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April 28, 2000
Toddler son celebrates as mom graduates from Purdue
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue University honors graduate Carol Prigge will have an extra person to clap for her when she receives her degree – her 4-year-old son.
While many of her peers were wondering which sorority to join or which dress to wear, the 21-year-old single mother from Portage, Ind., was wondering how to juggle her son and part-time jobs with her goal of earning a bachelor's degree in special education. She will receive her degree at 8 p.m. Friday, May 12, in Elliott Hall of Music at one of the four commencement ceremonies Purdue will conduct that weekend on the West Lafayette campus.
"This has been a very humbling experience for me, and the hardest struggles were time and money," Prigge says. "I had to prioritize my time with my part-time jobs, my classes and studies, and my son. Financially, I worried about how to keep Justin, my son, in clothes and food on the table. I never even thought about clothes for myself."
Prigge says her belief in herself and a desire to build a life for her son helped her maintain a B-plus average throughout her four years at Purdue.
"You get dealt all kinds of cards in this life, and I chose to accept the gift of my son and tackle the responsibilities one at a time," she says. "My mom was a great supporter, and my dad helped with the tuition, but I knew the ultimate responsibility was mine. Looking back I wonder how I made it."
Not everyone thought she would make it. Her adviser, Truda Strange, says that when Prigge started at Purdue four years ago, she didn't think the young woman would graduate within four years.
"Well, I'm happy to say she proved me wrong," Strange says. "Carol has a very pleasant personality, a positive attitude and a wonderful disposition. She sticks out in my mind as a very special person."
Prigge knew since her high school days that she wanted to teach special needs children. "While at Portage High School, I volunteered as a peer tutor for three years in special education. I enjoyed helping the students, and I knew they counted on me to help them," Prigge says.
She is now planning her June wedding to Dave Smith, a 1999 Purdue graduate with a degree in law and society, and is in the interview process with a number of school districts in central Indiana.
CONTACTS: Prigge, (765) 477-2321, priggec@purdue.edu; Strange, (765) 494-7962, strange@soe.purdue.edu
New graduate keeping computer degree in state
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – While many of her contemporaries will be taking jobs in other states, Stephanie Scherer, Haubstadt, Ind., will start working for Aprimo, a 2-year-old online marketing company on the north side of Indianapolis, after spending a few weeks in Europe.
She decided to stay even though many new computer graduates take jobs in California's Silicon Valley. "I have had the wonderful opportunity to intern with Hewlett-Packard in California for three summers. I loved California and the different jobs I did at HP while I was there, but coming out of Purdue, I have lots of ambition and I want to have an impact where I work," she says. "This is something that was hard to find at HP, because of the massive breadth of products and people.
"I decided to stay in Indianapolis solely for the purpose of getting the opportunity to work at Aprimo. Most people with a computer science degree want to go into some type of programming; well, I wanted lots of customer interaction, some travel, and in addition an opportunity to stay technical and use my computer science skills. Aprimo offered me what I consider my ideal position."
Scherer will receive her Purdue University degree at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, May 13, in Elliott Hall of Music. Purdue will conduct four commencement ceremonies on the West Lafayette campus May 12-14.
CONTACT: Scherer, (765) 463-6501, scheresk@cs.purdue.edu
Deaf scholar bound for medical school
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Michelle Ludwig, a profoundly deaf senior from Germantown, Tenn., will graduate from Purdue University with a bachelor's degree in pharmaceutical science at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 13, in the Elliott Hall of Music. Purdue will conduct four commencement ceremonies on the West Lafayette campus May 12-14.
She completed her degree in four years with a grade-point average of 3.81.
The recipient of the recently revitalized Amelia Earhart Scholarship will head to medical school in the fall, following in the footsteps of her grandfather, a family practitioner.
Ludwig lost her hearing to a bout of spinal meningitis at age 2. Because she was already talking when she became ill, she has always been able to speak and is adept at lip-reading. She uses hearing aids to make use of what residual hearing she has, and she managed most of her smaller Purdue classes and laboratories without additional assistance. A note taker was provided by the Office of the Dean of Students for larger classrooms and lecture halls.
Ludwig's disability has barely registered as a blip on the radar screen of her college career, which has included membership in Phi Eta Sigma, serving as a Purdue Alumni Student Ambassador, volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, and studying abroad in Madrid, Spain. Ludwig spent spring break of her junior year with a church group visiting Haiti, where the volunteers assisted in rebuilding hurricane-damaged communities. She's also a certified emergency medical technician and completed an internship as a clinical nutritionist at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.
CONTACT: Ludwig, (765) 743-3868, msludwig@expert.cc.purdue.edu
Globetrotting student earning
a truly international MBA
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Kevin Cookman, who will receive his master's degree in business administration from Purdue University's Krannert Graduate School of Management at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, May 14, works in Shanghai, China. To make the situation more complicated and to pile up frequent-flier miles, the 1984 Purdue electrical engineering graduate is married to Noel Smith Cookman, a 1984 Purdue chemical engineering graduate, who works in the United Kingdom.
Along the way to their present occupations, the couple also did a stint in Japan. Cookman is the founder and general manager of Shanghai-based In Dex Computer Co. He enrolled at Krannert after being impressed with what one of his employees, who completed the executive MBA program, gained from it. Cookman, an Anderson, Ind., native who obviously is undaunted by travel, will be on campus to receive his degree in Elliott Hall of Music. Purdue will conduct four commencement ceremonies on the West Lafayette campus May 12-14.
Executive MBA programs are structured to accommodate the special needs of busy executives who want to earn a master's degree in business. In the early 1980s, Krannert was one of the first to utilize distance-learning techniques and the Internet in its program.
CONTACT: Cookman, 86-21-6226-1100, kevinc@public.sta.net.cn
Outstanding senior balances academics, activities
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Amanda Schreiweis has led a full life during her years at Purdue University.
She has been involved in three separate research projects while an undergraduate. She also has been night coordinator for Lafayette Urban Ministry's homeless shelter and served as director for Boiler Gold Rush, a first-year student orientation program sponsored by the Office of Admissions.
In recognition of her work, she was named the Flora Roberts Award winner as the outstanding female senior this year.
Schreiweis, of New Albany, Ind., will graduate with highest distinction with bachelor's degrees in chemistry and chemical engineering at 8 p.m. Friday, May 12, in Elliott Hall of Music at one of the four commencement ceremonies that weekend at Purdue's West Lafayette campus. After graduation, she will work in chemical process research and development at Eli Lilly and Co., Indianapolis.
"Probably the most important part of balancing all the parts of my life has been to look for the purpose behind each activity in which I involved myself, academic or otherwise." Schreiweis says. "If that purpose was not something that I had a passion for I either eliminated that activity or gave it low priority. For example, I didn't always have a passion for the constant meetings that I had as a director for Boiler Gold Rush, but I did love the chance to help freshmen get a firm footing at Purdue. Similarly, I sometimes hated the homework I had to do for my classes, but I enjoy the way that science and engineering have taught me to think. When I could see the big picture, it was easy to pour myself into what I do."
CONTACT: Schreiweis, (765) 743-1121, aschreiw@purdue.edu
High-flying senior looking at career overseas
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Ryan Casteel will complete a high-flying Purdue University career when he receives his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering at 8 p.m. Friday, May 12, in Elliott Hall of Music.
Purdue will conduct four commencement ceremonies May 12-14 on the West Lafayette campus.
Casteel, of Decatur, Ill., founded the first reduced-gravity experiment team in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. The team was among several Purdue groups to conduct experiments last summer at the Johnson Space Center aboard a KC-135 jet, also known at the Vomit Comet, that astronauts use to train for space flight. The aircraft goes through several steep descents, causing the occupants to experience about 25 or 30 seconds of weightlessness on each dip.
After graduation, Casteel plans to attend Georgetown University to pursue a master's degree in national security studies, in addition to earning a law degree. Casteel says he enjoys learning, and that his long-term goals include combining his education in engineering with international affairs to improve the lives of people. "One day I would like to be a Middle East arms control adviser, since my passion is international affairs," Casteel says. He is in his second year of studying Arabic at Purdue, with the goal of increasing his knowledge of the Middle East and improving his ability to communicate there.
On campus, Casteel has participated in numerous activities, including serving as a co-chairman for Old Masters, as a senator in Purdue Student Government, and as an officer and player for the Purdue Men's Soccer Club. He also earned the G.A. Ross Award that is presented each year to the outstanding male senior at Purdue.
CONTACT: Casteel, (765) 494-3521, casteel@ecn.purdue.edu
Compiled by J. Michael Willis, (765) 494-0371; mwillis@purdue.edu
PHOTO CAPTIONS
Purdue honors graduate Carol Prigge, 21, of Portage, Ind., gets assistance with her cap from her 4-year-old son, Justin, as she prepares for the 2000 graduation ceremonies at the West Lafayette campus. (Purdue News Service Photo by David Umberger)
A publication-quality photograph is available at the News Service Web site and at the ftp site. Photo ID: Prigge.grad2000
Download Photo Here
Michelle Ludwig, with a painting she bought during spring break last year while she was working with a church group to repair hurricane damage in Haiti. Ludwig, who will graduate from Purdue on May 13, is holding a photograph of herself and another volunteer, with the Haitian children they sponsored. (Purdue News Service Photo by Vince Walter)
A publication-quality photograph is available at the News Service Web site and at the ftp site. Photo ID: Ludwig.grad2000
Download Photo Here
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