November 20, 2013 | Eli Freund - School of Engineering

Alumni Notes

What are UConn Engineering graduates up to? Read about the recent career highlights of alumni like Lake Barrett, David Giuffrida, Scott Tyler and a dedicated corps of Academy of Distinguished Engineers members who discussed their careers with undergraduate students as members of two panels.

Stay in touch with fellow UConn engineering alumni. Visit our Engineering LinkedIn alumni page and fill us in on your latest activities or learn what your college friends are doing nowadays!  Some recent alumni news follows:

Lake H. Barrett (B.S. Mechanical Engineering, M.S. Mechanical/Nuclear Engineering ’67, ’71), an independent consultant in the energy field with more than 40 years’ experience in nuclear energy and nuclear materials management, is a special advisor to the president of Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), the company that operates the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant that was breached during a March 2011 magnitude 9 earthquake and ensuing tsunami. Mr. Barrett retired in 2002 from federal service after serving as the former head of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Civilian Nuclear Waste management. He oversaw the removal of nuclear waste from a Three Mile Island reactor in 1979 and led the Yucca Mountain Geologic Repository program through site selection and confirmation by Congress. 

David Giuffrida (B.S. Electrical Engineering ‘84), P.E., is President of Giuffrida Engineering Inc. (GEi), a full-service mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection consulting engineering firm located in Middletown, CT. He is also Vice President, Facilities and Support Services at Middlesex Hospital, where he is responsible for engineering and capital projects, as well as other related support services. In his previous position as Director of Engineering, he was responsible for the engineering design and construction of capital projects.  He received a M.S. in electrical engineering from Villanova University.  

Scott W. Tyler (B.S. Mechanical Engineering ’78), Ph.D., a Foundation Professor in the Department of Geological Sciences and Engineering at the University of Nevada, Reno, will receive the John Hem Award tyler1for Excellence in Science and Engineering at the 2013 NGWA Groundwater Expo in Nashville in December. The award recognizes individuals who make significant contributions of service, research and innovation to the industry. He was recognized with a collaborator, Dr. John Selker (Oregon State Univ.), for their development and application of fiber-optic temperature sensing for hydrology and development of the first community user facility in hydrology for instrumentation. The researchers have used innovative fiber-optic/laser technology to capture temperatures around the globe, in a variety of hydrological, climatological and geological settings such as glaciers, caves, creeks, mines, avalanche areas, volcanoes and farmlands. Dr. Tyler has even studied the water temperature at Devils Hole in Death Valley to help protect the endangered pupfish and drilled through 200 meters of Antarctic ice to take the temperature of the McMurdo Ice Shelf and the 800 meters of ocean underneath it. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Nevada, Reno in 1990. Read more about Dr. Tyler’s award here.

Alumni have been generously sharing their time with UConn engineering students during the last month.

On November 8th, nine members of the UConn Academy of Distinguished Engineers participated in panel discussions before audiences of engineering juniors.  The participants included:  Dr. John Prior (Senior Director of BioProcess Engineering at Genzyme), Dr. Mark Bennett (Manager for General Dynamics Electric Boat’s Independent Research & Development Program), Michael Culmo (Vice President of Transportation and Structures with CME Associates, Inc.), Dr. Tom Martin (co-founder, President and Chairman of the Board of Phonon Corp.,), Patrick J. O’Mara (Associate with STV Incorporated ), Stephen Heath (retired, former President of Pratt & Whitney’s Commercial Engines business), Dr. Sharon Nunes (retired, formerly Vice President of Business Development and Productivity in IBM’s Systems & Technology Group), Thomas Prete (Vice President, Engineering, Pratt & Whitney) and Daniel Serfaty (founder, Chairman and CEO of Aptima, Inc.).

In addition, Steve Bouchard (B.S. Electrical Engineering ‘03), Senior Global Sourcing Manager at Hubbell, Inc. guest lectured a large assembly of students and faculty gathered for a Graduate Professional Development seminar on October 23, 2013.