SRU kicks off Engineering Guest Speaker Series Sept. 26
The Slippery Rock University Department of Physics and Engineering is hosting an Engineering Guest Speaker Series, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Sept. 26, Oct. 3, Oct. 15 and Oct. 17, in Vincent Science Center, Room 116.
Sept. 24, 2019
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. -- The Slippery Rock University Department of Physics and Engineering is hosting an Engineering Guest Speaker Series 12:30-1:30 p.m., Sept. 26, Oct. 3, Oct. 15 and Oct. 17, in Vincent Science Center, Room 116. Four engineering professionals will present guest lectures. All the presentations are free and open to the public.
"The purpose is not meant to be a deep, technical presentation about a topic, but rather having the professional engineers talk about career opportunities and the types of exciting projects they are working on," said Xinchao "Steven" Wei, professor of physics and engineering and engineering program director. "We are a community that cares about students' success and opportunities like this provide our faculty and students a chance to engage with professionals in the field. These lectures demonstrate how we are grounded in industry practices and not just focusing on theoretical practices and lectures in the classroom."
Although SRU's engineering program is only in its fourth year, there are SRU alumni who graduated from other programs who are working in engineering professions. For example, Jonathan Shimko, senior project manager for McKim & Creed, graduated from SRU in 2003 with a degree in environmental science. Sept. 26, Shimko will present, "An Engineering Journey: It Never Goes Quite as Planned." He will reflect on his personal career path in civil engineering and highlight projects he is working at McKim & Creed, an engineering, planning and geomatics firm based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Currently the president-elect of the Pittsburgh Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Shimko has overseen the design, construction and operations of several water treatment facilities around the world.
SHIMKO
Wei said that all of the Engineering Speaker Series presentations would be 45 minutes followed by a 15-minute question-and-answer session.
"This will give our students an opportunity to ask questions about finding jobs, the typical salaries and career opportunities in our region," Wei said. "These presentations will help the students build a stronger commitment to studying engineering."
The other three presenters and topics include:
• Oct. 3 -- Thomas Anderson, manager at Swindell Dressler and founder of Engineer Your Career (mechanical engineering).
• Oct. 15 -- Todd Carpenter, manager at FedEx, Pittsburgh Headquarters (industrial engineering).
• Oct. 17 -- Evan Olszak, professional engineer from CNX Resources (petroleum engineering).
For more information about the Engineering Speaker Series, contact Wei at: 724.738.2427 or steven.wei@sru.edu. For more information about the engineering program at SRU, click here.
MEDIA CONTACT: Justin Zackal | 724.738.4854 | justin.zackal@sru.edu