alumni awards

Video: Sanjeev Redkar, Distinguished Engineering Alumni award recipient

Anonymous — Wed, 15 May 2024 15:22:40 +0000

Video: Sanjeev Redkar, Distinguished Engineering Alumni award recipient Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 05/15/2024 - 09:22

The College of Engineering & Applied Science honors outstanding alumni every year at the Distinguished Engineering Alumni Awards Banquet, which took place this year on April 26.

At the banquet, Sanjeev Redkar (PhD ChemEngr’94) was presented with the 2024 Distinguished Engineering Alumni award for his strong commitment to giving back to his community and teaching the next generation of leaders and entrepreneurs, promoting innovation along the way. Redkar continues to be a loyal and engaged alumnus of chemical and biological engineering and the college, and his accomplishments as a scientist, manager and entrepreneur in pharmaceuticals has and will continue to leave major impacts in the industry.

"This recognition from the College of Engineering and Applied Science means a lot," said Redkar, the president, executive director and cofounder of Apollomics Inc. "My five years at CU have really molded me, gave me the values, the skills that have come steady in my entrepreneurial journey, my pursuit of developing new medicines for cancer. It’s a long journey, indeed, but everything started with the right kind of education and the programs here at CU."

Apollomics Inc. is an oncology-focused company developing therapeutics for difficult-to-treat cancers, harnessing the immune system and targeting specific molecular pathways.

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Sanjeev Redkar (PhD ChemEngr’94) received the 2024 Distinguished Engineering Alumni award for his commitment to community service and educating future leaders and entrepreneurs while promoting innovation.

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2024 Distinguished Alumni Mentor of the Year Award: Ben Mousseau

Anonymous — Wed, 01 May 2024 18:09:49 +0000

2024 Distinguished Alumni Mentor of the Year Award: Ben Mousseau Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 05/01/2024 - 12:09

Susan Glairon

Throughout college and in the eight years since graduation, Ben Mousseau (ChemBio’16) has felt grateful for the mentors who guided him. Now a global supply manager at Tesla, Mousseau has been giving back to ��񱦵�’s Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering (ChBE) since 2019 by mentoring students through the department’s Alumni Student Mentor Program (ASMP).

This year Mousseau was honored with the 2024 Distinguished Alumni Mentor of the Year Award for his work with ChBE sophomore, Aslan DeWitt.

“I am very thankful for this award," Mousseau said. “I'm glad that I have been able to make an impact, and I’m always open to having discussions with other students.”

Each semester, the department facilitates connections between alumni and current students through its mentoring program. Students and their mentors meet several times over the semester to discuss professionalism, career advancement and perspectives on engineering.

DeWitt described Mousseau as a “phenomenal” mentor.

“Ben provides advice on a diverse range of topics and supports me through many opportunities," he said. “He is always open to answering my endless questions with a great deal of experience and patience.”

Dewitt also highlighted a tour of a Fresca Foods production line, arranged by Mousseau and led by ��񱦵� ChBE alumnus, Ryan Maes (ChemBio’16). Fresca Foods is a manufacturing plant in Louisville, Colorado that produces juice, granola bars, crackers and cereal.

“It was extremely interesting to learn more about the potential career paths in chemical engineering and the problem solving involved,” DeWitt said. “I've gained insights into the possible avenues that chemical engineering can lead to.”

Mousseau answered several questions about his experience and the insights he gained as a mentor.

Do you currently utilize chemical engineering in your work?

After working as a process engineer at Corning, I have transitioned more towards a supply chain management role at Tesla over the last two years, moving away from day-to-day chemical engineering tasks. While I am not writing as many process development plans or conducting experiments, my work still involves chemical engineering. In my current role, we focus on new technologies and products related to glass, including specialty processes such as chemically-strengthened glass. The work involves understanding the ion exchange process and understanding the different coating layers. So although I am not performing chemical engineering tasks daily, my role remains heavily focused on chemical engineering principles applied to our products.

What motivated you to become a mentor for the ChBE department?

After college, I was fortunate to have really good managers and excellent mentors in and outside of the companies I worked for. As a mentor, I want to offer the same level of support and guidance to students, including discussing the various engineering career paths, recommending classes based on the student’s interests and addressing other areas that may not be fully covered during school.

What do you hope to impart to the next generation of chemical and biological engineers?

As a mentor, I hope to provide students with a better understanding of career opportunities. CU has an amazing chemical and biological engineering program. As I work with chemical engineers across my career, I believe CU has one of the best programs in the country. It can be difficult, however, for students to understand how some of the classes correlate to different job opportunities. I hope to provide students with insight to internships and to help them explore the different career paths for chemical engineers.

Also, chemical engineering is a lot of work. I want to emphasize with students the rewards of completing the degree — the interesting work and opportunities that come with it. Additionally, I want to offer advice on effective communication and job interview preparation, the soft skills you learn over time. I want to share some of the lessons I learned with them.

How has the engineering and professional world changed since you graduated, and what new challenges do you see up-and-coming engineers facing?

In the eight years since I graduated, instant communication has progressed, and there is definitely more of a global collaboration across different companies.

Today’s pace of work demands quicker solutions, and it can be challenging to meet the expectations of non-engineers who often expect rapid answers. So being able to understand and prioritize projects to meet your goals and the organization’s goals is more challenging now than eight years ago.

What are some things you’ve learned from your students as a mentor?

I always enjoy catching up on CU’s research. What happens in the labs provides insights into potential technology or products. Understanding cutting-edge research or ideas is always interesting, and I enjoy getting feedback from CU students on these topics.

How would you pitch your fellow alumni on becoming mentors?

I have encouraged my friends to mentor because I find mentoring very rewarding. I’m very grateful for the opportunities I have had, and I believe in helping students set themselves up for success.

I ask my friends to think back on their own experiences, when we were juniors or seniors entering the workforce and had no clue what to expect from our first jobs. While everyone takes the same courses, we didn’t understand the range of career opportunities. Sharing insights on different paths—like quality engineering versus process engineering—can be very helpful for students. If we had received more mentoring or advice back then, it would have provided us with better clarity.

Many of my friends changed jobs within the first year or two after graduation because their chosen career path wasn’t what they thought it would be. Having feedback before committing to a career path could have been beneficial.

ChBE’s Alumni Student Mentoring Program is very good, and I hope to see it continue to grow among both students and mentors.

Chemical and biological engineering alumni interested in becoming mentors can fill out this short form. Current ChBE students seeking a mentor can use this form. Mentor/mentee matches are arranged during the fall semesters.

Ben Mousseau (ChemBio’16) is grateful for the mentors who guided him. Now a global supply manager at Tesla, Mousseau has been giving back to the ChBE department by mentoring students through the department’s Alumni Student Mentor Program.

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2024 Distinguished Alumni Mentor of the Year Award: Ben Mousseau

Thad Sauvain: 2024 Alumni Engagement Medal Award recipient

Anonymous — Mon, 19 Feb 2024 19:23:46 +0000

Thad Sauvain: 2024 Alumni Engagement Medal Award recipient Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 02/19/2024 - 12:23

Thad Sauvain has served as the president of the ChBE’s External Advisory Board. He has participated in various alumni activities, including panel talks, guest lectures, career fairs, mock interviews, mentoring and supporting senior design project support. He's also facilitated Chevron's funding for several college initiatives.

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Sanjeev G. Redkar: 2024 Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award recipient

Anonymous — Mon, 19 Feb 2024 17:57:03 +0000

Sanjeev G. Redkar: 2024 Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award recipient Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 02/19/2024 - 10:57

The Distinguished Engineering Alumni Awards (DEAA) honor graduates and friends who have distinguished themselves through outstanding personal qualities, knowledge and significant contributions to their fields.

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Outstanding Mentor Award 2023: Brittany Michael

Anonymous — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 23:00:21 +0000

Outstanding Mentor Award 2023: Brittany Michael Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 04/25/2023 - 17:00

Susan Glairon

Each semester, the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering facilitates connections between alumni and current students through the Alumni Student Mentor Program. Students and their mentors meet several times over the course of the semester to discuss professionalism, career advancement and perspectives on engineering.

Brittany Michael (ChemEngr'12 ) was selected as the Outstanding Mentor Award winner for the 2023 spring semester for her work with senior Saylor Perez.

"It has been an absolute pleasure to have Brittany as my mentor for the past year," Perez said. "Not only is she spectacularly kind, but also extremely helpful when it comes to knowledge of the industry. She has helped guide my next career moves by providing great advice and making many introductions on my behalf. I look forward to continuing to foster this relationship.”

Michael answered a few questions about her time as a mentor.

What motivated you to become a mentor for the department?
I had a really challenging time in the program. The ��񱦵�'s chemical engineering program is HARD. I was really uncertain if engineering would be a fit for me when I graduated, and I was a bit nervous about entering the industry. I made just about every mistake one could make when it came to applying for jobs, interviewing, negotiating and conducting myself at work. I eventually learned from these mistakes and became very successful. But, I would much rather help students avoid those same mistakes by sharing my knowledge and experience with the next generation of engineers. Mentoring allows me to make a meaningful impact on the professional development and career paths of young engineers.

What do you hope to impart to the next generation of chemical and biological engineers?
I hope to impart the importance of lifelong learning, adaptability, business savvy and collaboration in the ever-evolving field of engineering. I want to encourage students to think critically, communicate effectively and embrace diversity and inclusivity in their work.

How has the engineering and professional world changed since you graduated, and what new challenges do you see up-and-coming engineers facing?
The prevalence of technology has necessitated that chemical engineers learn programming skills. Engineers who can program are in high demand because they are able to design and develop software that interacts with the hardware components of various devices or efficiently automate analysis tasks.

Another notable change is the increasing prevalence of remote work. Teams are more likely to be distributed across the country or even the world, and engineers need to be able to collaborate effectively with their colleagues regardless of their physical location. Future engineers will find video conferencing and messaging apps to be a breeze to learn, but there is a lot of nuance and understanding required when working with colleagues abroad, whether due to language barriers or cultural differences.

Looking to the future, engineers will likely face new challenges. The increasing complexity of engineering projects and the demand for multi-disciplinary skills will continue to be a trend. In addition, engineers will need to learn to work effectively with people from different cultures as globalization continues to shape the engineering profession. This will require the development of strong soft skills, such as cross-cultural communication, empathy and flexibility.

What are some things you’ve learned from your students as a mentor?
I swear the students in the program are getting smarter every year. As a mentor, I have had the opportunity to learn from my students about their experiences with current internships and laboratory work. It's exciting to hear about new engineering applications and what other industries are up to. They have also shared the challenges they are facing when applying for jobs, as the job market is becoming increasingly competitive at the entry-level.

In addition, I have learned from my students about the changes in coursework at the university. They have told me about the new technologies and techniques that they are learning and the increasing emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and sustainable engineering practices. This has helped me to stay current with emerging trends in the field and to better support my students as they navigate these changes.

How would you pitch your fellow alumni on becoming mentors?
Becoming a mentor allows you to make a meaningful impact on the next generation of engineers and stay connected to the latest industry trends and technologies. Mentoring allows you to develop valuable leadership, communication and coaching skills that can benefit your professional career.

Brittany Michael (ChemEngr'12) was selected as the Outstanding Mentor Award winner for the spring 2023 semester for her work with senior Saylor Perez.

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