Scholarships and Alumni Support
The success and international reputation of our undergraduate and graduate programs in Mechanical Engineering depends upon the quality of our students, our faculty, facilities, equipment, and new and challenging departmental initiatives to keep pace with technological advances and opportunities. To maintain this success and to continue to improve our programs, the Mechanical Engineering Department at Tech relies upon the financial support of alumni, friends, and corporations, as well as the taxpayers of the State of Virginia. Such support is needed to fund important departmental efforts including new research initiatives, scholarships and fellowships to attract and retain high quality students, purchase new and maintain existing equipment, and recruit quality faculty and fund professorships. Even during times of economic prosperity, there is a need for support from both corporations and private individuals to provide funding for these and other departmental efforts. During periods of economic slowdown when State and Federal governments reduce financial support, institutions of higher learning and individual departments are stressed even further and the need for support from private individuals and companies becomes even more significant. One important effort in our Department that is almost entirely funded by private and corporate donations is the support of our most qualified students, through University, College, and ME Department scholarships (www.me.vt.edu/programs/undergrad/scholarships.htm).
Students and Scholarships
Anyone who reads the newspaper knows that the cost of education is increasing. Tuition and fees, textbooks, computers, room and board, it is an ever increasing burden on parents and students. Unfortunately, the most qualified and capable young engineers do not always come from families that can afford such large expenses. It is perhaps surprising to learn that in the mid '90's over 50% of students enrolled in four-year public institutions carried educational loans averaging nearly $12000. It is safe to assume that these numbers have increased over the past 5-7 years. In an effort to relieve some of the financial burden that is placed on our students and their families, the Department of Mechanical Engineering in coordination with the College of Engineering seeks to aid our most qualified students, through scholarship awards administered by both the Department and the College. Scholarships are used to support our most academically qualified students, those with clear financial need as well as those with no expressed need. Private corporations and alumni and friends of the M.E. department can help to support our best students, as well as support other important departmental programs by giving to Virginia Tech or directly to the M.E. Department. (Recent scholarship recipients are listed on the Undergraduate Scholarships webpage,(www.me.vt.edu/programs/undergrad/scholarships.htm).
For those individuals or organizations that would like to help, a variety of financial options are available. The Office of University Development is the fundraising arm at Virginia Tech (www.unirel.vt.edu/ct/vtgiving/); however, donations at any level of contribution, whether restricted by the donor (e.g. for scholarships to undergraduate students with financial need) or unrestricted donations that can be used at the discretion of the Department Head and the M.E. Advisory Board, can also be made directly to the Department. Although one time gifts, annual contributions, and other options for support can be made at any time directly to the Department, a new convenient and general-purpose fund was introduced in 1999, The Randolph Alumni Fund.
The Randolph Alumni Fund
The Randolph Alumni Fund was established to provide donors to the M.E. department a visible and convenient means for designating unrestricted contributions. This fund specifically targets support for undergraduate and graduate scholarships; student projects; and special student, faculty, and alumni programs. The Fund is administered by the M.E. Department, not the University or College. Professor Walter O'Brien, the Department Head, is responsible for the expenditure of Randolph funds in accordance with the fund's goals and Department needs. The Randolph Alumni Fund creates an opportunity for gifts from alumni and friends to be allocated to specific areas of need within the department. It allows a choice on the part of the donor of whether your gift goes toward scholarships, student projects, or special programs, or to general unrestricted funding needs.
The Role of M.E. Alumni
The role of alumni support in maintaining and improving the national reputation of the Tech ME program cannot be overemphasized. The importance of such support is illustrated in the following excerpts taken from the Spring 2002 issue of the WORKS magazine. Two alumni, John Sparks and Jay Rule, share with the reader why contributions to the M.E. department is so important to them, the department, and the futures of their industries.
John Sparks
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering '74
M.S. in Mechanical Engineering '76
PhD. In Mechanical Engineering '81
Director, Engineering Research
Atlantic Research Corporation
How long have you been a Mechanical Engineering Donor?
I began contributing to M.E. right after I graduated with my PhD. And have done so continuously for 21 years.
Why did you decide to earmark your contribution to Mechanical Engineering?
I designate my contribution as a way of acknowledging the top-notch education that I received as a student. I know that Department Head Walter O'Brien (my major professor in graduate school), needs funds contributed by individuals and industry to use at his discretion to support faculty and students where state funds run short due to budgetary restrictions. And I know that he can use every dollar contributed to fill a need. That's very important to me.
What is your personal reward for giving to the Department?
There was a great group of Master's Degree candidates there with me in 1974 and 1975, and we all worked for Professors O'Brien and Hal Moses (late professor of Mechanical Engineering) helping to build a program and a laboratory as we worked on our degrees. I like to think that contributing to M.E. now helps to foster the same sort of environment where students are learning to work together as members of teams while they advance their education and do significant research.
Did you benefit from individual giving during your time at Virginia Tech?
The research that I conducted was not formally funded, so I am sure that some of the funds that supported the experimental part came from funds contributed by alumni.
What other kinds of assistance have you contributed to the Department?
This year, my company, Atlantic Research Corporation, gave a grant to M.E. to sponsor a year-long, senior design project. I've had the opportunity to visit campus a few times, meet with the team, and the team has visited us for design reviews. The Department has always done its best to prepare engineers for industry. By exposing this team to our industry and helping them to work on a project of real interest to us, we're helping prepare them to stop up and contribute their ideas and efforts wherever they go in the future. I'm proud of the work that the team is doing, and I'm proud of my company for investing in their future.
James A. (Jay) Rule
B.S. in Mechanical Engineering '75
M.S. in Mechanical Engineering '76
PhD. In Mechanical Engineering '88
How long have you been a Mechanical Engineering donor?
For the first couple of years following graduations (following B.S. and M.S.), I would contribute $20 to $50 a year, then out of oversight, stopped doing so. After leaving a second time with an advanced degree, I did some reflecting on the importance of supporting the Department on a regular basis and have so ever since.
Why did you decide to earmark your contribution to Virginia Tech?
The Department of Mechanical Engineering has given me the opportunity to pursue a fulfilling engineering career with financial and professional rewards. The Department feels like a "second home" or a "second family" and it's important to keep its purpose growing and improving so that other students may have the same opportunities that I had.
What is your personal reward for giving to the Department?
I have been able to keep in professional contact with the faculty members that have been so important to me as a student. I am sure that they would be just as accommodating if I had not contributed a dime, but it is a way to remind them of their great value. And, in the long run we will all benefit by keeping our home Departments sound and improving, by attracting the best and brightest students, and maintaining and improving the great reputation that our graduates enjoy in the workplace.
Did you benefit form individual giving during your time at Virginia Tech?
I was fortunate to have very supportive parents and to get some great summer engineering employment. But I want to make sure that other students have the same educational opportunities that I have had.
Any additional thought or memories to share?
Carroll Hartlove, ME Advisory Board Member, has done a superb job of cataloging the scholarships funds that are already in place. Some of these funds are in the memory of specific faculty members. We have lost some great individuals from the faculty and my fellow graduates should reflect on the importance of these faculty and consider giving to the Department in their memories.
More Information
Individuals should direct their inquires regarding direct gifts to the Mechanical Engineering Department, and particularly to the Randolph Alumni Fund, to Mr. Matt Swift (540-231-5277)
or you may e-mail him at mswift@vt.edu.
A list of current and past corporate and private scholarship funds within the ME department, and college scholarships that are awarded to ME students can be found on the ME Undergraduate Scholarships webpage. Last year's scholarship recipients are also listed.