remind all on campus that we are united as a community.

IN 1981, BECAUSE OF COMPLAINTS from businesses near Tech, there was a movement to “quiet” The Whistle from sounding.

Faced against overwhelming campus support to keep The Whistle—including the theft and ransom of The Whistle by a group called “The Invisible Seven”—the movement failed and then Tech President Joseph M. Petit declared: “There will [always] be a Tech whistle.”

THE CURRENT WHISTLE was built by the GTRI machine shop and installed in 2004.

ICONS OVER THE DECADES, The Whistle has been stolen several times, though not as often as the “Ts” from Tech Tower.

The first whistle from the 1890s was stolen in 1902 and reportedly returned in 1949 and then given to Dean George C. Griffin as a retirement gift in 1964.

GEORGIA TECH’S faculty and staff newspaper is named The Whistle.

THE WHISTLE IT’S THE SOUND ALL TECH STUDENTS KNOW WELL: the high-pitched steam whistle that echoes throughout campus and beyond. The Whistle goes off each weekday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., announcing that it’s five minutes to the hour and the start (or end!) of class. The Whistle also sounds in celebration after touchdowns and victories at Yellow Jacket home football games. It’s believed that The Whistle arrived on campus in 1896 as part of the shop building that was constructed that year. In fact, it was originally intended to mimic the industrial factory whistles of the time, calling students to their shop classes. In 1923, The Whistle was moved right behind Tech Tower to the roof of the Holland Plant, which has been producing steam to heat and cool campus buildings since 1917. Today, the steam whistle—which has been replaced numerous times—is operated by a computerized atomic clock that keeps it running on schedule.

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A

FOOTBALL GAME, A

TRAIN WRECK, & A

BITTER RIVALRY HOW A 19TH-CENTURY FOOTBALL GAME AND A TRAIN WRECK LED TO ONE OF THE MOST HEATED RIVALRIES IN COLLEGE SPORTS, AND SPARKED SOME OF GEORGIA TECHâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MOST TREASURED TRADITIONS.

BY MELISSA FRALICK WITH MARILYN SOMERS, HON 08 ILLUSTRATION BY JAMES BOSWELL

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THINGS OF GREAT MAGNITUDE OFTEN BEGIN WITH A COLLISION. SUCH WAS THE CASE FOR THE GREAT RIVALRY BETWEEN GEORGIA TECH AND THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA.

AFTER THEIR FIRST RIOTOUS FOOTBALL MATCH IN 1893, IT WAS A TRAIN WRECK THAT SEALED THE TWO INSTITUTIONS FOREVER AS ARCHRIVALS AND PLANTED THE SEEDS OF SOME OF GEORGIA TECH’S MOST STORIED TRADITIONS. TO TELL THIS TALE, WE’LL NEED TO GO WAY BACK TO THE BEGINNING:

T

TO THE EARLY DAYS OF GEORGIA TECH AND THE FIRST FOOTBALL GAMES EVER PLAYED ON GEORGIA’S RED DIRT.

THE YEAR WAS 1893. The Georgia School of Technology, as it was called then, was still in its infancy, having opened its doors

just six years prior.

The fledgling technological school was little more than a few buildings peppered upon what was then Atlanta’s northern edge, demarcated by its location on North Avenue. The road was not yet paved then, and often devolved into an impassable mud pit during heavy rainstorms.

Roughly 125 young men were enrolled at the school to study mechanical engineering, the only course of study available at the time. They were all local boys who lived nearby and commuted to their classes, as there were no dormitories at the school until 1896.

The water supply was drawn from a well, and the school would not connect to city water lines until 1899.

Though primitive to our modern sensibilities, the new Georgia School of Technology, with its practical focus on engineering and manufacturing, was a potent symbol in the ideology of the New South. In the decades after the Civil War, a group of state leaders, steered by Atlanta Constitution managing editor

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Henry W. Grady, promoted a rosy vision of a prosperous Southern economy centered on Atlanta. This “New South,” as it was called, would focus on industrial development over the agrarian economy decimated after the Civil War. Meanwhile, Atlanta leaders were also focused on driving economic development through a series of three events known as the Cotton States Expositions. The expositions showcased the latest developments in manufacturing, agriculture and other industries to build investment and present a modern vision of Atlanta to the world.

The largest of these expositions was in 1895, and organizers spent years preparing. A large plot of land outside the city was leveled to make way for the fairgrounds, which would later be purchased by the city and become Piedmont Park.

But in 1893, it was just flat land—a perfect spot for a group of young men to play football.

IT WAS THERE, on these acres of level earth, that a military officer named Leonard Wood encountered a practice game of the Georgia Tech football team.

Wood, an Army surgeon stationed at Fort McPherson, had ridden roughly 10 miles on horseback for a visit to the city.

Unlike most in the South, Wood well understood the game the Tech boys were playing. He himself had been a football player on Harvard’s

team while in medical school. football looked nothing like the highly regulated, well-oiled maThough football was just making its way to Georgia, the sport had chine of today’s NCAA. There was very little infrastructure in been popular in New England for some time. The first college footthe sport—no athletic conferences, no game schedules, no safeball game in the U.S. is believed to be Rutgers vs. New Jersey (later ty rules, no helmets and very little oversight. Faculty members, Princeton) in 1869. The new sport gained popularity throughout coaches and trainers frequently played for university teams. the region in the years after, and schools like Harvard and Yale alIn fact, athletics in general were far from the entertainment ready had well-established teams by the time the first college game complex they’ve become today. Atlantans of 1893 were more was played in Atlanta in 1892.

By all accounts, t h e Te c h t e a m Wo o d d i s c o v IN 1893, IT WAS JUST FLAT LAND— ered was in pitiful shape. The scrappy A PERFECT SPOT FOR A GROUP OF group, organized just one year priYOUNG MEN TO PLAY FOOTBALL. o r, h a d p l a y e d only three games and lost them all.

Wood offered to help coach and play with the team, providing a huge benefit to the fledgling likely to be interested in a glee club or mandolin performance squad. Not only did he have experience playing college football than a college football game. up north, but Wood was a large man for his time, and the strapBut sports were gaining traction, and this new, rough game of ping 29-year-old Army surgeon provided a significant boost to football was attracting fans. So people paid attention when a playthe Tech roster. He even recruited a few of his friends to join the er for the University of Georgia told a newspaper reporter that his Tech squad as well. team could beat any squad of 11 in the South. Tech accepted the So how was it possible that a group of adult men could join a challenge, and a game was scheduled for Nov. 4, 1893. college football team? It’s important to note that in 1893, college

THE LEGACY OF LEONARD WOOD IT WAS DR. LEONARD WOOD, scoring three touchdowns, who led Tech to its first football victory against the University of Georgia. However, he only played with the team for that one game. The Georgia Tech registrar’s book from 1893 shows that Wood, who enrolled Nov. 2, left Tech the same month.

With his legacy firmly cemented in Georgia Tech football lore, Wood moved on to a fascinating military, political and medical career.

Wood served in several medical positions, including as personal physician to President William McKinley and his family.

Five years after the football game, the Spanish-American War began. Wood was given command of the 1st Volunteer Cavalry, a regiment later known as the “Rough Riders.” His second in command was the former assistant secretary of the Navy, Theodore Roosevelt.

Wood and Roosevelt trained their volunteer cavalry so well that it was the only such unit to go into combat, fighting at Las Guasimas and San Juan Hill. It was Roosevelt, a big football fan, who is credited with helping to save the sport from extinction while serving

BY MELISSA FRALICK

as president of the United States.

By the early 20th century, the lack of rules and safety equipment in football had made the game so brutal that debilitating injuries and deaths were common. In response to calls to ban the sport, Roosevelt intervened.

In 1905, he called together coaches from leading football programs, including Princeton, Harvard and Yale, to reform the game.

After the Spanish-American War, Wood became the military governor of Cuba from 1900-02. In 1910, he was named Chief of Staff of the Army, the only medical officer to ever hold the position. He ran for president, but ultimately lost the Republican nomination to Warren G. Harding, who was elected president in 1920.

In 1921, Wood became Governor General of the Philippines, a position he held until he died of a brain tumor in 1927.

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LOCAL NEWSPAPERS REPORTED great anticipation in the days leading up to the football game between the University of Georgia and the Georgia School of Technology. Neither school had an official team name or mascot yet, so the papers referred to them as “The Athens” and “The Techs.”

Rumors had begun to circulate that there were men playing for Georgia Tech that were not duly matriculated students. They turned out to be false.

While Dr. Wood and his comrades were not what you might call traditional students, they did, in fact, enroll at Tech. The official registrar’s book from 1893 lists the names of these Tech players: Leonard Wood, Evan Park Howell, Ernest Morrison Nourse, John Calvin Kimball and Charles Houston Haskell. All enrolled on Nov. 2 or 3, and all are listed as having left the same month.

But the writer quotes one of the spectators, a Mr. Harry Hodgson of Athens, who said, “The Athens men are light, but they are hard fighters, and would rather die than be defeated on their own grounds.

“Yes, you may count on the most exciting football match ever played in Georgia for Saturday.”

Indeed.

LEONARD WOOD, in addition to his skills on the football field, also proved to be a skilled organizer and booster for his team.

He arranged a special train for the team and their fans to travel to Athens for the 3:15 p.m. game. The trip from Atlanta to Athens usually took 2 hours and 45 minutes by train. But this special train had the right of way on all tracks, cutting the travel time down to about two hours.

The party of 151 from Atlanta boarded the Seaboard Airline Special Train and departed from MANY CONSIDER THE TRAIN WRECK Atlanta’s Union Station at 9 a.m. The grand train TO BE THE START OF THE RAMBLIN’ station, which was demolished in 1930, was WRECKS FROM GEORGIA TECH. located at Decatur and Pryor streets near the bustling Five Points intersection downtown.

Wo o d a l s o r a l l i e d The manager of Tech’s team told the Atlanta Constitution: “Evsupport for the Tech boys in Athens. He contacted the headery member of the team is a bona fide student of the school and mistress of the Lucy Cobb Institute, an all-girls school, to the Athens boys may rest assured that a clean game will be played.” invite the ladies to the game. He even brought pins with yellow The University of Georgia may not have been totally innocent and white ribbons so the girls could cheer for Tech wearing the in this regard, either. Tech alleged that Georgia was using a paid school’s colors. professional trainer at halfback.

In the late 1800s, football was a very different sport than it is toOn Nov. 3, 1893, the Atlanta Constitution ran an article deday. There were few rules, and no helmets or safety equipment. scribing that “quite a crowd of spectators” attended Georgia Tech’s Instead of being divided into quarters, the game was played in two practice leading up to the big game the following day. The writer 30-minute halves, and included oversight by an umpire in addisaid that Tech’s team was “very heavy, much heavier than the Athtion to a referee. ens team, and the ‘Techs’ are confident of success.”

On game day, emotions were high. “Athens is in a fever of

WHEN TRADITIONS WERE BORN Several of Georgia Tech’s great traditions are tied to the Institute’s very first football game against the University of Georgia on Nov. 4, 1893.

RAMBLIN’ WRECK There are several theories about the origin of the term Ramblin’ Wreck and what it means.

Some Tech historians strongly believe the nickname was first coined for the train wreck that occurred when the Techs headed back to Atlanta after that fateful football game in Athens. Tech’s Living History program cited

a news report that said the “wrecks rambled back to Tech”—certainly a logical explanation for the nickname.

But there’s no definitive record of when Ramblin’ Wreck was first used. Some argue that there’s evidence it may have already been in use before 1893. An article in the Macon Telegraph reporting on Tech’s first football game against Mercer in 1892 recorded a Tech cheer: “Tech-i-ty-teck! Who? Rex!” “Rex” may have been the reporter’s phonetic spelling of the word “Wrecks.”

Still others believe the term wasn’t applied until later. One legend is that the Georgia

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BY MELISSA FRALICK

Tech engineers employed during the construction of the Panama Canal were called Ramblin’ Wrecks because of the rickety vehicles they cobbled together to get around the jungles of Central America at the turn of the 20th century.

Another theory is that the nickname didn’t fully catch on until the 1920s, when Tech’s dean of men, Professor Floyd Field, started to drive a clunky old Model T Ford around campus.

However, what we do know is that Ramblin’ Wreck was definitively connected to Tech’s student body and alumni by the early 1900s when it became the leading lyric of Georgia Tech’s

Left: An early outbuilding on Georgia Tech’s campus painted with the phrase now well-known to Tech fans as “The Good Word.”

Right: The Georgia School of Technology’s 1893 football team poses for a group photograph.

excitement over the great football match,” the Constitution reported. Tech took an early lead, outscoring Georgia 18-0 by the end of the first half.

The fans of the Athens team began to grow restless as Tech’s score grew. They claimed that the game was rigged because the umpire, named Nourse, was the brother of Georgia Tech trainer Ernest Nourse and favored the Tech team.

An account of the unrest in the Atlanta Constitution describes a chant breaking out in the stands.

“After three or four decisions, which they deemed unfair, about 140 students bunched and gave the following cry whenever his decisions struck them as being unfair: “Well, well, well, “Who can tell, “The Tech’s umpire has cheated like —” The Georgia fans grew riotous as the Tech team dominated the field. In the second half, chaos took over the stands as Georgia fans began to throw rocks and mud onto the field.

By the end of the game, the Tech team had demolished the University of Georgia team by a final tally of 28-6. Despite logging their first-ever victory, the Techs did not stick around to celebrate.

They left the field right away, dodging their angry opponents so they could catch their 7 p.m. train back to Atlanta.

Once aboard and bound for home, the train was supposed to have the right-of-way to speed through railroad crossings. But many blame the train’s hasty departure for confusion on the rails

fight song (which was adapted from an old English drinking song called A Son of a Gambolier).

The fight song, Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech, appeared in print for the first time in Tech’s first yearbook, the 1908 Blueprint.

GEORGE P. BURDELL Even George P. Burdell, Georgia Tech’s most legendary student, has a link to the first Georgia Tech-Georgia rivalry football game.

The name of the fictional student was a practical joke played on George P. Butler, a high-school headmaster from Augusta, Ga., who was an alumnus and ardent supporter of

and what happened next.

As they neared Lawrenceville, the locomotive collided with a freight train that hadn’t seen the signal to clear the track. Two of the special train’s cars were badly damaged, as was the train’s engine. Luckily, none of the 151 passengers from Tech was seriously injured.

Alas, with their train out of order, the stranded group boarded a coal boxcar in the very same freight train they had just collided with to complete the journey back to Atlanta. Though their journey should have only taken about two hours, the beleaguered group didn’t arrive back at Union Station until after midnight.

What a night it must have been for those wrecks rambling back to Tech.

THOUGH ELATED BY THEIR VICTORY, Tech’s football players and students were very upset by the poor display of sportsmanship in Athens.

“The treatment the Techs received was not what they expected,” the manager of Tech’s team told the Atlanta Constitution on Nov. 5. “Rocking the players, and threatening them was something never before witnessed on a football gridiron.”

To this day, “To Hell With Georgia” remains a mantra for all who count themselves among Tech’s loyal alumni and fans.

As for the legacy of the train wreck—though the recorded history of the age is quite fuzzy—many consider it to be the start of the Ramblin’ Wrecks from Georgia Tech.

the University of Georgia known for deriding Georgia Tech and advising his pupils against attending the school.

Butler’s animus for Tech partially derived from the fact that he was the captain of the University of Georgia football team that lost to Georgia Tech during the two schools’ contentious first game in 1893.

TO HELL WITH GEORGIA Ask a Tech student “What’s The Good Word?” and he or she will surely respond, “To Hell with Georgia!” Commonly shortened to THWG (or THWg by Tech students who love

to further demean their rival school with the lower-case spelling), this hatred for the University of Georgia stems directly from the first meeting of the two schools on the football field on Nov. 4, 1893.

The words “To Hell with Georgia” are official lyrics of the Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech fight song. And the feeling is mutual—Georgia fans sing “To Hell with Georgia Tech!” in their own song, Glory, Glory to Old Georgia.

With few exceptions, the two teams have met every November for the rivalry football game that’s become known as “Clean, OldFashioned Hate.”

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YELLOW JACKETS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN BRILLIANT, DETERMINED AND MISCHIEVOUS—traits that have led to the development of quirky, yet beloved, traditions that are passed down from generation to generation of students and alumni. Even as Tech’s student body grows and changes over time, these cherished traditions remain fundamentally the same, with some natural evolution, of course. We’ve collected photos of some of these time-honored activities to remember how they were celebrated decades ago, and to see how they continue to live on proudly today.

GEORGIA TECH TRADITIONS

THEN & NOW A photographic look at how Tech’s storied traditions have survived generations of Yellow Jacket students and still thrive on campus today.

BY MELISSA FRALICK

THEN NOW

â&#x2020;&#x2018;

THE FRESHMAN CAKE RACE

THE FIRST CAKE RACE was held in 1911, but didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t earn its name until 1913, when the wives of faculty members, mothers of students and Tech sweethearts baked cakes to give to the

winners. The cake race was officially incorporated into Homecoming festivities in and became mandatory for freshmen in 1935. After women started attending Tech in 1953, they were exempt from the cake race, but ran a 100-yard dash

instead. And beginning in 1954, the winner of the race earned a kiss from the Homecoming queen in addition to a cake. Today, the race is co-ed. All freshmen are encouraged to run and receive a cupcake at the end of the race. The victors still win cakes, and a kiss from Mr. or Ms. Georgia Tech.

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THE MINI 500 THE MINI 500 TRICYCLE RACE has taken place on the Friday before the Homecoming game every year since 1969. The race involves teams of students riding child-size tricycles as fast as they can around Peters Parking Deck. This amusing event has become one of Georgia Techâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most unique Homecoming traditions (even inspiring a Georgia Tech TV commercial). Each team is composed of seven members: four drivers and three on the pit crew. According to the rules, each team must rotate the front tire of their tricycle three times throughout the course of the race: 15 laps around the parking deck for men and 10 for women. Engineering skills are often put to the test to reinforce tricycles for a successful finish.

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NOW THEN

THE RAMBLIN’ WRECK PARADE

THEN NOW

THE RAMBLIN’ WRECK PARADE began in 1932 as a substitute for a short-lived road race to Athens, which was deemed too dangerous by faculty. Today, the parade features cars in three categories: classic cars, themed cars and contraptions—manpowered vehicles built by students and judged for their creativity and effective operation. The parade has been held before every Homecoming football game, with the exception of 1942 and 1943, when there were gas shortages during WWII.

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NOW THEN

THE PI MILE RACE THE FIRST 3-MILE GEORGE C. GRIFFIN RACE was held in 1973, named in honor of Tech’s long-time dean of students and track and cross country coach. It’s one of the longest continually run races in Atlanta, founded before road-running became popular in the U.S. and just three years after the Peachtree Road Race. In 1976, the race was extended from three miles to 3.14 or “pi” miles, but eventually moved to a traditional 5K distance to attract competitors from around the world. Runners can compete in several categories, including men, women and teams. There’s even a popular “ghost” category where you can register as George P. Burdell to receive a race T-shirt without having to run. Today, the race is sponsored by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association and part of it is run along the Tyler Brown Pi Mile Trail, a campus running course named after the former Student Government Association president who had long championed for a well-lit and safe running trail. Brown was killed in action in Iraq in 2004.

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TO HELL WITH GEORGIA

THEN NOW

ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS Georgia Tech students are indoctrinated to is the Institute’s long-standing and bitter rivalry, also known as “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate,” with the University of Georgia.

There’s been bad blood since the late 19th century, when the first football game between the two schools led to violence and allegations of cheating (see page 52 for the full story). Things got so heated following the 1919 football game that all athletic events between the two schools were suspended for five years. Though relations have become more civil over the years, the annual November football game is still hotly anticipated. The days leading up to the game are known as “Hate Week.”

The Technique publishes parody articles about UGA and a full page “To Hell with Georgia” poster, and the color red is all but forbidden on campus. All Yellow Jackets know when asked “What’s the good word?” to reply with “To Hell with Georgia!”

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THE RAMBLIN’ WRECK

NOW THEN

TIGERS, BEARS AND OTHER FEROCIOUS BEASTS are a dime a dozen when it comes to college mascots. But an antique car?

Now that’s the kind of mascot you could only find at Georgia Tech. Though the Institute’s athletic teams are known as the Yellow Jackets, the life-size insect named Buzz didn’t step onto the scene until 1981. For more than 100 years, the students at Georgia Tech have been referred to as Ramblin’ Wrecks. So it’s only fitting that a refurbished car would serve as a symbol for the clever, enterprising student body. In 1960, Dean Jim Dull saw 64 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | Volume 93 No. 1 2017

a beautiful Ford Model A coupe parked in front of Towers Dormitory and knew it would be the perfect car to serve as a mascot for Georgia Tech. He located the owner, an Atlanta pilot named Ted Johnson, who had painstakingly restored the car with his son. He didn’t want to sell the car, but Dull persisted and Johnson eventually donated the classic car as a gift to the Institute.

Today, the automobile is cared for and driven by the students in the Ramblin’ Reck Club and leads the football team onto the field before every home game.

RAT CAPS SINCE 1915, THE UNDERSIZED yellow hats known as RAT Caps have been a definitive part of the Georgia Tech freshman experience. All first year students receive a RAT Cap—short for Recruit at Tech—and are instructed to fill it out with their name, major, hometown, graduation date and the word “RAT” in all capital letters. The back panel is reserved for the phrase “To HELL with Georgia,” and the remaining real estate is reserved for recording the Yellow Jackets’ football scores. Freshman were originally required to wear their RAT caps at all times, lest they be subjected to all manner of hazing from upperclassmen. Though these “RAT Rules” are no longer enforced, the caps remain an important keepsake for Tech students.

THEN NOW

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DROWNPROOFING A UNIQUE LEGACY OF GEORGIA TECH is the method of water survival known as “drownproofing.”

In 1938, Georgia Tech’s swimming and diving coach Freddy Lanoue created drownproofing as a way to survive in the water with one’s hands and feet bound. The method was adopted by other schools and the military during WWII, and was even featured in Life magazine in the 1950s. Drownproofing became mandatory for all students at Tech, and was required for graduation between 1940 and 1986. James Herbert “Herb” McAuley, EE 47, took over as swimming and diving coach after Lanoue, and continued to teach the infamous drownproofing class until it was discontinued.

McAuley devoted four decades to Tech swimmers and divers, and his legacy lives on at Georgia Tech’s aquatic center, which was named in his honor in 2015.

NOW THEN

A PENNY FOR SIDEWAYS

THEN NOW

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IN 1945, A LITTLE WHITE TERRIER with black patches found her way to the campus of Georgia Tech. She was dubbed “Sideways” because she had an odd gate, believed to be the result of falling from or being hit by a car. Sideways soon became a campus mascot of sorts, making friends with students and earning invitations into dorms, classrooms and other campus facilities. She even marched with the drill team and led the football team onto the field. Sideways died mysteriously just two years later in 1947, and the student body raised money to buy a marble monument with a picture of their friend. Today, the monument, inscribed with the words “Ever faithful and true companion of the student body at Ga. Tech,” is still on the northwest side of Tech Tower. It is said that placing a penny at her grave will bring good luck.

THEN NOW

HOMECOMING CELEBRATION THE INSTITUTE ’S FIRST HOMECOMING was held on June 7, 1920. It was sponsored by the Georgia Tech Alumni Association as a celebration of the group’s reorganization after several inactive years.

Activities included a barbecue on Grant Field and a baseball game between students and alumni. Today, Homecoming and Reunion Weekend brings alumni from all over the world back to Tech to reconnect with old friends.

It’s a festive time to be on campus, and students work diligently to create brightly painted banners and large tissue paper decorations to adorn buildings for the annual celebration.

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Print out your own copy of this poster at gtalumni.org/gttraditionsposter.

Alumni House

CELEBRATING ALUMNI, SUPPORTING STUDENTS THE 2017 GOLD & WHITE HONORS GALA held this January brought out swarms of Yellow Jackets to honor distinguished alumni and raise money for the Alumni Association's award-winning student organizations.

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Picture This! Photography

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ALUMNI HOUSE

In Good Hands

BY TONY REHAGEN

Today's Student Alumni Association is working hard— and working smart—to keep Tech’s traditions going strong.

FIFTH-YEAR electrical engineering student Brandon Sheu has been taking part in Georgia Tech traditions since before he was even a student. In fact, he thinks one of the Institute’s good luck rituals is part of the reason he became a Yellow Jacket in the first place.

In the summer of 2014, Sheu took a tour of the Atlanta campus as a prospective transfer student. While passing

by Tech Tower, Sheu’s guide told the story of Sideways, the white terrier with the bum leg and meandering walk that had wandered onto school grounds back in 1945. Students and faculty had adopted the animal as a mascot, feeding and caring for her until she died two years later. They buried her beneath a marble monument that bears her photo just northwest of the tower, and the guide said that ever since, students have left pennies on the grave for good luck.

Sheu was already sold on Tech and was eager to apply.

But figuring it couldn’t hurt, he dug out a penny from his pocket and left it on Sideways’ Grave. Weeks later, Sheu received his acceptance letter—and he knows it wasn’t mere coincidence.

As if to repay the spirit of Sideways, Sheu immediately joined the Tradition Keepers, a joint effort of the Student Alumni Association and the Ramblin’ Reck Club to uphold and promote both the sacred and silly rites of passage that have become essential to Tech culture.

The SAA mobile app (right) not only puts the T-Book's traditions in students' hands when they're on the go, but also lets them track how many they've completed.

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“It builds a common bond, a shared experience. If you talk to alumni, they've all done the Freshman Cake Race. If you have nothing else in common, they've all done that,” Sheu says.

“I realized these traditions were important in building relationships between students and alumni,” says Sheu, who serves as chair for the Tradition Keepers. “It builds a common bond, a shared experience. If you talk to alumni, they’ve all done the Freshman Cake Race. If you have nothing else in common, they’ve all done that.”

Tech customs were first institutionalized back in 1905, with the creation of the first annual T-Book that collects the history and traditions of the Institute, such as the various yells and songs to perform at football games and campus events. Printing ceased in 1970 due to lack of funds, but the T-Book was revived, first as a website in 1997 and then back to print in 2008.

The Tradition Keepers help keep the book’s list of traditions complete, up to date and appropriate for the times. For instance, the once-ritual morning Walk of Shame after an all-nighter in the library has been excised. “We removed that because of mental health awareness,” says Laura McCray, vice president of SAA’s Spirit, Tradition & Pride. “We don’t want to encourage students to be studying all night unless you absolutely have to.”

But while the T-Book can help students like Sheu and McCray fill out their RAT Caps, learn how to bob to the Budweiser song, find the Mickey Mouse clock, and clue them in on the joke behind fictitious student George P. Burdell, it isn’t very interactive.

So this year, the Tradition Keepers developed part

Roger Slavens

Students Laura McRay and Brandon Sheu show off the coveted Tradition Keepers medallion.

of the SAA app to allow students to upload photos of themselves going through Tech rites, whether it’s spotting football players in Yellow Jacket Alley or riding a tricycle in the Mini 500—and get points for their participation. Students completing and uploading 10 traditions get a Tradition Keepers lapel pin, 20 reaps a special photo card and 28 will earn undergrads and grad students a medallion that has been pre-approved for wearing over the gown at graduation.

“We’ve seen a big increase in participation in all SAA activities, including traditions, through the app,” says Abbey Callahan, student organizations coordinator for the Georgia Tech Alumni Association. “Transfer students are knocking down the door trying to get the medallion before graduation.”

Callahan says that not only have students on campus been intrigued by the SAA app, but also faculty and some alumni have asked for special access to the app to see how it works.

As a University of West Georgia graduate who just started working for the Alumni Association last year, Callahan says the app and her experience sponsoring Tradition Keepers has already helped her get up to speed and learn key Tech rituals like never capitalizing the "university of georgia" or being caught wearing Bulldog Red, as well as always looking for chances to get her photo taken with Buzz.

Meanwhile, over the years, Sheu has returned to Sideways’ Grave and left a small fortune in pennies looking for luck on midterms and finals. The pooch has come through every time.

At this pace, Sheu is due to graduate in Spring 2018.

As far as keeping Tech’s traditions goes, he has already completed 23 of them—five more to go before he can wear that special medallion when he receives his diploma. But even after he graduates, Sheu says he reserves the right to return to campus, carry on Tech’s tradition and ask Sideways for a little help when he needs it.

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NETWORKS AND GROUPS

Honoring Our Network Volunteer Leaders The Georgia Tech Alumni Association greatly appreciates the time and effort that many Yellow Jackets give back to their alma mater as volunteer leaders for our regional and corporate Alumni Networks. You serve your Alumni Association and the Institute with distinction and professionalism.

Thank you!

ALBANY AREA (GA) Jake Reese, BC 07 ALPHARETTA/WEST LANIER Michael Hickman, CE 89 Aishwarya Narendran, IE 07 James Harrell, AE 66 Stacy Gerhardt, CE 04 Nick Petrus, IE 07 AT&T Mel Coker, EE 87 ATLANTA INTOWN Casey Aultman, IAML 13 Matt Jacobson, BA 14 James Mason, IE 10 Graham Goldberg, Mgt 14 Sarthak Jaiswal, CmpE 14 Coleman Pusateri, BA 15 Matthew Biggers, Mgt 12 Mike Smith, ICS 85 Milla Murad, Psy 07 Mariel Rezende, ME 12 Alan Poole, Psy 09 Rebecca Norton, Mgt 14 AUGUSTA Alison Crow, ChBE 12 Melissa Puryear, Psy 04 Daniel Puryear, Mgt 03 Sam Formby, BC 09

John Williams, IM 69 Marc Corsini, IM 80 Rebeccah Jerakis, IE 13 Jim Griffo, Arch 77 BOSTON Stephen Myers, BME 05 Alexander Roan, ME 10 Abby Hill, BME 11 CHARLOTTE Christopher Stolz, EE 13 Becca Bartlett, Mgt 12 Victor Ward, Mgt 12 Amy Bynum, IE 97 Mary Smith, MBA 12 John Jewell, IE 04 Eric Lee, IE 02 Hampton Cobb, ME 03 Marilyn Corn, EE 05 Meghan Green, Mgt 13 CHATTANOOGA Anne Butler, Arch 02 Justin Porter, ME 05 Earl Burton, ME 84

BALTIMORE Stephanie Gourley, Bio 09 Ryan McGehee, AE 07

CHICAGO Jay Mercier, BA 15 Kate Trans, Arch 07 Stephanie Cook, Mgt 07 Kelly Sokolowski, Mgt 10 Sophia Kassam, Chem 10 Danny Crnkovich, CE 10 Hannah Fulcher, ID 14 Sara Davison, Mgt 09

BIRMINGHAM Bruce Grasso, IE 72

COCA-COLA Debra Porter, ME 86

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COLORADO/ DENVER Keith McDermott, CS 04 Jess McDermott, Bio 04 Mari Gravlee, ME 00 Jeffrey Berlin, CE 00 Chrissy Demichelis, Mgt 10 Jenn Atcheson, CBE 10 COLUMBIA/ MIDLANDS Troy Blalock, ME 92 Mark Deaton, ME 08 COLUMBUS (GA) LeBron Matthews, Arch 75 Larry Sprayberry, GMgt 71 Ken Townsend, ME 64 Jim Bilhimer, ME 85 Andy Hidle, EE 88 Tyler Townsend, IE 98 Christopher Brazell, CE 01 Nancy McKee, MS PP 08 Dawn Anderson Wallace Twiggs, Text 60 COWETA/FAYETTE Linda Sorrow, IE 84 DEKALB Alex O'Sullivan, ME 08 Alan Pinsker, Arch 83 Christopher Murphy, CE 09 John Hanson, IE 11 Stephanie Hanson, CS 12 DELAWARE VALLEY/ PHILADELPHIA Munir Pathak, IE 10

EMERALD COAST/ PENSACOLA John Rafferty, EE 02 FORT LAUDERDALE Marc Egort, Mgt 89 Kevin Guske, IE 89 FORT MYERS Rick Garcia, CE 73 GAINESVILLE (GA) Fred Eyerman, ME 71 Debbie Parrish, ID 78 Kara Scroggs, CE 97 Damon Nix, IE 01 Matt Dubnik, Mgt 03 Margaret Bolton, ME 03 GATEWAY/ST. LOUIS Paul Pitney, ME 00 Tony Tompras, AE 87 GOLDEN ISLES Brian Merck, Chem 79 Herb Miles, IM 67 Dave Smith, Chem 63 Bob Blackwell, CE 87 GREATER CINCINNATI Paul Pomeroy, IE 74 Roxanne Westerndorf, ChE 81 Raul Fernandez, ME 07 GREENVILLE/ SPARTANBURG Mike Sullivan, ME 79 Andrew Wyse, ME 04 Stephen Ennis, BA 13 GRIFFIN Eric Pitts, CE 91 Mary Jo Jester, IM 83 Katrina Springer, Chem 95 GWINNETT COUNTY Burgess Saloom, AE 71 John Nott, ME 07 DuQuay Allen, CmpE 04

HAMPTON ROADS/ NORFOLK Bill Henry, CE 80 Alan Bomar, ME 84 Eric Carlson, IM 77 Joe Fuller, Psy 79 Ann Fairchild, CE 77 Laurie Meree, HS 80 Patrick Chai, AE 07 HAWAII Michael Lorne, MS HPhys 93 HEART OF TEXAS/ AUSTIN Carolyn Ragsdale, Chem 05 Matt Quigley, Mgt 08 JT Genter, Mgt 07 Katie Genter, CS 09 Alex Henke, EIA 11 Chris Rodesney, Phys 12 HOME DEPOT Kristen Metzger, Mgt 10, MBA 13 Jeff Halter, Psy 09, MBA 13 HOUSTON Colin O'Neill, ME 14 Neomi Sanghrajka, ChBE 15 Akash Gulati, ChBE 14 Fernando Galnares, ME 15 Sheena Patel, CS 14 Duncan Hasell, ME 15 Kate Tyler, CE 09 Sara Shojaee, CE 15 Pavina Peterson, ChBE 13 JACKSONVILLE Matt Bishop, CmpE 06 Jourdyn Hunsaker, CE 13 Nolan Alexander, BA 14 Wade Barnes Jr., Bio 71 Beau Clark, CE 94 KNOXVILLE Bob Hunt, ME 78 Dan Miles, ME 80 Rob Wentz, EE 80 Kristen Hector, IE 08 Wally McClure, EE 90 Levi Smith, CS 02

LAGRANGE Judy Freeman, ChE 81 Lindsay Cagle, PFE 04

Ashley Land, IE 15 Lisa Fox, IE 10 Bill Steffenhagen, Arch 74

LAS VEGAS Haynes Killen, Mgt 99

LOUISVILLE Scott Radeker, ME 92

NEW JERSEY/ NEW YORK Arthur Nacht, IM 75 D'juro Villaran-Rokovich, Arch 86 Rob Daniel, Mgt 01 Mandy Zielonka, CS 05 Stefanie Wayco, IAML 04 Christopher Kim, IE 11 Casey Drummond, Mgt 12 Dimple Bansal, IE 13 Caroline Gwynn, STC 14

LOW COUNTRY/ CHARLESTON Chi Swift, Mgt 88 Justin Brown, ME 12

NEW ORLEANS/ BATON ROUGE Andy Kates, ME 88 Mary Dumestre

MACON David McCollum, IM 85 Kam Mote, ME 08 Steven Ouzts, Mgt 09 Bekah Grant, Mgt 09 Lindsey Mote, ID 09 Lee Discher, Mgt 10 Michael Rice, ME 14

NORTH ALABAMA/ HUNTSVILLE Megan Breitbach, Bio 14 Amber Connor-Abdelaal, AE 12 Carl Lester, ChE 78 Glenn Parker, EE 94 Scott Thomason, IE 81 Stephanie Deaton, IE 97 Bob Lord, IE 68

LOS ANGELES Chip Ossman, ME 76, CE 83 Steffan Slater, AE 13, MS AE 15 Sagar Soni, ME 15 Zackary Spratling, IE 10

MEMPHIS Alexei Nikonovich-Kahn, Mgt 15 Bob Cockerham, BC 71 Frank Fitzgerald, IE 86 Morgan Lupton, IE 13 Steve Stapleton, IM 70 Cate Donaldson, BME 12 MIAMI Antonio Llanos, CS 95 MILLEDGEVILLE Mike Hodell, IE 88 Alan Deariso, Text 89

NORTH METRO Jany Brown, Mgt 97 Ellie LeMar, BME 11 Betsy Wallace, Arch 96 Vicky Polashock, ChE 90, PhD ChE 95 Bill May, IE 10 Casey Arundel, Mgt 07 Chad Sims, BA 15 Jeffrey Metcalf, IM 71 Phil Williams, Text 70 Kimberly DeCarrera, Mgt 03 Tom Billings, CE 74 Ben Jones, STC 06

MISSISSIPPI Al Faulk, Mgt 97

NORTH TEXAS Garrett Webb, ME 07

MOBILE Brian Sohacki, ME 12 Trevor Boehm, ME 99

NORTHEAST OHIO/ CLEVELAND Bruce Warnock, IM 58 Kenneth Atchinson, EE 87 Karen Ziton, Mgt 96

MOTOR CITY/DETROIT Steven Bradshaw, ME 11, MS ECE 13 Lisa Bradshaw, MS ECE 13 Alex Rawden, Mgt 14 Mike Bunch, ME 13 NASHVILLE Pam Henry, Mgt 88

NORTHEAST TENNESSEE Marcus Hopkins, Text 67 Matt Storey, ME 07 Daniel Wells, CS 07 Lynn Tully, Arch 95 Dalton McMehan, ME 15 Charles Webb, IM 68

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA/ SAN FRANCISCO Dave Lo, CS 00 Cliff Bishop, CE 07 Kevin Kung, Mgt 08 Stephanie Box, CE 10 Shruti Gupta, CmpE 10 Amal Puthur Jayapalan, CE 13 Sivadesh Perumal Pillai, CS 11 Hoki Tse, CE 13 Megan Freeman, IA 01 Gaurav Nagle, AE 07 Jing Li, IE 10

ROME Tim Groves, ME 91 Nathan Roberts, TE 97 Charles Schroeder, Text 71

NORTHWEST ARKANSAS Shan Pesaru, CmpE 05

SAN DIEGO Amanda Pritchett, BC 04, MS BC 08 Stephen Thompson, AE 08 Johnathan Buck, ME 10, MS ME 12 David Pritchett, CmpE 02 Liz Foster, CE 07

NORTHWEST GEORGIA/ DALTON Steven Jones, TE 99 Zac Long, Mgt 05 Kenny Vargas, IE 14 ORANGE COUNTY Ari Flechner, EE 92 ORLANDO/ CENTRAL FLORIDA Stephanie Shealey, CE 07 Nicholas Haddad, CE 04 Ronald DeLucia, ECE 06 John Rozier, AE 08 Ashley Flick, AE 09 Jessica Rozier, Mgt 09 Melly Butler, CE 09 Breona Jenkins, IE 14 PALM BEACH Lori Bartlett, ME 08 Cody Parham, CE 07 Chris Curtin, IM 80 Mona Kharazmi, Mgt 99 Troy Rice, IE 01 PITTSBURGH/ WESTERN PA Danny Hurley, EE 01, MS ECE 02 Christine Wasilewski, BME 12 Paul Balla, AE 12 PUERTO RICO Ric Cardona, ChE 80 RENO/TAHOE Kara Evenoff, MSE 14 RICHMOND Michael Warwick, Mgt 09 Devin Robertson, CE 11 Danni Murray, ChBE 11 Kelsey Heady, Mgt 13 Sarah Hornbostel, AM 13

SAN ANTONIO Steven Hays, ChE 75 Nils Smith, EE 85 Julie Eversole, IE 85 Amy Avery, CE 01 Amy Cheben-Smith, ME 10 Kevin Liu, ChBE 13

SANDERSVILLE Marcus Sack, ME 75 Lamar Doolittle, EE 83 SAVANNAH Rob Shaw, IM 74 Eddie Wilson, IA 92 Sheri Lilley, Mgt 89 Lydia Moore, Mgt 10 Greg Aznarez, MBA 16 SEATTLE Danny Farmer, CS 13 SOUTHERN COMPANY Charlie Vance, IE 02 Shannon Mehl, Mgt 14 Gene Mansour, BA 15 Shaan Iqbal, MoT 13 Rachel Gialenios, CE 15 April Hsieh, IE 15 Erin Ashley, BC 06 SPACE COAST Charlie Howard, EE 78 Doug McAlister, CmpE 98 SUNCOAST/TAMPA Fred Carlson, CE 01 Irv Lee, IE 81 Kathryn Fulk, CE 11 Ash Miller, EE 83 Tweeter Smith, Mgt 08 Chip Hayward, Arch 79

Alush Garzon, CE 02 TALLAHASSEE/ THOMASVILLE Charley Redding, CE 75 Neal Johnson, EE 87 Joe Ullo, CE 93 Heather Whitmore, CP 03 Philip Blaiklock, M CRP 10, MS CE 10 TRIAD Eric Aulet, AE 15 TRIANGLE Claire Howell, PP Tara Parks, TE 92 Cassandra Hargrove, TE 81 Modupe Edogun, BME 07 Sukonya Gogoi, Mgt 10 TWIN CITIES Matt Lowry, ME 11 VALDOSTA Rodney Thomason, ME 94 Thompson Gooding, BC 08 Eric Reissiger, Mgt 08 Devin Johnson, ChBE 15 VIDALIA Mike Holland, IM 72 Matt Oxley, AE 71 Karen Hilton WASHINGTON, D.C. John-Anthony Clary Umberger, HTS 15 David Nelson, BC 92 Godfrey Augustine, EE 87 Kim Reick, IE 06 Stephanie Chester, Bio 07 Andrea Naranjo, IA 11 Kavi Dotson, ME 09 WEST GEORGIA/ CARROLLTON Harold Ivester, EE 63 Joe Murrah, IE 91 George Stenger, Mgt 88 Adam Cobb, BC 07 WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA/ASHEVILLE Jim Crafton, ME 61 Shirley Crafton, BC 63 Bob Morris, ID 63 John Woodson, IM 74

For those who want to get involved with your regional or corporate Alumni Networks, visit www.gtalumni.org/volunteer.

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 75

ALUMNI TRAVEL

Down Under Delights

BY GINGER AMONI

A three-week trip to Australia and New Zealand provided a wide range of new adventures for a plucky group of Georgia Tech travelers.

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LAST YEAR, Georgia Tech Alumni Travel hosted a large group of alumni and friends for a threeweek trip down under to Australia and New Zealand with tour operator Odysseys Unlimited. We snorkeled and swam with giant tortoises in the Great Barrier Reef, cruised through the fjords of South Island, joined the greatest cocktail party in the Outback (the Georgia and Florida cocktail parties couldn't compete) and spent four days in Sydney, which I think is the most beautiful city in the world.

Sydney is composed of numerous islands joined by bridges and ferries. The water is an astonishing, beautiful blue and the extensive beaches are gorgeous, clean and inviting. The iconic Opera House (pictured here) is even more impressive in person.

As with most Tech Alumni Travel tours, we got an excellent feel for the culture, people and history of the two countries. We met with aborigines in Australia and Maori in New Zealand.

Though the two countries are often lumped together, they are distinctly different in everything from culture to topography. For instance, Australia boasts more deadly animals than any other country in the world, while New Zealand had no reptiles or land mammals on the entire island until the Maori discovered it in the 14th century. And native New Zealand birds were wingless because they had no predators.

The people of both countries are extremely friendly, to the point that they will personally walk you to your destination if you ask them for directions. We even had the opportunity to meet with some local alumni in Sydney. Traveling with Ramblin’ Wrecks is always a treat because they are ready for anything and eager to see and learn more.

If you’re itching to travel the world, who better to globe-hop with than your fellow Yellow Jackets? The Georgia Tech Alumni Association has a host of trips (like the ones listed below) scheduled for 2017 and beyond. For more information, or to register for an upcoming tour, visit gtalumni.org/travel.

Swiss Alps and the Italian Lakes Sept. 22-Oct. 1, AHI Travel The best of Swiss and Italian culture and heritage await you as you discover the wonders of the Alps from your base in St. Moritz and lake-district delights of Stresa. Enjoy spectacular mountain scenery on a trip on the famed Bermina Express, cruise the glacial Lake Cuomo and even trek into Milan to see da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” and the La Scala Museum.

Great Trains & Grand Canyons Oct. 8-13, Premier World Discovery All aboard for two amazing train excursions that include the Grand Canyon Railway and the Verde Canyon Railroad, where you’ll ride along the scenic Oak Creek Canyon and take tours of Chapel of the Holy Cross, Montezuma Castle National Monument and the old mining town of Jerome. You’ll also enjoy a five-night stay in Sedona, as well as a journey to the Grand Canyon National Park’s spectacular South Rim.

Trade Routes of Coastal Iberia Oct. 23-31, Gohagen Travel This unique and exclusive nine-day itinerary and small ship voyage showcases the coastal jewels of the Iberian Peninsula between Barcelona, Spain, and Lisbon, Portugal. Visit three UNESCO World Heritage sites while cruising ancient Mediterranean and Atlantic trade routes aboard the exclusively chartered, five-star small ship M.S. Le Lyrial.

Egypt & the Eternal Nile Oct. 30-Nov. 13, Odysseys Unlimited Your 15-day journey into Egypt begins in Cairo with the Egyptian Museum and the open-air museum at Memphis, where you will encounter the enigmatic Sphinx, then continue on to Sakkara and the renowned Pyramids of Giza. Relax during a deluxe three-night cruise on Lake Nasser and then a four-night Nile cruise that takes you from Aswan to Luxor, plus so much more.

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 77

ALUMNI EVENTS

Save These Dates!

45TH ANNUAL PI MILE 5K ROAD RACE: APRIL 22 Get ready to run! The 45th annual Pi Mile 5K Road Race is coming up April 22. Join fellow alumni, students, family and friends for a race through Tech’s beautiful campus. There will be music, food and, of course, Buzz on site to ensure a fun morning. Don’t miss this long-standing spring tradition!

2017 PRESIDENT’S DINNER CELEBRATING ROLL CALL: JUNE 16 Celebrate giving to Georgia Tech at a special evening with President G.P. “Bud” Peterson.

Those who donate $1,000 or more to Roll Call, Tech’s annual fund, are invited to attend this elegant soiree. Make sure to make a gift to Tech if you’d like to snag a spot at this year’s celebration.

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM: JUNE 12-15 The Alumni Association has partnered with the Scheller College of Business to develop a customized Leadership Development Program exclusively for Tech alumni. This four-day intensive program led by Georgia Tech faculty will help you develop new skills and perspectives to succeed in your organization, and will challenge you to think in a more strategic way to bolster your career. Learn more at www.gtalumni.org/career.

HOMECOMING AND REUNION WEEKEND: OCT. 19-21 Mark these dates for the 2017 Homecoming and Reunion Weekend! Make plans to come back to Tech Oct. 19-21 to take part in a great weekend of events.

The classes of 1992, 1977 and 1967 will celebrate reunion parties, and the Yellow Jackets football team will take on Wake Forest. Stay tuned for more details!

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Learn more about all upcoming Georgia Tech Alumni Association events at gtalumni.org/events.

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WRECKS AT WORK

Why Your Career Needs Professional Help

BY CHARLOTTE ANDERS

Developing new skills could be the missing link between you and your next opportunity.

for activities that forced me to learn something new, I benefited both on the job and personally. Individually, it’s important to start exploring opportunities to upgrade important career skills. You must take control of your career goals by creating your own professional development plan.

Some key issues to consider include: • Most companies no longer provide in-house professional development programs with the exception of very specific needs relevant only to their business model; • Changes in technology, the economy, culture and the law affect the way we do business, and it’s important to be aware of changes that impact your industry or position; • Holding the same job with the same responsibilities for long periods of time can result in inefficiencies and boredom, which inhibit your ability to be successful; • Industry-specific certifications have become more important to companies’ leadership teams, and most of those certifications require education, preparation and annual hours of additional education to maintain; • Education in a field outside of your profession can enhance your personal awareness of the world around you and make you a better decision-maker and professional.

If you have changed jobs recently or are looking for a new job, you may have realized that your skills need to be updated. This applies to people of all ages and levels of expertise.

Improving your skills doesn’t necessarily mean going back to graduate school either. Since 1980, growth in employment and pay has been fastest in professions across the income scale that put a premium on social skills.

Professional development leads to results. According to a 2015 survey by the Pew Research Center, professional learners reported extra training helped them advance their careers. Of those polled, 65 percent said extra training over the previous year helped to expand their network; 47 percent said it helped them advance within their company or organization; 29 percent reported it helped them to find a new job; and 27 percent said it was helpful in pursuing a different career path.

I encourage you to make professional development a priority in your career whether you plan to stay in your current job or make a move in the future. Improving your skills, and knowledge will contribute significantly to your success and the time you devote to this effort will be time well spent.

YOU ARE A RESPECTED PROFESSIONAL with an impressive degree from Georgia Tech, so you have all you need to have a successful career, right? Wrong!

If you are not constantly learning and improving, you are losing professional ground every day. The world is rapidly changing and business practices are, too. This makes upgrading your professional resumé critical for continued success.

I joined the Georgia Tech Alumni Association last year as the director of Career and Professional Development. As a veteran of this industry, I do not need statistics or testimonials to convince me that continuing development and education are paramount to success on the job. I understand the importance CAREER OPPORTUNITIES: Starting this month, the Georgia Tech Alumni Association will of adding a certification or becoming begin hosting a series of leadership workshops leading up to a week-long program in proficient with a new piece of softpartnership with the Scheller College of Business. For more information about our ware. I myself have found that when I programs, check the Career Services website at www.gtalumni.org/career or contact Charlotte Anders at charlotte.anders@alumni.gatech.edu or (404) 385-5421. developed new skills or volunteered

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“I have a deep sense of pride in Georgia Tech’s mission. Those who supported Roll Call shaped this school so that I benefitted from a full and rich experience. It is now my honor and duty to do the same for the next generation of students. Just as my father did with us, I look forward to my family continuing the tradition of pride for our beloved Georgia Tech.”

“Most all I have in this world comes as a result of my Georgia Tech experience … the education I received and the friends I made at Tech and have kept close through the years. I give because of the love I have for this institution and the gratitude I feel for all I have received from my Georgia Tech experience.”

-MAYSON THORNTON SPELLMAN MGT 05 BOARD MEMBER, GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

-BERT THORNTON IM 68 BOARD MEMBER,

GEORGIA TECH FOUNDATION

FORMER CHAIR,

GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Leadership The Leadership Circle is the cornerstone of Roll Call - Georgia Tech’s annual fund.

BURDELL SOCIETY

a gift of $25,000

PHOENIX CLUB

$10,000 - $24,999

TRADITIONS CLUB

$5,000 - $9,999

TOWER CLUB

$2,500 - $4,999

CORNERSTONE CLUB

$1,000 - $2,499

We hope you’ll join us and enjoy benefits such as a limited edition tie or scarf and an invitation to the annual President’s Dinner.

www.gtalumni.org/giving

Please send your gift or pledge to: ROLL CALL, GEORGIA TECH ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | | 81

190 North Avenue | Atlanta, Georgia 30313-9806 o r c a l l (4 0 4) 8 9 4 - 075 6

RAMBLIN' ROLL

Young Jackets Put in the National Spotlight For the second year in a row, seven Georgia Tech alumni and students were featured in Forbes’ prestigious “30 Under 30” list.

FORBES MAGAZINE’S annual “30 Under 30” list of young entrepreneurs, innovators and upstarts recognizes “30 game changers in 20 industries” for a total of 600 of the most inspiring young leaders in the world.

It’s no surprise, of course, that Georgia Tech is wellrepresented in several categories. Read more about the incredible Ramblin’ Wrecks selected for the 2017 class: KARAN JANI, a doctoral researcher at the Center for Relativistic Physics at Georgia Tech, was part of a global team of researchers that helped discover the existence of gravitational waves. His primary research focuses on black holes in our universe and testing Albert Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. Jani was recognized for his research with the 2016 Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics, awarded by Stephen Hawking.

Jani also serves as vice president of the Graduate Student Government Association at Georgia Tech.

KORIN REID, PHD CHE 15, is a senior data scientist at McKesson, where she scales predictive modeling and machine learning on billions of medical records reaching 160 million people, all in an effort to improve the quality and efficiency of health care delivery. When it comes to her work, Reid says, “I love data—the bigger, the better.” In her spare time, Reid also writes about pop culture and volunteers her time to teach children about the power of science, technology and engineering.

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JASMINE LAWRENCE, CS 13, is a program manager for Xbox One, working on developing cross-platform social experiences for gamers around the world—including the new "Clubs" feature on Xbox Live.

Lawrence’s work at Microsoft is already her second career.

At just 13, she founded her own company, EDEN BodyWorks, a manufacturer of natural hair and skin care products that can be found on shelves at Target, Walmart and other major retailers. In her free time, Lawrence likes to write code, is an avid gamer and reads sci-fi novels. She also finds time to be a motivational speaker for young students to pursue their dreams.

SEAN WARNER, BC 15, developed an idea as a senior at Georgia Tech that has grown into a full-fledged industry: using insects as a food source to close the loophole in agriculture. Warner launched Grubbly Farms, which developed a protein-rich food source for aquaculture, livestock animals and pets, by collecting food waste from different organizations and feeding it to black soldier fly larvae. As the larvae eat through the food waste, they convert it into a quality fertilizer. Grubbly Farms then processes the larvae into proteins and fats that are manufactured into animal feed.

PATRICK PITTALUGA, BA 14, is the business brains behind Grubbly Farms, driving the company’s marketing, business development and sales.

He teamed up with his cousin, Sean Warner, to

launch the company after testing with black solider fly larvae in a laundry room. Grubb l y Fa r m s has been developing a co m m e r cial facility ca pab l e o f turning five tons of food waste into 500 pounds of protein a day, and is looking to expand that output. As a business administration student at Georgia Tech, Pittaluga founded two companies: Predator PC (a custom computer supplier) and Harbor Point (a luxury apparel company).

MICHAEL ROYTMAN, MS OR 12, co-founded Dharma Platform, a company that uses its SaaS platform to collect everything from logistics to food security data for users in the field without requiring Wi-Fi or cell service. The platform uses a drag-and-drop interface to make data collection and analysis easier for users with varying skill levels.

Dharma has pa r t n e r e d with the W o r l d Health Organization and Doctors Without Borders and has received $1.6 million in funding.

LU ZHANG As an undergraduate student at Tianjin University in China, Lu Zhang took part in Georgia Tech’s Atlanta Summer Program. The exchange program allows students to sample a variety of course offerings and get a glimpse of American history and culture.

Zhang comp l e te d h e r undergraduate degree just seven years ago, but in that span, she’s launched and sold a medical device company and has since launched her own venture capital firm in Silicon Valley.

1960s

Summit with the 2016 People of Manufacturing, Team Operational Excellence Award.

Steven C. Bassett, ME 66, received the 2016 Distinguished Service Award from the National Society of Professional Engineers.

1990s

Jamie A. Ready, CE 99, was hired as a Construction Engineer II at Georgia Institute of Technology.

1970s Alan Roberson, CE 79, is now executive director of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators (ASDWA) in Arlington, Va. Alan and his wife, Jeanmarie Roberson, CE 80, live in Fairfax, Va., and have three adult children.

1980s Jimmy Etheredge, IE 85, has been appointed to lead Accenture’s U.S. Southeast Region.

Barbara Knight, IE 84, and her company, Enviropouch, were recognized by the Georgia Manufacturing Alliance at the annual 2016

Ana “Annie” Anton, ICS 90, MS ICS 92, PhD CS 97, and husband, Peter Swire, summited Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, reaching Uhuru Peak. The couple traveled with Trekking For Kids Inc., a nonprofit founded by Georgia Tech alum Jose Montero, BS IE 95. The couple raised over $14,000 for the Kilimanjaro Kids Community orphanage.

Richard G. Boswinkle, Mgt 90, became a partner at Morris, Manning & Martin LLP. He focuses his practice on SBA-guaranteed loans and small business lending, real estate lending and restaurant finance. He is based in Atlanta.

Sonya Summerour Clemmons, ME 94, was appointed to the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering’s External Advisory Board in November 2016.

2000s Olivia Bedi, Chem 00, joined Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg as partner in the Intellectual Property & Technology Transactions practice group. Olivia is a trial lawyer with significant experience in intellectual property litigation, having represented both individuals and corporations in high-stakes cases in federal and state courts.

Betsy Bulat Turner, IAML 04, was elected as a partner at Martenson, Hasbrouck & Simon LLP. George Major Jr., Mgt 04, was named a partner of the Savannah law firm Oliver Maner LLP. Major’s litigation practice focuses on plaintiff’s personal injury, wrongful death and products liability litigation and the defense of medical malpractice cases.

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RAMBLIN' ROLL Quinta Warren, PhD ChE 09, co-authored A Practical Guide to Oil & Gas Resource Characterization For Geologists and Reservoir Engineers, a textbook that determines how much oil and gas is in an area, exactly where it is located and how much it is worth.

Kar Yee Peluso, ChE 00, was hired by Cantor Colburn LLP in Atlanta.

2010s Jeremy Kobus, MS IA 11, MBA 12, was named a professor in the College of Business at the Savannah College of Art and Design. The program’s focus is entrepreneurship in the arts.

ROBERT CALDWELL, AE 89, MATTHEW STOVALL, AE 98, MS AE 99, JEREMY SCROGGS, AE 13, AND MICHAEL KANG, AE 14, all Lockheed Martin employees, were part of the Joint Strike Fighter Integrated Test Force team supporting the F-35B Third Development Test (DT-III) Sea Trial aboard the USS America off the coast of Southern California.

Courtney Orr, Mgt 13, was awarded KPMG’s National Chairman’s Award, the firm’s top honor. The award was presented by KPMG US CEO and Chairman Lynne Doughtie in November 2016.

WEDDINGS

2

1

1. Sushrut Sahoo, Mgt 07, and Shulamite Wan, PTFE 07, were married on Jan. 29, 2016 in Atlanta. Shu is a supplier quality engineer for Abbott Laboratories and Sushi works in IT. They reside in Fremont, Calif.

2. Chris Fuga, PP 13, and Jourdyn Hunsaker, PP 14, CE 14, on Sept. 17 in Decatur, Ga. Chris works in education research for the Southern Regional Education Board, and Jourdyn is a transportation planner with Kimley-Horn. They live in Atlanta.

3

4

3. Denise Larkins, Psy 07, MS PO 09, and Charlie Simons, ME 07, MS ME 10, got married in Atlanta on Oct. 1. Denise is an orthotist/prosthetist at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. Charlie is a senior engineer at East West Manufacturing. The couple lives in Peachtree Corners, Ga. 4. Joel DeSalvo, BME 11, and Anna Gelbrich on Oct. 22 in Flowery Branch, Ga. Joel is a quality engineer for Becton Dickinson. They live in Kearney, Neb.

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Yellow Jackets on the Move Another benefit from the Georgia Tech Alumni Association Preferential YELLOW JACKET treatment * * * * * * *

Minimum of a 55% discount on all interstate relocations.

Free Full-Value Coverage up to $50,000.

15% discount on all Georgia and Florida intrastate moves.

Guaranteed on time pick-up and delivery.

Personalized attention from start to finish.

Top rated drivers will be assigned to all Yellow Jacket shipments.

Sanitized air-ride vans.

Contact Tom Larkins (The Ramblinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Relocator) for details on this program

1-800-899-2527 or e-mail him at tom.larkins@atlanticrelocation.com

Atlantic Relocation Systems/ Interstate Agent for

ATLAS VAN LINES 1909 Forge Street Tucker, GA 30084

* A portion of the proceeds collected from the transportation costs will be paid to the Georgia Tech Alumni Association

RAMBLIN' ROLL BIRTHS 1

3

5

21 4

7

6

10

1. Shulamite Wan, PTFE 07, and husband Sushrut Sahoo, Mgt 07, welcomed Layla Isobel Sahoo on Sept. 17. Shu is a quality systems engineer for Abbott Medical Optics.

Sushi works in IT. The family lives in Fremont, Calif. Uncles: Jonathan Wan, IE 08 and Sidharth Sahoo, AE 04, MS IE 05. Grandmother: PeiChun Tsai Wan, MS ICS 81.

2. Chris Callura, BC 08, and wife Luisa Callura, CE 08, welcomed son Myles Joseph Callura on Nov. 9. Luisa is a civil engineer and Chris is a project manager. The family lives in Atlanta.

3. Brian Kern, NRE 05, MS ME 06, and wife Breanna welcomed daughter Evelyn Curie Kern on July 1. Brian is an engineering

11

manager at Farley Nuclear Plant.

The family lives in Dothan, Ala. 4. Daniel VanBeek, CmpE 12, and wife Kelly welcomed daughter Raleigh Lane on Aug. 13. Daniel is the enterprise applications architect for Anheuser-Busch. The family lives in St. Louis, Mo. 5. Telleen Gegner, IA 08, and Greg Gegner, IE 07, welcomed daughter Tenley Joy on Aug. 1. The family lives in Atlanta.

6. Carrie Clark, ChBE 07, and Elliott Clark, CS 08, welcomed son Logan Blaise Clark on Aug. 26.

Carrie is a group manager for Clorox and Elliott is a tech lead for Facebook. The family lives in San Ramon, Calif.

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7. Charles D. Cartwright, MBA 12, and Lauren R. Cartwright, Mgt 07, welcomed daughter Margo Alexandra Cartwright on Dec. 13. The family lives in Dunwoody, Ga. 8. Lisa Drabiak Wood, ChE 03, and husband Robert Wood welcomed daughter Scarlett Victoria Wood on March 31. The family lives in The Woodlands, Texas.

9. Lauren Aberle Revels, ID 04, and Ryan Revels, EE 05, welcomed son George James Revels on March 12. The family lives in Austin, Texas.

10. Alison Powers, ME 08, and Aaron Powers, ME 08, welcomed son Joseph Luke Powers

13

on Nov. 25. The family lives in Memphis, Tenn.

11. Andrew Perez, EE 11, MS EE 12, and wife Stephanie welcomed son Vincent on Dec. 9.

The family lives in Roswell, Ga. 12. Jessica Davis King, Mgt 08, and husband Ian welcomed son Davis on Aug. 18. The family lives in Marietta, Ga. 13. John Hemby, IE 09, and Taylor Hemby, IE 09, welcomed son Porter Cameron Hemby on Oct. 25. John is a manager at the corporate headquarters for The Home Depot.

Taylor is a data scientist for Booz Allen Hamilton. The family lives in Smyrna, Ga.

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IN MEMORIAM

Kimberly Kim

Philanthropist and Software Developer Kimberly Kim, CS 99, of Atlanta, on Dec. 1.

KIMBERLY KIM DEVOTED HERSELF TO IMPROVING LIFE for people living with ALS. Kim attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, where she was a member of Phi Mu Fraternity, played on the club soccer team and joined the Co-op Program, where she worked for Lotus Development and the Georgia Tech Research Institute. Kim graduated in 1999 with highest honors, earning a bachelor’s degree in computer science.

After graduation, Kim worked with Radiant Systems as a technical consultant and software developer. When the company split, she went to work with BlueCube Software.

After dating for 11 years, Kim married her high school sweetheart, Jin H. Kim, on Feb. 2, 2002. Four years later, mid-way through her first pregnancy, Kim began having problems typing at work. These issues were dismissed as pregnancy-related, and Jin and Kimberly welcomed the birth of their son, Luke, on June 8, 2006. But the problems she experienced during pregnancy persisted, and when Luke was two weeks old, Kim saw a doctor about the weakness in her left hand that made nursing impossible. After consulting several specialists, she was officially diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

As a direct result of her experiences, Kim dedicated her time to assisting other ALS patients and their families, establishing and operating the Kimberly Kim Foundation Inc. As part of her outreach, Kim often spoke candidly of

her experiences with newly diagnosed ALS patients. She also used her technical background in her philanthropic efforts, working with the Georgia Tech Brain Department on an experimental computer platform that allows the user to control a computer with his or her thoughts. Her foundation also focused on technology with an Assisted Communications Technology Grant, which provides technology to newly diagnosed ALS patients, allowing them to communicate with others.

Kim was also a dedicated mother. She published Dancing the ABC's, a book written as a legacy for her son, Luke.

All proceeds from the book are donated to the Kimberly Kim Foundation to assist other ALS patients.

As time progressed and daily life became a struggle, Kim never ceased to focus on Luke and assisting other ALS patients in any way that she could. Kim will be remembered as a loving mother, wife, sister, friend and philanthropist.

Her fight to help others surviving with ALS continues through her foundation.

1940s

Oscar L. Attaway, IM 49, MS IM 55, of Dunnellon, Fla., on June 18. WWII.

Benjamin E. Bostick, MS EE 49, of Myersville, Md., on Dec. 17. Navy. WWII. NSA.

Keith I. Allen Jr., Text 49, of Amory, Miss., on Dec. 10. WWII. Army Air Corps (2nd Lt.). Manager of industrial engineering at Greenville Mill Axminister Carpet Plant, Mohasco Corp. Senior member, the American Institute of Industrial Engineers. Registered professional engineer.

William “Bill” Bobo Jr., Cls 45, of Columbia, S.C., on Oct. 11. Aeronautical loftsman, Bell Aircraft.

Navy. WWII. General Motors Acceptance Corp.

G. Bradley Burkhalter, EE 40, of Newnan, Ga., on April 28. Army Air Corps. WWII. Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with three clusters and Presidential Unit Citation with three clusters. Manager of the electrical department, Battey Machinery Co. President and

Aleck C. Bond, MS AE 48, of Temple, Texas, on Sept. 9.

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lifetime member, Rome Exchange Club. President, Coosa Valley Fair.

Edward P. Owen, CE 43, of Houston, Texas, on Oct. 7. Army Corps of Engineers. WWII.

Stephen Campbell, EE 41, of Los Angeles, Calif., on Oct. 12. WWII. Navy. Engineer, Hughes Aircraft Co. Brother: John O. Campbell, EE 41.

Chris Pappas Jr., Cls 46, of Roswell, Ga., on Oct. 15. Navy (Lt.). WWII. National sales manager, Burlington Industries.

Edgar V. Carter III, TE 41, of Brookhaven, Ga., on Sept. 5. Navy. WWII. Founder, Carter Construction Co.

Charles G. Sims, Cls 49, of Greensboro, N.C., on Dec. 16. Navy. WWII. Victory Medal.

Veterinarian.

William W. Coons, ChE 45, of Jacksonville, Fla., on Nov. 17. Navy (Capt.). Creator, Office of U.S. Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board. Associate professor of engineering, University of Florida. Son: William W. Coons Jr., IE 74.

Erwin M. Vanstrum, ME 46, of Hoover, Ala., on Dec. 7. U.S. Steel. Navy.

Robert E. Leckrone, IM 42, of Joliet, Ill., on Oct. 12. Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. Navy (Cmdr.). WWII. Vice president, Barrett Hardware Co. Chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer, Louis Joliet Bank. President, Northern Illinois Bancorp. Director, Illinois Bankers Association, American Bankers Association and Chicago Bankers Club. President and district governor, Rotary International. Silver Beaver for Distinguished Service to Boyhood Award, Boy Scouts of America.

James R. Lindsey Sr., Cls 47, of Roaring Gap, N.C., on Dec. 5. Georgia Tech football player. Air Force. WWII. Featured in Time and Sports Illustrated as The Equitable’s top agent. Life member, Million Dollar Round Table. Founder and president, Lindsey & Associates Inc. 1989 Richlands Citizen of the Year. Co-founder, Richlands Area Midget League Football Program. President, Richlands Lions Club. Ferrum College Board of Trustees. President, Southwest Virginia Community College Foundation Board. Co-chair, “Fulfill the Vision” campaign.

William L. Martin, Cls 48, of Tampa, Fla., on Sept. 26. United States Coast Guard Academy.

ExxonMobil Corp. Senior sales executive, Exxon Chemical.

Albert W. “Dadoo” Weigle, ME 48, of Charlotte, N.C., on Jan. 1. Army. WWII. Mechanical engineer, The Kendall Co. and Western Electric.

1950s Robert D. Bartro, Text 51, of Naples, Fla., on Nov. 21. Navy. WWII. Phelps Dodge Corp.

Cablec.

Jeffrey R. Bell, IM 55, of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., on Dec. 8. Army. Financial manager, IBM. William H. “Bill” Bryant Jr., IM 52, of Marietta, Ga., on Sept. 10. Navy reserves. WWII. Army (2nd Lt.).

Norman C. Campbell, Cls 54, of Marietta, Ga., on Dec. 15. Georgia Tech football and baseball player. Army. Korean War. Robert R. Campbell Sr., EE 54, of Timonium, Md., on Nov. 5. Son: Stephen P. Campbell, EE 83.

James M. Cargal, Chem 50, of Raleigh, N.C., on Dec. 15. Army. WWII. Chemical engineer, Goodyear Tire.

Edward E. Carithers Jr., IM 54, of Doraville, Ga., on Jan. 3. Georgia Tech football player. Orange Bowl. Sugar Bowl. National Championship.

Bernard T. Cleary, IM 57, of Tybee Island, Ga., on Dec. 30. Georgia Tech basketball player. Public relations manager, Union Camp Corp. Assistant sports editor and news editor, Savannah Evening Press. March 27, 1997 declared “Bernie Clearly Day” in Savannah. Member, Coastal Area Games Authority for 1996 Olympics. President, Exchange Club, Coastal Empire Fair Association, Notre Dame Club, Sinn Fein, Savannah Golfers Association and Mary Calder Golf Club. Trustee, Victor B. Jenkins Memorial Boys Club. Chairman, Savannah Catholic Diocese Communications Commission. Charter member, Benedictine Board of Advisors. Colonel Stephen S. Koszewski Alumni Award. Recipient of Father Raphael Arthur-Class of 1924 Cup. Charles P. Cochran, IE 50, of Atlanta, on Nov. 28. Chi Phi Fraternity. Navy. WWII. Air Force. Korean War. Director, Murdock Engineering Co. Vice president, Lockheed Martin. Vice president and director, Atlanta Boys’ High School Alumni Association.

Walter C. Coward Jr., EE 59, of Savannah, Ga., on Oct. 17. Georgia Power.

Charlie L. Crawford Jr., IE 51, of Birmingham, Ala., on Dec. 11. Navy. SCI Inc. Ernest E. Donaldson Jr., EE 58, MS EE 64, of Rome, Ga., on Sept. 27. Navy. Principal research engineer, Georgia Tech Research Institute.

Robert L. Dover, IM 57, MS IM 58, of Atlanta, on Oct. 14. Georgia Tech football and baseball player. Mead Packing International. Brothers: Ralph Dover, IM 53, MS IM 57; Phillip Dover, IE 68.

Charles D. “Chicken” Etheridge Sr., Cls 51, of North Charleston, S.C., on Dec. 17. Machinist and paramedic, Westvaco Paper Mill.

Albert F. Gandy, IE 56, of Milledgeville, Ga., on Nov. 30. President, Meadows Industries.

Board member, Georgia Military College, Central & Southern Bank and Lockerly Arboretum Foundation. Son: Ed M. Gandy, IM 82. Daughter: Allison Gandy Johnson, IM 86.

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IN MEMORIAM

Col. Richard L. Gilbert, Arch 55, of Rome, Ga., on Oct. 21. Air Force (2nd Lt.).

Pitt-Marsh Realty. Founder, Marsh Homes.

Master builder, Las Campanas.

aerial vehicles into the armed forces inventory. Army Missile Command.

James R. Hewell Jr., BC 52, of Saint Simons Island, Ga., on Nov. 29.

Edward G. Martin, IM 51, of Lake Charles, La., on Nov. 21. Kappa Alpha Fraternity. Army (2nd Lt.). Korean War. Engineer, Armstrong Cork Co. and Kaiser Aluminum.

Owner, GMC Dealership in Lake Charles.

Founder, Martin Automotive Group. National Automobile Dealers Association. Business Week National Dealer of the Year finalist, American Truck Dealers. District Dealer of the Year, Louisiana Automobile Dealers Association. Chairman, GMC Truck National Dealer Council. General Motors President’s Dealer Advisory Council. Vice chairman of the board, National Bank of Commerce.

Confederate Air Force (Col.). United Flying Octogenarians. First chairman of the board of directors, USS ORLECK Naval Museum.

Elwyn N. “Buck” Powell Jr., Arch 54, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Jan. 12. Theta Chi Fraternity. Engineering Corps, Army.

Residential and commercial architect. Consulting architect, First Baptist Church in Fort Lauderdale.

Thomas J. Hughes, ChE 59, of Greensboro, Ga., on Sept. 10.

Lee O. “Buddy” Hunter, EE 50, of Clarksville, Tenn., on Dec. 5. Army (Sgt.). Korean War. Pennyrile Rural Electric. Writer and photographer, Ft. Campbell Courier Newspaper.

Public affairs officer.

Robert L. “Bob” James Jr., AE 55, of Newport News, Va., on Dec. 13. Martin Co. Aerospace engineer, NASA. Competitive sailor, 1968 Olympic Games. Founder, Ware River Yacht Club.

William D. “Bill” Lang, EE 51, of Jupiter, Fla., on Dec. 13. Army. Korean War. Florida Power and Light.

Lewis C. Lindsey Jr., IM 59, of Atlanta, on April 20. Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity. Air Force (2nd Lt.). Awards: Air Medal with one Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster, Combat Readiness Medal, National Defense Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal and Small Arms Expert Medal.

Founder, Alpha-1 Foundation.

John H. McDonald, Cls 56, of Atlanta, on Sept. 23. Independent investment banker.

Alvin M. Miller, IM 50, of Norwalk, Conn., on Dec. 15. Air Force. WWII. Treasurer, Dunlap & Associates. Controller, Eastern Steel and Metal.

Benjamin H. “Ben” Newberry, ME 56, of Perry, Ga., on Oct. 11. Army. Engineering manager, Blue Bird Body Co.

Guy J. Lookabaugh, CE 52, of Kerrville, Texas, on Sept. 8. Officer in the civil engineering corps, U.S. Navy (1st Lt.). Korean War.

Ralph S. Paden, IE 55, of Lookout Mountain, Tenn., on Oct. 23. Provident Life & Accident. NASD Board of Arbitrators.

Kenneth A. Lundberg, CerE 53, of Vestavia Hills, Ala., on Oct. 16. Air Force. IBM. Plant manager, Harbison-Walker. Grandson: Harrison Bartlett, BME 14.

Rex B. Powell, MS AE 51, of Huntsville, Ala., on Sept. 12. Auburn University Outstanding Achievement Award, Auburn Engineering Council. Auburn Aerospace Engineering Department Advisory Board. Senior executive service; director of advanced sensors directorate; and missile guidance directorate; The Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center on Redstone Arsenal. Pioneer for the introduction of remotely piloted vehicles and unmanned

Bryan B. Marsh Jr., MS ME 57, of Santa Fe, N.M., on Aug. 13. Eagle Scout. Kappa Alpha Fraternity. Air Force (1st Lt.). Korean War. Arnold Air Society. National Society of the Scabbard and Blade. Engineer, Texas Instruments. Chief engineer, Varo Inc. Co-founder,

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James C. Robinson Jr., ChE 58, MS IE 64, of Palm Coast, Fla., on Dec. 17. Army (Col.).

Korean War. Vietnam War. Legion of Merit.

Chief systems engineer, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

Don L. Rost, IE 52, of Albuquerque, N.M., on Oct. 23. Georgia Tech choir. Army Air Corps. WWII. Sandia Labs.

Henry V. Sanders Jr., Cls 57, of Stokesdale, N.C., on Dec. 1.

Joseph M. Scott, ME 50, of Memphis, Tenn., on Nov. 29. Sigma Nu Fraternity.

WWII. Expert Infantry Badge, Combat Infantry Badge and Bronze Star Medal. American Board of Ophthalmology. American Academy of Ophthalmology. President, Memphis Society of Ophthalmology.

Donald L. Spanton, MS IE 58, of Pittsboro, N.C., on Oct. 7. Army. Korean War. Army Reserves (Lt. Col.). Taylor Instruments.

Lockheed Martin. IBM. Federal Railroad Administration. Head of the business department, Meredith College.

James W. Stephens Sr., CE 56, of Brooksville, Fla., on Sept. 4. Army (Lt.).

R. Norman Stone, Cls 53, of Atlanta, on Nov. 27. Georgia Tech football player. Partner, Williford Windham & Stone. Son: Duane N. Stone, Arch 84.

Phillip E. Talley Jr., ME 51, of Phoenix, Ariz., on March 26. Aerospace Corp.

Winston Boteler Professor and Adventurer

Winston Boteler, ME 52, MS ME 56, of Decatur, Ga., on Nov. 24.

WINSTON BOTELER LIVED A LONG AND INTERESTING LIFE. At 16, he left his rural Georgia home after finishing high school and hopped a train to New York. Without a cent to his name, he dug ditches and walked dogs to pay for his studies at City College of New York.

During World War II, he trained as a war service mechanic at Casey Jones School of Aeronautics in New Jersey and rebuilt thousands of military airplane engines in Rome, N.Y., and Honolulu. After the war, he returned home and started college at Jacksonville State University before transferring to Georgia Tech in 1948. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1952 and stayed on at the Georgia Tech Engineering Experiment Station, now known as GTRI. He earned a master’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1956 and worked his way up to director of Georgia Tech’s electromechanical division. During that time, he invented vestibular stimulators, built for the military for use in pilot and astronaut training and, for the Navy, remotely operated underwater vehicles with side-looking sonar for mine sweeping. The Navy named him an “Honorary Minesweeper Man.” In 1964, Boteler moved with his family to Afghanistan for a post with the United States Agency for International Development to set up an engineering school at Kabul University.

After two years, he returned to the textile engineering department at Georgia Tech, where he taught, consulted and

William K. “Bill” Thompson Jr., MS CE 52, of Spartanburg, S.C., on Sept. 9. Army.

WWII. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Department of the Army Decoration for Meritorious Civilian Service. Army Reserves (Lt. Col.).

Albin F. Turbak, PhD Chem 57, of Atlanta, on Dec. 18. Research chemist, Esso Research Center. Corporate research director, Tee Pak Packaging Division of

continued to invent until his retirement in 1985.

Boteler later launched an engineering consulting business that took him around the world. He was also an avid runner, and ran in Atlanta’s Peachtree Road Race until age 90. For the last 20 years of his life, he lived half the year in Thailand, returning from his last trip there about six months before his death.

Boteler’s family plans to establish a Georgia Tech scholarship in his name.

Continental Can Company. Manager of Basic Research for ITT Rayonier. Professor and director, Georgia Tech School of Polymers and Textile Engineering. Director of applied research, Southern Polytechnic State University. Adjunct professor, University of Georgia. Falcon Research Consultants Inc. Board of Directors, International Fragrance Technology Corp.

Authority on natural and synthetic polymers. 500 patents worldwide. Published

nine books for the American Chemical Society and for the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry. Fellow of the Royal Society of Dyers and Colorists of England. Fellow, American Institute of chemists. Member, New York Academy of Sciences. Grandson: Casimir Turbak, Mgt. 12.

Claude S. Turner Jr., IE 56, of Tyron, N.C., on Oct. 12. Navy.

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IN MEMORIAM

Robert H. Woodyard, EE 50, of Decatur, Ga., on Jan. 6. Navy. WWII. Electronics officer, Naval Reserve.

Lynwood G. Willis, Arch 57, of Savannah, Ga., on Nov. 27. Architect and real estate developer.

Jack R. Wray, IE 56, of Tallahassee, Fla., on Sept. 9. Air Force (Sgt.). Korean War. Manager of new business development, Coca-Cola Co.

1960s Robert E. Bertz Sr., IE 65, of Savannah, Ga., on Jan. 5. Air Force. Chief industrial engineer, Great Dane Trailers. Son: Brett Bertz, Mgt 94.

Warren B. Bledsoe, AE 65, of McDonough, Ga., on Dec. 2. Navy. Delta Airlines.

Ralph A. Blythe Jr., CE 60, of Alexander City, Ala., on Sept. 8.

Thomas R. “Tommy” Boys, TE 64, MS TE 65, of Zirconia, N.C., on Sept. 1. Kappa Alpha Fraternity. Delta Kappa Phi Fraternity of Science Association. Textile Veterans’ Association Honor Award. Vice president of the industrial fabrics division, Burlington Industries. Daughter: Mary B. Boys White, IE 89.

Edwin H. Calhoun, IM 60, of Big Canoe, Ga., on Nov. 18.

Otto R. Ellars Jr., IE 67, MS IE 68, of Austin, Texas, on Oct. 14. Kappa Alpha Fraternity.

IBM. Michael M. Esmond, IM 69, of Orlando, Fla., on Jan. 28. Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity.

Georgia Tech football player. CEO, A Perfect Services. Brother: Joel B. Esmond, IM 60.

James A. Hartin, CE 69, of Birmingham, Ala., on Sept. 9. Southern Co. Kurt E. Herrman Jr., Arch 63, of Hilton Head Island, S.C., on Sept. 5.

Gilbert W. McLean Jr., IE 64, of Quinton, Va., on Dec. 11. Industrial engineer, AT&T. Army (Capt.).

Bernard E. McQuade, IM 60, of Stony Point, N.Y., on Nov. 23. Army. Korean War. Math teacher, Newburgh City School District.

John R. Minter, IE 60, of McDonough, Ga., on Oct. 13. Army Reserves (Lt. Col.). Civil service, Air Force.

William E. “Bill” Moore Jr., EE 66, of Tucker, Ga., on Sept. 4.

Dick Owens, IM 66, of Big Canoe, Ga., on April 17. Vice president, CFO and partner, Mitchell Supreme Fuel Co. C. David Polk, IM 69, of Jackson, Ga., on Oct. 23. Army.

Joseph P. Roche Jr., EE 67, MS EE 69, of Rock Hill, S.C., on Oct. 22. Army (1st Lt.). Professional electrical engineer, Celanese. Son: Michael E. Roche, BME 09.

Michael V. Schmitt, Cls 62, of Sedona, Ariz., on Dec. 14. High school English teacher. Technical writer, Honeywell.

Robert C. Scruggs, IM 65, of Statesboro, Ga., on Oct. 9. Army National Guard Federal Reserve.

John M. Suttles, IE 64, of Austell, Ga., on Oct. 27. Georgia Power.

David S. Wainer Jr., IM 61, of Jacksonville Beach, Fla., on Dec. 14. Georgia Tech football player. Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity. Army (Lt.).

B. B. McCormick & Sons.

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James R. Weaver, IE 61, of Huntsville, Ala., on Dec. 23. Navy. U.S. Army Missile Command on Redstone Arsenal. Hughes Aircraft.

Raytheon. Salvation Army Band.

1970s Robert A. “Bob” Grossman, MS IM 75, of Ellicott City, Md., on Sept. 2.

T. Stephen “Steve” Johnson, IM 71, of Atlanta, on Sept. 21. Founder and CEO, T. Stephen Johnson & Associates Inc. Founder and first chairman, NetBank. Board of Trustees, Scheller College of Business and Georgia Tech Athletic Association. Carter Center Board of Councilors. State Board of Human Resources. Stone Mountain Memorial Association Board.

Channing R. Jones, IM 79, MS Mgt 90, of Columbus, Ga., on Jan. 26. Navy. AFLAC. Father: Channing Jones, IM 56, MS IM 66.

Brother: Keith Jones, ME 81, MS Mgt 88.

Gary L. Lewis, EE 75, of Cartersville, Ga., on Nov. 27. Manager of inspection services, Atlanta Housing Authority. Georgia Association of Home Inspectors.

Anne L. Le Van, Arch 79, M Arch 82, of Atlanta, on Jan. 1. Alpha Chi Omega Sorority.

Architect, Thompson, Ventulett & Stainback.

Brother: Richard W. Lockwood, ChE 81.

Katherine L. Russell, Phys 73, of Savannah, Ga., on Oct. 14. Gulfstream Aerospace.

Martial arts instructor.

Robin D. Sayler, Bio 74, of Atlanta, on Sept.

1. Brother: Alan Sayler, ChE 75. Son: Aaron Sayler, CS 00. Daughter: Mary Sayler, Cls 03.

Dan W. Voorhies, EE 73, of Richmond, Texas, on Dec. 17.

Edward O. Whealler, IM 76, of Atlanta, on Sept. 29. Georgia Tech football player. Son: Benjamin E. Whealler, Cls 18.

1980s Mark G. Avedikian III, Mgt 88, of Gainesville, Fla., on Oct. 23. Georgia Tech tennis player. Professional tennis player. Tennis teaching professional, Sanibel Harbor Resort. Director of Tennis, Druid Hills Golf Club and Smoke Rise Country Club. Father: Nishan Avedikian, IE 60, MS IM 62.

Paul Bond, EE 87, MS EE 89, PhD EE 95, of Marietta, Ga., on Oct. 19. Design engineer, Intel and GE. Wife: Janine Bond, EE 89.

Daughter: Leila Bond, Cls 19.

Fowler H. Low Jr., IM 82, of Atlanta, on Feb. 25. National sales manager, Inteplast Group. President, Barrier Products Inc. Partner, Barrier Technologies Inc. Father: Fowler H. Low Sr., IM 54.

Linward A. Moore Sr., ME 87, of Sugar Land, Texas, on Dec. 22. Engineer and inventor, Schlumberger Technology Corp.

President, Fort Bend RC Flying Club.

Jeffrey L. Sampson, AP 80, of McKinney, Texas, on Jan. 2.

Robert A. “Rob” Trobaugh III, EE 86, of Huntsville, Ala., on June 21. Engineer, Maples Industries.

Samuel B. Venable, MgtSci 80, of Chattanooga, Tenn., on Oct. 14. Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity. Business analyst manager, Cigna Healthcare.

Ralph Williams III, IM 85, of Atlanta, on Dec. 7. Senior vice president, Hailey Realty Co.

RUDY BUNZL

BUSINESSMAN AND PHILANTHROPIST RUDY BUNZL, CHE 43, OF RICHMOND, VA. , ON OCT. 16. Rudy Bunzl led a successful business career and devoted his retirement to philanthropy.

Born in Vienna, Austria, Bunzl fled to England following Nazi Germany’s annexation of Austria in 1938. He then immigrated with his family to America and settled in Atlanta, where he attended Georgia Tech. After graduating in 1943, he moved to California and began working at Shell Chemical. He later joined the Army and served in the Pacific until the end of WWII. After the war, he returned briefly to California before moving to Richmond, Va., in 1954, where he was asked to help establish a new filter manufacturing company. The company, called American Filtrona Corporation, flourished. He served as CEO of the company until 1987, and retired as chairman in 1994.

Bunzl stayed quite busy in retirement. He pursued his love of history, enrolling at the University of Richmond and earning a master’s degree in history in 1994.

Bunzl loved the city of Richmond, and after retiring, he devoted himself to giving back to the community. With his wife, Esther, Bunzl established the REB Foundation to support public education. Together with the Community Foundation, they created the REB Awards for Teacher Excellence, which provided grants to teachers. In addition, he devoted his time to serving as a member of numerous nonprofit boards, including time as the director of the Richmond Symphony Foundation and the Science Museum of Virginia Foundation.

David N. Word, ME 82, of Atlanta, on Dec. 9. Rockwell International. Pilot, Delta Airlines.

1990s Robert W. Gregg, CS 97, of Marietta, Ga., on July 9. Unix system administrator for telecom companies.

2000s Colleen Yaeger Duffey, ME 04, of Alexandria, Va., on Nov. 24. Alpha Chi Omega Sorority. Senior system’s satellite engineer, Lockheed Martin. National Intelligence Exceptional Achievement Medal. Girl Scouts Gold Award.

Girl Scout troop leader. Husband: Harl C. Duffey, CS 03. Sister: Allison Yaeger, ME 06.

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IN MEMORIAM

J. LAMAR REESE JR.

COMMUNITY LEADER AND BUILDER

Hernando Jimenez, AE 03, MS AE 05, PhD AE 09, of Atlanta, on Oct. 23. Research faculty, Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory.

Tower Award.

2010s Michael J. Mahoney, Cls 11, of Worcester, Mass., on Jan. 4. Zoots. Bean Counter Bakery.

Justin K. McCloud, ME 11, of Birmingham, Ala., on Sept. 3. Senior reactor operator, Southern Co. J. LAMAR REESE JR., IM 55, OF ALBANY, GA., ON DEC. 10.

Reese was a dedicated community leader who devoted his life to service.

After graduating from LaGrange High School in 1951, Reese attended the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he was a member of Chi Phi Fraternity and the Naval ROTC. After graduating with a degree in industrial management, he served for two years in the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant.

In 1957, Reese moved to Albany, Ga., where he started Reese Construction Company and was a founding partner of LRA Constructors. Reese was very active in his community, serving on various boards and organizations including: The Albany Board of Realtors, the Albany Home Builders Association, the Kiwanis Club, SunTrust Bank, Darton College, the Hospital Authority of Albany/Dougherty County and the Albany Chamber of Commerce, where he was awarded the Chamber's first Lifetime Service Award.

Reese was also a devoted alumnus of Georgia Tech. He was a trustee of the Alumni Association, a member of the Scheller College of Business Advisory Board, a recipient of the Dean Griffin Community Service Award and president of the Albany Area Georgia Tech Club.

Reese gave tirelessly of his time and resources to Albany, Dougherty County and the State of Georgia. He served on the Dougherty County Board of Education for 16 years, including 13 years as chairman. He also served as chairman of the Dougherty County Board of Commissioners for four years and was president of the Georgia School Boards Association.

In honor of his service to education, the Dougherty County Board of Education created the Lamar Reese School of the Arts, a magnet school in Albany.

Reese was a longtime, active member and advocate for the Albany YMCA and Porterfield Memorial United Methodist Church, where he served as chairman of the Board of Trustees and the Administrative Board.

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Friends Bette D. Culver, of Austell, Ga., on Dec. 3.

Music teacher, Trinity School and Westminster Schools. Distinguished Service Award, Westminster. Singer, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus. Georgia Tech Faculty Women. Philanthropic Educational Organization. Husband: John Culver, Former senior associate dean of students.

Robert H. “Bob” Cummings Sr., of Nashville, Tenn., on Sept. 4. Marine Corps. WWII. Georgia Tech football player. Most Valuable Lineman, 1944 Sugar Bowl. Georgia Tech assistant football coach. TSSAA Hall of Fame.

Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. Co-founder, Bob Cummings Land Surveyors.

Charles L. “Chuck” Elslander Jr., of Powder Springs, Ga., on Dec. 18.

Jewel Gretzinger, of Plano, Texas, on Dec. 4. Husband: Ralph E. Gretzinger III, AM 70.

Frances B. Head, of Gainesville, Fla., on Jan. 6. High school English, Latin and

Spanish teacher. Co-founder, Oak High School. Feature writer, Gainesville Independent Newspaper. Husband: Robert F. Head Jr., CE 39.

Ronald M. Heckman, of Stone Mountain, Ga., on Dec. 1. Tau Kappa Epsilon Fraternity. Heckman & Associates. Vice president and chief review appraiser, consumer credit risk management, SunTust Bank. Georgia Real Estate Fraud Prevention and Awareness Coalition. Georgia Real Estate Appraisers Board.

Paul F. Jurgensen, of Savannah, Ga., on Oct. 20. Residency, Internal Medicine at St. Louis University Hospitals. Received G.O. Broun Sr. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Internal Medicine. Diplomate, American Board of Internal Medicine and the Subspecialty Board of Infectious Diseases. Navy (Lt. Cmdr.). Fellowship in Infectious diseases, University of Florida College of Medicine. Eisenhower Medical Associates.

Consultant in infectious diseases to the Department of Pathology, Memorial Medical Associates. Chairman, Department of Internal Medicine at Memorial. Established one of the first infection control departments in the United States. Infectious Disease Society of America. Clinical professor of medicine, University of Florida and the Medical College of Georgia. Immunology and genetics professor, Savannah campus of the Mercer College of Medicine. President, Georgia Medical Society. Heroes of Medicine Award and the Doctor John S. Rabun Community Service Award, Medical Society. Jack A. Raines, M.D. Award for Outstanding Humanitarian Service, Medical Association of Georgia. Clinical Preceptor of the Year Award, The South University class of 2015.

Infectious Disease Society of America/Pfizer Fellow in Infectious Diseases, National

Institute of Health. Football physician, Benedictine Military School. Man of the Year in 1980, Benedictine Athletic Association.

Medal of Excellence Award, Benedictine Fathers. Stephen Karopczyk Award for Outstanding Service, Spring Hill College.

Ignatian Award for Outstanding Humanitarian Service. Sons: Paul Jurgensen Jr., Mgt 88; Stephen Jurgensen, Mgt 90.

Rodney D. Ice, of Oklahoma City, Okla., on Oct. 6. Owner, community pharmacy in Lacey. Fellow of the American Pharmaceutical Association. Board Certified Health Physicist. Professor, Temple University, University of Michigan and University of Oklahoma.

Dean, OU College of Pharmacy. Began first nuclear pharmacies in Tulsa and Oklahoma City. Vice president of research, Eagle Picher Industries. Principal research scientist, Georgia Tech. Army Reserve (Col.). Nuclear medicine teacher, Army Medical Corp. Distinguished Alumnus of Purdue University.

William H. Briner Award, American Pharmaceutical Association.

Prasanna V. Kadaba, of Smyrna, Ga., on Dec. 3. Professor, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech. Son: Vaibhav Kadaba, ME 92.

Patricia Monnet Maddux, of Macon, Ga., on Nov. 24. Husband: Richard H. Maddux Sr., IM 43. Sons: Eugene M. Maddux, IM 77, and Richard H. Maddux Jr., Mgt 74.

Director, Georgia Freight Bureau. Vice president and director, The Georgia State Chamber of Commerce. Georgia Tech National Advisory Board. Board of Trustees for Reinhardt Univeristy. President, Atlanta Chapter of the American Institute of Engineers. President, Brookwood Rotary Club and the Rotary Club of Atlanta.

Ruel Russel Jr., of Birmingham, Ala., on Oct. 19. WWII. Army (2nd Lt.). Recipient of honorary doctorate degree, Georgia Tech.

President, Auburn Alumni Association Board of Directors. Executive assistant to the vice president and general manager, U.S. Steel.

Lloyd Nolan Hospital Board of Trustees.

Owner and operator, Atlas Metals, M.O.E. Advanced Floor Systems and R and R Metals. Son: Ruel Russel III, EE 77.

Evelyn K. Vereen, of Cashiers, N.C., on Sept. 10. Gray lady, United States Naval Hospital. Manager of area public relations, Riverside Manufacturing Co. President, Arts Alliance at Moultrie/Colquitt County Arts Center. President, Moultrie/Colquitt County United Way. First chairman, “Day of Caring” for Moultrie/Colquitt County United Way. President’s Award, Moultrie/Colquitt County Chamber of Commerce. Board of Advisors, State Botanical Garden of Georgia. Moultrie/ Colquitt County Woman of the Year. Husband: William J. Vereen, IM 63. Son: Will C. Vereen, Mgt 91.

Joyce M. Moore Murphy, of Columbus, Ga., on Sept. 7. Senior vice president, BellSouth. Georgia Tech Booster Club. Husband: Michael “Murph” Murphy, EE 69, MS Phys 71.

Elizabeth S. Wallace, of Atlanta, on Dec. 9.

President, Randolph-Macon Woman’s College Atlanta Alumnae Chapter. Husband: John W. Wallace, AE 46. Grandson: Stephen W. Johnston, Cls 19.

William O. Riley, of Atlanta, on Dec. 5.

President and CEO, Atlantic Steel Co. Director, American Iron. Director, Steel Institute.

Sarah L. Wight, of Atlanta, on Nov. 4.

Grandfather: Thomas H. Morgan, architect of Tech Tower.

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 95

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100 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | Volume 93 No. 1 2017

BEING

BUZZ Find out what it’s like to step into the Converse high tops of the world’s most famous Yellow Jacket.

BY JON ROSS AND ROGER SLAVENS

PHOTO BY JOSH MEISTER

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 101

BOBBY COOKSON VIVIDLY REMEMBERS New Year’s Eve 2014, a night he spent in Miami, Fla., cheering on the Georgia Tech football team as it outlasted Mississippi State to win the Orange Bowl. Thousands of the Tech faithful screamed their support from the stands, but Cookson was one of the most fanatical, and visible, spectators of them all.

He ran up and down the sidelines, egging on supporters. He shook the hands of countless fans. He performed front-and-center with the cheerleaders. He clowned around with players on the bench. In the end, though, he remained completely anonymous.

Cookson, ME 16, sees that Orange Bowl game as the highlight of the three years he spent playing Buzz, Georgia Tech’s beloved Yellow Jacket mascot. During his career as Buzz, he attended countless games, pep rallies and private events as the anthropomorphic character, but the Orange Bowl still sticks out in his mind for the sheer excitement of the game—as well as the sweltering, South Florida weather.

Being Buzz was fun, but it wasn’t always easy.

“I was in the Miami heat for nine hours in a suit that automatically makes you hotter,” Cookson says. “And you can’t look or act tired because Buzz doesn’t get tired.” The thick, stuffy costume made the temperature, which was a balmy 81 degrees that day, soar to more than 100 degrees.

“I drank countless bottles of water than day,” he says.

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WHILE BUZZ HAS GROWN into an institution in itself—one overseen by both the cheerleading squad and the Georgia Tech Athletic Association’s marketing department—the mascot started out as a completely homegrown effort by Tech students. Over the years, a number of people have donned bee suits and antennae, but it wasn’t until the fall of 1980 that Buzz truly was born.

Then-senior Richie Bland made a short trip out from Tech on I-20 to Six Flags over Georgia to seek advice from the only people he thought could help him design a professional-looking Yellow Jacket costume. After all, the amusement park was full of plush, oversized animals that roamed among the attractions and entertained tourists.

Bland, Phys 81, had been planning an elaborate joke with his Kappa Alpha fraternity brothers that he hoped would serve as a nice memory of his days in college. He had already been accepted into medical school, so his stay at Georgia Tech was coming to an end. The time was right to go big before he “got out.”

The mascot performers at Six Flags directed him to their preferred seamstress, and so Bland, armed with bar-napkin sketches of a massive Yellow Jacket and the requisite $1,400 costume fee—funded in part by the Student Government Association and supported by the Ramblin’ Reck Club—set in motion the creation of a mascot that would change the face of Georgia Tech athletics.

“I kind of did it as a prank,” says Bland, who now

Danny Karnik

practices medicine at the Tanner “I think some of the Tech students Cancer Center in Carrollton, Ga. “I had pulled the tail off the tiger or FROM YELLOW didn’t realize it was going to take off something the year before, so the JACKET TO from there.”

Auburn students were going to kill The early costume—which conBuzz,” Bland says. “I’m sure it was a IMPISH INSECT sisted of a bright yellow foam head, harmless prank, but Institute offia chest piece and thick, two-inchcials were not going to let me attend GEORGIA TECH’S NICKNAME rubber tail, all of which weighed that game.” didn’t originate with the buzzing bug, around 25 pounds—no longer exbut rather the penchant for fans of ists. Sometime in the early 1980s, IN THE NASCENT DAYS of Buzz, the masTech to wear yellow sports jackets to when the Institute needed to recot’s guidelines were mainly up to its football games to show their support place the threadbare costume with creator. Without much structure, the for the team. At the time, gold fabric two new outfits, the original plush university let Bland create his own was expensive and rather rare, so was dissected to create a blueprint way of doing things. Though he said yellow was the next closest for the next-generation Buzzes. And he went to NCAA cheerleading camp substitute and was also widely used when the new uniforms were comthat year, most of the time when he on early Tech sports jerseys.

In 1905, Tech football coach John pleted, the old bits of Buzz were went out on the field or the court, he Heisman declared that he and his thrown away. just tried to act as zany as possible. boys wanted to be officially known Bland still regrets not trying There was one rule, however. as the Yellow Jackets rather than harder to save that original Buzz “They never wanted anybody the Techs or the Engineers or the costume. He also wishes someone to see that there was a real person Blacksmiths. The name stuck, and had captured video of his perforgetting into the costume,” he resoon after, the Atlanta newspapers mances. Black Converse shoes and members. “They wanted it to be an began publishing cartoon images of a stack of old photos remain the insect—a character—and not an a yellow jacket—often stinging the only tangible evidence of his yearindividual.” opposition’s players—to represent long stint entertaining crowds all Typically during the course of a Tech teams. over campus. But he has plenty of school year, several Georgia Tech stuThe first Buzz mascot created in memories. dents share the duties of Buzz. And 1980 closely resembles today’s Bland fondly recalls introducing they are male and female and come Buzz, who has human arms and Buzz to the public during halftime from a variety of backgrounds and legs, as well as a huge head and of Georgia Tech’s game against the skills. big eyes.

Florida Gators in September 1980.

Erin (Kerr) Lovelace, ME 06, was “I hid the costume in the janitor’s the second woman ever to play Buzz. closet and went down at halftime to “I’m a third-generation Yellow Jackput it on, and then I ran out on the field,” he says. “I actuet and I grew up going to almost every Tech football ally got escorted off.” game with my dad,” she says. “I spent games following After that initial, unsanctioned jog around the field, Buzz around with my binoculars. From the time I was old Tech officials asked Bland to lay low for a while. They liked enough to realize [there was a person inside the mascot the idea of the mascot, but explained that proper procecostume], I wanted to be one of them.” dures needed to be followed. Bland soon re-emerged with Lovelace’s first tryout her second year at Tech, she says, the Institute’s blessing, cementing Buzz as an iconic coundid not turn out well. “It was clear that no one thought a terpart to the Ramblin’ Wreck, the 1930 Ford Model A that 5-foot-1-inch silly little girl had a chance, and after the tryhas led the football team onto the field since the 1960s. out, I thought the dream was over,” she says.

For the rest of the year, Bland inhabited Buzz for nearly But then at a Georgia Tech banquet later that year, she every game, pep rally and event, dressing in secret so that had the honor of meeting Susan Davis, ABio 91, the first nobody knew who was inside the suit. (and, at the time, only) female Buzz. “She was a legend to However, again, being Buzz was fun, but it wasn’t alme, and so positive and encouraging that I went back to ways easy. tryouts the next year,” Lovelace says.

Bland had to sit out a football game against Auburn due The second time was the charm, and soon she went into to a death threat against Buzz. As Bland was getting on the training to become Tech’s feisty mascot. “My fellow Buzzbus for the jaunt across state lines, a few police officers es at the time quickly taught me that being athletic and pulled him aside. Because of security concerns, officials energetic wasn’t enough,” she says. “I had to practice for weren’t about to let Bland set foot in that stadium. hours to become a believable Buzz, and then to make sure

Scott Dinerman

GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | 103

Since 1980, dozens of Tech students have climbed into the Buzz mascot costume, which has undergone some changes over the decades since but remains unmistakable.

all our walks and movements matched. I even contributed a ridiculous new move—the Buzz handstand pushup.

And the guys learned it, too. I don’t know how long it lasted, but it was fun at the time.”

Playing Buzz and staying focused on her academics was never an issue for Lovelace, who says that’s simply what she always expected of being a Yellow Jacket. “Buzz never affected my grades. Sports and extracurricular activities should never be an excuse for poor classroom performance,” she says. “But likewise, rigorous classes should never be an excuse for not being involved in campus

activities. The Georgia Tech experience isn’t just about earning the degree, but also about all the traditions and life lessons that come with it.”

Lovelace says she’s carried that Buzz mentality into her life after “getting out” of Tech. “I live just like I ‘Buzzed’—I work hard and play big and leave nothing on the table,” she says. “I even went on to marry another college mascot, though not another Buzz. I married one of the original Knightros from the University of Central Florida. Life is never boring.”

Her most cherished memories of putting on the Yellow Jacket costume circle back to what she first experienced

MASCOT MAXIMS TO PLAY TECH’S YELLOW JACKET MASCOT TO A “T,” you have to follow these five key rules: 1. Buzz always wears black Converse high tops and white gloves.

2. Buzz never stops moving—he is always full of energy. You should never see Buzz standing still (and even if he pauses for a moment, he’s tapping his foot or moving his hands).

104 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | Volume 93 No. 1 2017

3. Buzz is mischievous and always getting into trouble— messing with fans, stealing their hats or sunglasses, taking selfies with someone else’s phone.

4. Buzz keeps his or her identity secret for as long as each student plays the role. At commencement, graduating Buzzes are carried across the stage by a current Buzz (in

costume), thus revealing their identities.

5. Buzz is never at two places at once, even though multiple students may play him on a given day.

Dressing in surreptitious locations —securing foam armor over a base-layer of compression shorts and a T-shirt—and hiding your identity from even close friends is all part of the job, Cookson says. in the stands of Bobby Dodd Stadium as a child. “All I ever wanted to do was make those magical moments for other kids who came to Tech football games with their dads, but who really came just to see Buzz,” Lovelace says.

THE QUALIFICATIONS for playing Buzz are laid out even before students sign on to become the character. In tryouts, the cheerleading coach judges candidates on a 90-second improvised skit, how they respond to hypothetical situations and, most important, how well they can keep a secret.

Dressing in surreptitious locations—securing foam armor over a base-layer of compression shorts and a T-shirt—and hiding your identity from even close friends is all part of the job, Cookson says.

The only people who know the men and women under the suit are the cheerleaders and the Athletics’ marketing department.

The public has to wait until each performer “gets out” of Tech for an official unveiling. At commencement, each graduating Buzz is carried across the stage by a costumed Buzz, an unmasking ritual that has become yet another impish Tech tradition.

In the midst of all this secrecy, there’s plenty of activity. Buzz performers routinely awake at 5 a.m.

to get ready for morning cheer workouts, Cookson says, emphasizing that juggling classes with portraying Buzz can be a challenge.

And every semester is crammed with games and campus events that demand Buzz’s presence. The Institute does offer students a scholarship for being the Yellow Jacket mascot, but this money is simply a nice perk and not the motivation for becoming Buzz.

For Cookson, just like Lovelace, the job was the pinnacle of a lifetime being around Georgia Tech.

“I’ve been a Georgia Tech fan my entire life,” he says. “My dad went to Georgia Tech in the 1980s, my sister just graduated with her PhD—we’re a Tech family.”

Previous performers have used their Buzz experience as a conversation point on resumes, but for Cookson, his time in the costume has driven his post-college career.

Cookson is a professional circus performer who teaches at Akrosphere, an aerial and circus arts training ground in Alpharetta.

“I joined cheerleading because of Buzz, which in turn helped me with tumbling, which in turn helped out my circus career,” Cookson says.

“And it made me work and develop a group of friends that I really didn’t have as much my freshman year at Tech. It was a huge opportunity that helped me experience a fulfilling college career.”

Time Machine 5 YEARS AGO, IN 2012, the former Georgia Tech College of Management becomes the Scheller College of Business after a $50 million dollar gift from Ernest Scheller Jr. •

10 YEARS AGO, IN 2007, Tech’s Library and Information Center receives the 2007 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award.

•

25 YEARS AGO, IN 1992, before a national TV audience, a debate among U.S. vice presidential candidates is held at the Ferst Center for the Arts. It is only the second such debate in U.S. history.

•

50 YEARS AGO, IN 1967, Bobby Dodd retires as head football coach but remains Tech’s athletics director. During his 22 years as coach, Dodd’s teams won 165 games, lost 64, and tied eight.

His Jackets played in 13 bowl games, winning nine of them.

100 YEARS AGO, IN 1917, the entire freshman class is in uniform for World War I. 125 YEARS AGO, IN 1892, Tech fields its first football team, which suffers a 12-0 defeat at the hands of Mercer University in Macon.

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 105

BACK PAGE

Windows to a Tech Mystery MOST YELLOW JACKETS might not be aware that Tech Tower—likely the most recognizable icon of the Institute—and the entire Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans Administration Building have been under renovation for several months.

As the project wraps up this spring, the Georgia Tech Capital Planning and Facilities staff is reviewing several interior facets of the historical building for the next phase of improvements, which will involve replacing exterior doors and windows.

You may also be unaware that originally, Tech Tower contained a large, open chapel with floor-toceiling windows. We know from

historical photos that these windows included stained glass in a checkerboard pattern.

During the next phase of renovations, Tech officials plan to restore these windows as closely as possible to their original style, color and materials. The problem is, the original windows were removed during a previous round of renovations, and there are no known color photographs or remaining pieces of stained glass.

Georgia Tech staff is hoping to locate any pieces from the original windows that might be out there for analysis and documentation on this future effort.

So the question for Tech alumni

106 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | Volume 93 No. 1 2017

and friends is: Do any of you know where we might be able to find one or more of these windows? Tech staff believe some of the windows may have been been given away or taken from the construction debris for posterity’s sake. If not, do you have photographs or any special knowledge of these windows?

Anyone who might be able to help solve this architectural mystery should contact Georgia Tech Architect Linda M. Daniels by phone at (404) 862-6224 or email at Linda.

Daniels@cpsm.gatech.edu.

The Alumni Magazine will be sure to let you know if and when this case is closed!

FIND OUT WHERE THEY LANDED

Now that you’ve “got out,” are you curious where your classmates have taken their careers?

At the re-engineered GTALUMNI.ORG, you can find out. Connect with fellow Yellow Jackets on social, professional, and intellectual levels like never before.

• Network with alumni in your area or profession • Sign up for alumni events near you • Take advantage of professional development services • Search the Alumni database Email us for your personalized registration link at webregistration@gtalumni.org for access to all this and more.

Then go to gtalumni.org/profile to update your profile so we know how to reach you.

Volume 93 No. 1 2017 | GTALUMNI.ORG/MAGAZINE | 107

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