Classnotes

1940s

Warren Spitz
(ARCH ’42, M.S. CRP ’68), Northbrook, Ill., at 93-plus years old, is the oldest licensed architect in the state of Illinois.

Leonard J. Petraitis

Sharon and Leonard Petraitis
Sharon and Leonard Petraitis
(EE ’48, UNK ’55), Pittsboro, N.C., and his wife, Sharon, recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. The couple has three children, including Paul Petraitis (DSGN ’71), a popular Chicago blues guitarist. Leonard Petraitis has an older brother, Albert Petraitis (EE ’35), who is a centenarian living in San Diego.


1950s

Melvin Friedlander
(ME ’50), Sun City, Calif., is attending Cal State University, San Bernardino, going for a master’s degree in education.
He is nearly 92 years old and
may be the oldest graduate of that university.

Ted Erikson
(CHE ’52, M.S. CHEM ’59), Chicago, who graduated from Chicago’s South Shore High School, attended, having been a “one semester” pupil, his 70th Big Sandy High School reunion in Big Sandy, Mont., (population, approximately 500) in June.

Roy Grundy
(IE ’52), Naperville, Ill., is enjoying his life in the western suburb of Chicago, where he has resided for 53 years. Grundy went on to earn a doctorate, and taught management and marketing at the College of DuPage for 23 years before retiring. Drawing on his IIT ROTC experience and his three-year tour of duty on the USS Baltimore heavy cruiser, Grundy led his ship’s reunion in May in Washington, D.C.


1960s

John LaPlante
(CE ’61), Chicago, works part time, mostly leading workshops on pedestrian and bicycle safety, and Complete Streets design.

Karl Klessig
(PHYS ’63), Westlake Village, Calif., recently moved full-time to Santa Fe, N.M., which has been his second home. He is the retired chairman of the New West Symphony of southern California. He was named a Paul Harris Fellow by Rotary International for service to
the community.

David Rogers
(M.S. EE ’64), Fargo, N.D., taught in Brazil until 1980 and then relocated to North Dakota, where he is still a professor. He and his wife, Darlene, have been married for 50 years. She is an active volunteer, and the couple is very involved in their church. They have one son, Steve.

Fred Weil
(PS ’64), San Francisco, is in his 47th year of practicing law. His primary areas of practice are taxation and corporate matters. He is serving his 12th year as an elected member of the Moraga-Orinda Fire District Board of Directors and his 33rd year overall in elected local public offices. He has three children and five grandchildren.

Barbara Crane
(M.S. DSGN ’66), Chicago, was presented the second annual Silver Camera Award by the Museum of Contemporary Photography. The Silver Camera Award honors those who have made significant contributions to the medium of photography.

Kathleen Thorne-Thomsen
(DSGN ’67), Santa Fe, N.M., children’s author, was interviewed on NPR’s “Take Two” in Los Angeles in February.

Richard Oracheff
(EE ’68), Glendale, Ariz., started working with Paragon Transportation, in Phoenix, as an engineer.

Thomas Vaughan
(MATH ’69), Shelby Charter Township, Mich., retired from Blue Cross Blue Shield and worked for Compuware until he fully retired in 2009. He and his wife have two children and three granddaughters.

Daniel Weeks
(DSGN ’69), Perrysburg, Ohio, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Advertising Federation, Toledo, Ohio chapter. The award is given once yearly to a member who has proven a high level of creativity, contributed to the advertising and design community, and been active in civic, religious, or other groups dedicated to human or social welfare.


1970s

Clark Kimberling
(Ph.D. MATH ’70), Evansville, Ind., and his wife, Margaret, have lived in Evansville since 1970. Kimberling still teaches and does some research, working primarily on the Encyclopedia of Triangle Centers, now in its 17th year. He and his wife have three children and four grandchildren.

Manu Vora
(M.S. CHE ’70, Ph.D. ’75), Naperville, Ill., was honored by the American Society for Quality with the 2015 Ishikawa Medal for his “extraordinary commitment to teams in corporate, academic, professional, and philanthropic domains.” Vora received the award on May 3 at the World Conference on Quality and Improvement in Nashville, Tenn.

Alexander Kovnat
(MAE ’71), West Bloomfield Township, Mich., still works at the U.S. Army Tank–Automotive Command. He and his wife, Diana, have been married since 1981; they have two sons and one grandson. Kovnat’s father (IIT class of 1948) is now 93 and lives in Northbrook, Ill.

Edward Resner

Edward Resner

(CE ’71), Spring Grove, Ill., entered the creative writing profession after retirement. He has two books on Amazon and the Barnes & Noble websites. His novel is Three Eddies, and he also wrote the short storybook Remembrances.

 

Robert Close
(CE ’72, M.B.A ’76), El Toro, Calif., joined CDM Smith as client service leader for transportation clients in California and Arizona. In his new role, he will provide leadership for CDM Smith services to clients within these markets and support the firm’s overall transportation growth initiatives.

Steve Bellinger
(PSYC ’73), Chicago, wrote the sci-fi time-travel novel The Chronocar. Most of the action takes place in Bronzeville in 2015 and 1919. The main character of the story is an IIT student, and there is a brief scene that takes place in front of Armour Institute in 1919. The book was released in May 2015.

Roger Flynn
(M.S. CST ’73), Pittsburgh, Pa., moved to Pittsburgh after IIT with his wife, Ida. Both taught at the University of Pittsburgh. Ida passed away in 2004.

John Meinke
(M.S. CS ’75), Walton, N.Y., retired from the University of Maryland University College Europe (Germany) in September 2014. He splits his time between Walton, N.Y., and Oftersheim, Germany.

Federico Vidargas
(M.A.S. ARCH ’76), Evanston, Ill., is currently vice president and director of design at Beame Architectural Partnership in Miami. He is a former IIT trustee, IIT Alumni Association president, and recipient of the 2008 IIT Global Service Award.

William Schmalz
(ARCH ’77), West Hollywood, Calif., was elevated to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects in January 2015.

Richard Shreve
(Ph.D. BE ’78), Boynton Beach, Fla., has been named Chemistry Cluster Chair for the next academic year at Palm Beach State College.

Amy Segami
(ME ’79, M.S. ’82), Chicago, had her art exhibited at the Evanston Public Library. The exhibit, Frozen Dreams: Contemporary Suminagashi Paintings by Amy Lee Segami, took place from February through March 2015.


1980s

Rudolf Balciunas
(MAE ’80), Houston, is with NASA Johnson Space Center, serving in technical management for the Engineering Directorate. He and his wife, Rita, have been married for 30 years. They have six children and two grandchildren.

Edward Monser

Edward Monser

(EE ’81), St. Louis, an IIT trustee and president of Emerson, yielded the hammer at the closing bell of the NYSE on February 19, 2015 in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the founding of Emerson.

Krandel Newton
(ME ’81), Cedar Hill, Texas, appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” recently. “The Original Butt Sketch Artist,” Newton had been invited to set up his easel outside the Los Angeles TV studio, draw the derrieres of passers-by on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and chat a couple of times with the late-night host.

Max Willig
(ARCH ’81), Buffalo, N.Y., celebrates 27 years in private practice, having established Max Willig Architect in 1988. He recently completed an eight-year term as an officer and member of the board of directors of the Grant-Amherst Business Association, spearheading the rejuvenation of historic Black Rock, one of Buffalo’s oldest neighborhoods. He is the co-chair of the Community Advisory Group, providing community input into the planning, reuse, and restoration of the Richardson Olmsted Complex, a National Historic Landmark.

Judy Langston
(M.S. PHOT ’82), Park Ridge, Ill., recently had her work published in the book Carte Postale: The Postcard Art of PACE by the Curt Teich Postcard Archives, part of the Lake County Discovery Museum.

Sherrie Littlejohn
(M.S. CS ’82), San Francisco, an IIT trustee and IIT Alumni Association Board member, has been named the head of technology strategy and innovation at Wells Fargo Bank. In this role, she will be responsible for leading enterprise-level technology planning, strategy development and innovation, and transition services.

Kurt Hoigard
(CE ’84, M.S. ’85), La Grange, Ill., was named president of Raths, Raths & Johnson, Inc., a national engineering, architecture, and forensics consulting firm. For the prior 29 years he served as an engineer and principal of the firm.

Richard Peterson
(M.S. CHEM ’84), Naperville, Ill., is a senior marketing manager at Nalco, an Ecolab Company.

George Phillips-Sorich
(ARCH ’86), Kenilworth, Ill., joined NORR in its Chicago
office as principal to further develop the firm’s growing portfolio of regional and
national clients.

Victor Guarino
(ME ’87, M.S. ’88, M.A.S. STE ’10), Oak Park, Ill., is the treasurer of the Park District of Oak Park.

Joseph Koblich
(BA ’88), Downers Grove, Ill., served on the organizing committee for the first IEEE Hack Chicago Challenge in fall 2014, for which the first-place finishers for both the collegiate and professional categories were affiliated with IIT.

Robert Parks
(EE ’88), Wood Dale, Ill., was elected as an associate member of the American Society of Enology and Viticulture in September 2012. He earned a graduate certificate in enology and viticulture from the University of California, Davis Extension in December 2013.

Debra Grymkoski
(M.S. BIOL ’89), Beulah, Colo., is an adjunct professor at Pueblo Community College and Adams State University, teaching microbiology, anatomy and physiology, and epidemiology. She was nominated for part-time instructor of the year for the third consecutive year.

Torrance Ly
(EE ’89), Forest Park, Ill., is owner of the restaurant LC Pho in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Chicago, as
well as Lee Concessions.

Sagar Patel
(EE ’89), Katy, Texas, joined Merichem Company as sales director for the Merichem Gas Technologies business unit. His responsibilities include the global leadership for all sales and business development activities in support of the LO-CAT hydrogen sulfide removal technology.

Sudesh Saraf
(M.S. ME ’89), Aurora, Ill.,
was promoted to vice president at Wight & Company and will continue to serve as director
of MEP Engineering, a position he has held for five years.


1990s

Anita Burke
(ME ’90), West Bloomfield, Mich., chief engineer for GM, was featured in an interview in Truck Trend in January 2015.

Seung-Hyeon Moon

Seung-Hyeon Moon
(Ph.D. CHE ’90), Gwangju, Republic of Korea, was inaugurated as president of Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology. He joined the faculty of GIST in 1994 and served as vice president and as acting president in 2006–08.

Frank Naeymi-Rad
(Ph.D. CS ’90), Libertyville, Ill., is chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Intelligent Medical Objects, which was cited by Chicago Tribune as one of the best small companies to work for. In addition, he was profiled on
the website of the American Medical Informatics Association.

Mohan Srinivasan
(M.A.S. ARCH ’90), Wilmette, Ill., was promoted to principal at NORR. Srinivasan currently manages numerous hospitality and multifamily residential projects in the U.S.

Scott Conwell
(ARCH ’91), Naperville, Ill., was elected to the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows. As director of industry development with International Masonry Institute, Conwell has equipped thousands of architects with the knowledge and
tools to design high-performing buildings in brick, tile, and stone.

Ronald Nordmeyer
(CE ’91), Brookfield, Ill., was named as a new Clark Dietz shareholder.

Jeffrey S. Graves
(ME ’92), Chicago, is partner and principal, along with Paulo Hernandez (EE ’02, M.B.A. ’06), in the engineering firm MEP Infrastructure Solutions, Inc., which was established in 2010 and works primarily in the health care and higher education markets.

Marjorie Pries
(ACCT ’92), Chicago, was a volunteer for the Jesus “Chuy” Garcia campaign for Chicago mayor.

Mia Snyder
(BA ’92), Washington, D.C., was selected for membership in Stanford Who’s Who in 2012.

Muzaffer Aydemir
(M.B.A. OM ’96), Bilecik, Turkey, is a full-time professor at Yildiz Technical University in Istanbul.

Steven Nargang

Steven Nargang

(ME ’96), Oak Brook, Ill., president of the IIT Chicagoland Alumni Chapter, recently took eight Armour College of Engineering students for individual flights in a two-seater aircraft. Nargang rented the plane and donated his time. He plans to take a few more students flying this summer.

Rishi Bharadwaj
(EE ’96, M.A.S. ECE ’99, CER WIRE ’99), Schaumburg, Ill., was promoted to vice president and general manager of connected solutions at PCTEL, Inc.

Mohammad-Reza
Mostofi-Ashtiani
(M.A.S. CHE ’98, Ph.D. ’02), Naperville, Ill., is serving as the AIChE Particle Technology Forum chair. He will chair the Societal Impact Operating Council from 2016.

Christiana Lawson
(M.S. EM ’99), Naperville, Ill., just returned to the United States after 10 years abroad in Singapore and China, where she worked on sustainability education and policy at Beijing Normal University.


2000s

Heather Weaver
(PPPS ’00), Lansdale, Pa., completed her first year in a new job at Philadelphia University as associate director of student engagement for first-year programs. She also will be completing a three-year assignment as the director of cadet programs for the Pennsylvania Wing Civil Air Patrol in September 2015 and moving on to Group Command.

Akram Abouzied
(Ph.D. BIOL ’02), Jersey City, N.J., coauthered a published paper in the International Journal of Stem Cells called “Biochemical and Parasitological Studies on the Effect of hUCB-Selected CD34+ Progenitor/Stem Cells in Mice Infected with Schistosoma mansoni.”

Paulo Hernandez
(EE ’02, M.B.A. ’06), Chicago, is partner and principal, along with Jeffrey S. Graves (ME ’92), in the engineering firm MEP Infrastructure Solutions, Inc., which was established in 2010 and works primarily in the health care and higher education markets.

Harish Kumar
(M.S. CPE ’02), Chennai, India, has worked at reputed IT companies in India.

Matthew Munson
(AE ’02), Aberdeen Proving Ground, M.D., was assigned as the Fluid Dynamics Program manager at the U.S. Army Research Office. He will manage funds to support extramural basic research aligned with U.S. Army science and technology development efforts. He and his wife, Rebecca (ARCH ’06), and their two children will be located in Durham, N.C.

Natalie Gandhi
(M.S. FM ’04), Montville, N.J., spoke at the XVII North American Zoroastrian Congress last December in Los Angeles.

Kamran Jawaid
(M.A.S. CS ’05), Murphy, Texas, is a product manager of marketing at Cisco Systems.

Yared Akalou
(MDS DSGN ’06), Houston, co-founded Opening.Co, a service that helps companies evaluate candidates to make more informed hiring decisions.

Colleen Platt
(M.A.S. BIOL ’06, LAW ’06), Carson City, Nev., works at the Nevada Attorney General’s Office representing numerous state agencies and state licensing boards. She has four children.

Floriann Stankovich
(BME ’06) and George Skountrianos (AMAT ’07), Chicago, were married in Chicago in September 2014.

Daniel Geers
(M.A.S. STE ’08), Powell, Ohio, was named as the new president of Jezerinac Geers & Associates in early January, 34 years after his father co-founded the firm.

Kristine Angell
(M.S.D.M. DSGN ’09, M.B.A. ’13), San Diego, was awarded a contract with the City of San Diego to do community engagement for the redesign of sandiego.gov. The new website will be launched spring 2016. She started Hopscotch Labs in 2014 to help companies innovate through consumer engagement.


2010s

Elisa Rodriguez
(LAW ’09, M.P.A. ’10), Chicago, is a partner at Rodriguez & Flores-Szeto LLC.

Jill Haagenson
(M.S.D.M. DSGN ’10), Chicago, started her own branding business, QITE Design, which specializes in startups and entrepreneurs.

Matthew Aquino
(CER CMGT ’11), Chicago, was promoted to vice president at Wight & Company. Aquino has served as director of structural engineering for Wight & Company since 2010 and will continue in that role.

Divya Kasuladev

Divya Kasuladev
(M.A.S. ITM '11), Lincolnshire, Ill., [back, left to right] and fellow W. W. Grainger, Inc. employees Lama Abu-Amara (CPE '14), Chicago, and Neelansha Singh (M.S. CS '14), Lake Forest, Ill., visited the IIT Department of Computer Science on May 1 and met with Eunice Santos, Ron Hochsprung Endowed Chair in Computer Science [front].

Joshua Bradley
(CE ’11, M.A.S. CM ’13), Chicago, is a superintendent at Turner Construction Company.

Elizabeth Miller-Lisy
(MCH ACHM ’11), Hilliard, Ohio, married Tim Patrick in December 2014.

Ashwitha Krishna Kumar
(M.S. EE ’12), Houston, is a hardware engineer at IBM. Kumar was one of the authors for a patent filed by the IBM team.

Rachel Brady
(LAW ’13), Chicago, is the recipient of a 2015 Skadden Fellowship. Established in 1988 by the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, the prestigious two-year fellowship supports graduating law students and judicial clerks who wish to pursue public interest work.

Anne Brask
(ARCH ’13), San Francisco, works as a city planner/urban designer at the San Francisco Planning Department.

Zändra Chisolm-El
(M.A.S. CHEM ’13), Chicago, is a nuclear chemist at Siemens, in Des Plaines.

Renee Kuruc
(M.S. EMS ’13), Overland Park, Kan., recently joined the Environmental Services and Permitting Group of Burns & McDonnell as a project manager, focusing on environmental documentation for transportation projects.

Kelly Lohr
(MSE ’13), Providence, R.I., is admissions assistant at Rhode Island School of Design.

Nikita Troufanov
(ARCH ’13), Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., is a computational designer for Nike’s Innovation Team.

Sultan Felemban
(M.B.A. BASX ’14), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, works at a bank affiliated with Credit Agricole CIB.

Marriyam Qureshi
(EE ’14), Chicago, started an entrepreneurial, e-commerce-based project while living in MSV at IIT and now runs this enterprise in six different countries. Now known as MQ Enterprises, the company runs on a partnership model with Apple, Microsoft, Best Buy, Gap, Forever 21, Macy’s, and more.

Maya Embar (ITM ’15, M.A.S. ’15) and Bill Wesselman (ITM ’15, MAS CYF ’15), Wheaton, Ill., are engaged.