April 14, 2008

College of Technology honors distinguished alumni

Jen Bahan, Ron Eller, Allen R. Glassburn, Thomas D. Hjertquist, Randall Ket, Jane A. Liedtke, Timothy John Martin, John E. McDonald, Jon R. Odom, John R. Schooler and Mark A. Stidham are being honored for their professional and personal success across the spectrum of technology fields.

"Each one of these 11 men and women have made significant contributions to a wide variety of fields and industries," said Dean Dennis R. Depew. "These College of Technology alumni are proof that there is not one single successful path for our graduates, but instead there are many career options available to our students once they graduate from Purdue." 

Distinguished alumni award recipients are:

* Jen Bahan of Redondo Beach, Calif. Bahan earned a bachelor's degree in computer graphics technology in 1999 and is supervisor-technical animation/rigging lead for Rhythm and Hues Studios. She has been an animator and 3-D artist since she received her degree and has worked for companies that created video games for Nintendo Co., Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp. Since she began work at Rhythm and Hues Studios, she has been involved in several well-known movies, including "The Golden Compass," "Happy Feet" and "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."

* Ron Eller of Fraser, Colo. Eller earned an associate degree in general aviation in 1979 and a bachelor's degree in professional flight technology in 1981 and is retired from Hewlett Packard, where he spent 14 years. For 10 years, he was a management consultant and has served on Denver's committee for the development of Denver International Airport, was director of an economic development agency and Houston Hospice, and has been director or adviser to several information technology companies. He served on Purdue's Advancing Aviation steering committee and has been active in The Indus Entrepreneurs since he became a charter member in 2003.

* Allen R. Glassburn of Fort Wayne, Ind. Glassburn received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering technology in 1974 and is director of business operations support for Indiana Michigan Power (I&M). He is responsible for financial planning for the company and works with other organizations that are part of I&M's parent company, American Electric Power. Before joining I&M in 2004, Glassburn directed the financial performance and monitored non-financial performance criteria of AEP Energy Delivery. Previously, he was president and chief operating officer of Kingsport Power, an AEP subsidiary in Kingsport, Tenn., was a region manager for I&M's Muncie district and was director for Indiana Michigan Power Co. He has served as a board member of his local chambers of commerce, Habitat for Humanity, Junior Achievement and the Mental Health Association of East Central Indiana.

* Thomas D. Hjertquist of Greeneville, Tenn. Hjerquist received a bachelor's degree in industrial technology in 1976 and is vice president of maintenance and purchasing for Landair Transportation. In his job, he is responsible for all asset-management processes, from purchasing to disposal of aircraft. Hjertquist previously worked in construction as an apprentice before beginning his career in aviation. He is a member of the National Association Industrial Technology Board, the Purdue Industrial Technology Board and the Michigan Curriculum Advisory Group.

* Randall Ket of Brownsburg, Ind.  Ket received a bachelor's degree in building construction management in 1980 and is vice president of Hunt Construction Group. In his job, he is responsible for ensuring on-time and on-budget delivery of his company's projects. He received the Procter and Gamble Minority Business Development leadership award in 1996 and has been a member of the Purdue Building Construction Management Advisory Committee since 1991.

* Jane A. Liedtke of Bloomington, Ill.  Liedtke received a doctorate in industrial education in 1983. She is the director and founder of Our Chinese Daughters Foundation, which provides Chinese culture programs to children adopted from China and their families, schools and communities. The organization has offices in Beijing, China, and Bloomington, Ill. Liedtke has served as a cultural and industrial management consultant to American, European and Chinese companies since the early 1990s. Previously, she was a teacher and college professor for 30 years, teaching industrial arts, vocational education and industrial technology in New Jersey, Maine, Oregon and Illinois.

* Timothy John Martin of Seattle. Martin received a bachelor's degree in computer and information technology in 1995 and is principal solutions manager at the business continuity management program office for customer service and support at Microsoft Corp. He was recruited by Microsoft to start the program office in 2005, and for his work he received Microsoft's annual "Great People, Great Performances" award in 2007. Before joining Microsoft, he worked for several Internet start-up companies and Fortune 50 companies. Martin is a member of the Department of Computer and Information Technology industrial advisory board, the Disaster Recovery Institute International and is a former member of the executive board of the Association for Contingency Planners.

* John E. McDonald of Chicago. McDonald received a bachelor's degree in organizational leadership and supervision in 1968 and is retired from Banc One Capital Markets Inc. He began his 35-year career with Lafayette National Bank, where he was an officer in eight institutions throughout a series of mergers and acquisitions. At Banc One, he was managing director of the large corporate real estate group in Banc One Capital Markets Inc. in Chicago. This group provided debt-side funding for real estate investment trusts and publicly traded national homebuilders. McDonald is a member of the Purdue Alumni Association and the John Purdue Club, and he has been an officer or on the board of various organizations, including Wabash Center, Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, Community Hospital Foundation – Indianapolis and the Lafayette Art Foundation.

* Jon R. Odom of Centerville, Ind. Odom received associate degrees in industrial technology and mechanical engineering technology from Purdue College of Technology at Richmond in 1972 and 1977, respectively. Since 1994, he has been president and owner of Productivity Fabricators Inc., a steel fabrication business that produces outdoor advertising structures. He previously worked at National Automatic Tool Co., where he was a milling machine operator and worked with time study and rate setting. He also was in supervisory roles at both National Automatic and Ford Motor Co. Odom is a 30-year board member of the Richmond Salvation Army and a past board member of the Outdoor Advertising Association of America. In 1998, the Richmond Chamber of Commerce awarded his company the Business Growth Award.

* John R. "Rick" Schooler of Orlando, Fla. Schooler received a bachelor's degree in computer and information technology in 1982 and is vice president and chief information officer for Orlando Regional Healthcare, where he is responsible for information technology, telecommunications, clinical informatics, biomedical engineering, and purchasing and materials management. He held a similar position for the Central Georgia Health System, and in 1998 was named one of three CIOs of the year in the state of Georgia. He is a board member of several organizations, including the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives, the Healthcare Center for the Homeless and a fellow and member of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

* Mark A. Stidham of Sylvania, Ohio. Stidham received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering technology in 1979 and is president of the North American Exhaust Division of Faurecia Exhaust Systems Inc., where he oversees operations of eight manufacturing facilities in the United States and Mexico. He previously was vice president of Atwood Automotive in Rockford, Ill., and helped the company acquire nine product patents, including one assigned solely to him. Stidham is a 27-year member of the Society of Automotive Engineers, works with Boy Scouts of America and Junior Achievement, and has served on the Mechanical Engineering Technology Industrial Advisory Board for the College of Technology. He received the Best Performing Division award from Faurecia in both 2006 and 2007.

Writer: Kim Medaris, (765) 494-6998, kmedaris@purdue.edu

Source: Erin Pennington, College of Technology director of alumni and donor relations, (765) 494-0887, penninge@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

Note to Journalists: Complete biographies and publication-quality photos of the recipients of 2008 College of Technology Distinguished Alumni Awards are available at https://www.tech.purdue.edu/newsandevents/2008DTAs.cfm

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