Swenson College of Science and Engineering

Swenson College of Science and Engineering
Academy of Science and Engineering

Established in 2002, the Academy of Science and Engineering has been established to give public recognition to distinguished alumni and special friends of the Swenson College of Science and Engineering, who have brought distinction to themselves through their participation, commitment, and leadership in their chosen profession.

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Inductees September 27, 2002

Back Row: Jerome Klun, William Crain, Dean James Riehl, Chancellor Kathryn Martin, David Karpeles, Casmir Ilenda
In Front: Howard Hansen

William E. Crain: Bachelor of Arts – Geology 1955.
William E. Crain, a Duluth native, graduated from the University of Minnesota Duluth with a BA in business and economics in 1953, and a BS in geology in 1955, taking all of his courses from Professor Robert Heller. He also received an MS in geology from the University of Minnesota Minneapolis. He joined Chevron in 1957 as an exploration geologist, and retired in 1994 as director and vice president of Chevron Exploration. Bill has always been committed to earth science education. He received the University of San Francisco Medallion Award and the American Geological Institute’s (AGI) Explorer award, both of which pertain to Earth Science education. In 2002, he and the late Dr. Heller received AGI’s William B. Heroy Jr. Award for distinguished service; together they generated the vision and support of AGI’s inquiry-based, secondary school Earth Science curricula.

David L. Karpeles: Bachelor of Arts – Mathematics 1956.
David Karpeles graduated from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1956 with a BA degree in mathematics. While working as a mathematician he continued his graduate studies in mathematics at the University of Minnesota Minneapolis, San Diego State University (MS, 1962) and University of California-Santa Barbara. His interests eventually turned full-time to a successful real estate investment business in southern California. In 1981 David received an award from California Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., for developing a plan for providing affordable housing in California. David (with his wife Marsha) began collecting historical documents in 1978 and established the Karpeles Manuscript Library in 1983 which today preserves the largest private collection of original manuscripts in the world. The Karpeles Manuscript Library in Duluth is one of seven in the United States. David Karpeles is author of 60 historical monographs relating to the Library’s holdings.

Dr. Jerome A. Klun: Bachelor of Arts – Biology 1961.
During thirty-seven years of entomological research, Dr. Klun has conducted outstanding research on the chemical nature of host-plant insect resistance in corn. In addition he has made classic discoveries in the field of insect chemistry and behavior that have had significant impact on agriculture, science and technology. He has received numerous citations and awards for his research. Dr. Klun graduated from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1961 with a BA in biology after earning his AA at Ely Junior College. He was awarded the Ph.D. in entomology by Iowa State University in 1965. Dr. Klun is the author of 114 peer reviewed scientific publications, holds five patents and is recognized internationally in his field.

Dr. Casmir S. Ilenda: Bachelor of Arts – Chemistry 1969.
Dr. Ilenda grew up in Proctor, Minnesota. He was the co-author of two publications at the University of Minnesota Duluth while performing undergraduate research with Professor Ronald Caple. Casmir was the recipient of an NSF graduate fellowship his senior year that enabled him to obtain his Ph.D. in organic chemistry at the University of Colorado. After a postdoctoral position at the California Institute of Technology, he began an industrial career with Rohm and Haas in Philadelphia, and he has been there ever since. As a senior scientist he has been involved with many of their successful endeavors, from plastics to fiberoptic lighting systems. This work has lead to 14 patents. In 1991 Dr. Ilenda was awarded the “Otto Haas Award of Scientific Achievement” by his company.

Dr. Howard G. Hanson: Physics Faculty, 1947-1985; Department Head, 1951-1984.
Professor Hanson helped to establish the Department of Physics, when he arrived at the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1947 with three other new faculty. He was appointed head when the position was created in 1951 and remained in that position until 1984, just before his retirement from the faculty in 1985. Dr. Hanson received his BA from St. Cloud State University and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. While a faculty member, Professor Hanson was active in both the American and the Minnesota Area Associations of Physics Teachers. He spent several summers at various research labs, including Oak Ridge, Holloman Air Force Base, and what was then the Lawrence Radiation Lab. In 1963 he held an NSF faculty fellowship in Sweden. As Department Head he was instrumental in leading the department to its present size, including the addition of the graduate program and increased emphasis on research, without taking away from the undergraduate teaching mission.

Inductees September 26, 2003

Left to Right : Richard Ojakangas, William Mularie, James Swenson, Chancellor Kathryn Martin, Dean James Riehl, Robert Senkler, Lawrence Skog

Dr. Lawrence E. Skog: Bachelor of Arts – Botany 1965.
Dr. Skog is currently Curator and Research Scientist for the Smithsonian Institution, a position he has held for the past 10 years, having moved up through the curatorial ranks at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History since 1972. He has been elected to Fellowship by the Linnean Society of London and the Botanical Society of Scotland, appointed Honorary Professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing for his work on the plants of China, and has honorary memberships or served as officer in several botanical organizations in the U.S. and abroad. Dr. Skog graduated from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1965 with a B.A. in Botany, and then went on to receive an M.S. in Botany from the University of Connecticut in 1968 and a Ph.D. in Botany from Cornell University in 1972. Dr. Skog is the author of 129 reviewed scientific publications and has many years of international research experience resulting in three new genera and more than 20 new species of plants that he has described. At least two species of plants have been named after him.

James I. Swenson: Bachelor of Arts – Chemistry 1959.
Superior, Wisconsin native James I. Swenson completed a B.A. degree in chemistry in 1959. While a student at UMD in the late 1950’s, Mr. Swenson was one of the early participants in the chemistry undergraduate research program. Following military service, Mr. Swenson worked for several computer manufacturing companies including Honeywell and Univac. His career took him to California where he started a small printed circuit board manufacturing company. Details, Inc., became the industry leader in providing custom printed circuit boards; the company’s rapid turnaround, flexibility and high quality contributed to its remarkable success. He sold Details, Inc., in 1996. Jim and wife, Sue, have a strong commitment to the future through the education of children and young adults. The work of the Swenson Family Foundation clearly reflects this dedication and has been a powerful and enabling force in the lives of countless students.

Dr. Richard W. Ojakangas: Bachelor of Arts – Geology 1955.
Dick Ojakangas grew up in Warba, MN, attended Grand Rapids High School and then UMD. He started out as a business major, but switched after taking Introductory Geology from Professor Robert L. Heller. He graduated in 1955 with a BA in geology, after which he served in the Air Force. He came back to UMD to be an instructor before going on to receive his M.A. from the University of Missouri (1960) and his Ph.D. from Stanford (1964). He joined the faculty at UMD in 1964 and retired from ‘active duty’ in 2002. He has received numerous awards, including: Sam Goldrich Medal from the Institute on Lake Superior Geology, The Horace T. Morse Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education, an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Helsinki and the Anderson Scholar/Teacher Award from the College of Science and Engineering. Throughout his tenure in the department he has published at least 99 papers, reports, maps and books. He advised 31 Master’s students and taught thousands of undergrads. He was and still is the conscience of the department. In 1999 his Ph.D. dissertation (published in 1964) was recognized as a “classic concept in Cordilleran Geology”, a high honor. Our views of geological thinking have changed drastically since 1965; however, Dick’s work was so seminal that it is still accepted and recognized.

Robert L. Senkler: Bachelor of Arts – Mathematics 1974.
Robert Senkler is a 1974 graduate of UMD, receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics. He has been with Minnesota Life for over 25 years, starting as an actuarial trainee in the Individual Insurance Division in 1974. He became a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries in 1979 and joined Minnesota Life’s senior management team five years later as second vice president of Individual Actuarial. By 1987, he was vice president and actuary, Individual Insurance, and in 1994 he was named president and chief executive officer of Minnesota Life. One year later he was elected chairman of the board. Mr. Senkler currently participates in a variety of business and civic leadership positions in the Twin Cities, including HealthEast, the Wilder Foundation, the Carlson School of Management, and the Minnesota Orchestra. He resides in White Bear Lake with his wife Pam and two sons.

Dr. William M. Mularie: Bachelor of Arts – Physics 1961; Bachelor of Arts – Mathematics 1961.
William Mularie is currently CEO of Telework Consortium, funded by a Department of Commerce grant for development and evaluation of pilot projects for a high-bandwidth optical communication infrastructure. Prior to this, he spent five years as a government employee in Senior Executive Service, having retired from 3M in 1996 after 30 years of employment in the private sector. His government service included being Deputy Director for Science and Technology for the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, Office Director for the Information Systems Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and a short term in the Science and Technology Directorate of the Central Intelligence Agency. For his work with the Imagery and Mapping Agency, he received the Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Award. While in the private sector, Dr. Mularie was General Manager and Director of the CAT-ARC Division of Perkin-Elmer Corporation and Vice President of VacTec Systems, and spent ten years as Director of the National Media Laboratory. Dr. Mularie received B.A. degrees in Physics and Mathematics from UMD in 1961 and his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from UM-Twin Cities in 1971.

Inductees October 1, 2004

Left to Right : Paul Helquist, Rolf Peterson, Odin Christensen, Chancellor Kathryn Martin, Sylvan Bergstahler, Eric Swildens, Dean James Riehl

Dr. Rolf Peterson: Bachelor of Arts - Biology 1970
Dr. Rolf Peterson, a native of Minneapolis, came to UMD in 1966 and graduated with an undergraduate degree in Zoology in 1970.  After a Ph.D. at Purdue University in 1974, he joined the faculty at Michigan Technological University, where he is now a professor of wildlife ecology in the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Sciences.  Throughout his career a major research focus has been on the gray wolf, a species that never fails to ignite public interest.  He has continued a long-term study of wolf and moose populations in Isle Royale National Park, a project begun by his major professor at Purdue, Dr. Durward Allen.  He has also studied wolf populations in Alaska, Minnesota, and mainland Michigan, and has advised research programs involving recovering wolf populations in Yellowstone National Park and in Norway.
Dr. Peterson is the author of two books, Wolf ecology and prey relationships on Isle Royale, U.S. National Park Service Scientific Monograph Series No. 11, 1977 and The Wolves of Isle Royale - A Broken Balance, Willow Creek Press, 1995; as well as the author of 94 technical articles published in Science (2), Nature (1), and 19 other scientific journals, plus chapters in 11 books and conference proceedings. During the past decade he has been awarded the Distinguished Moose Biologist Award, from the 26th North American Moose Conference for major contribution toward management of moose in North America; Annual Research Award, Michigan Technological University; and Best Reporting Award from Minnesota Magazine and publications Association for article published in Lake Superior magazine entitled “Of Moose and Wolves”.

Dr. Paul Helquist: Bachelor of Arts - Chemistry 1969
Dr. Paul Helquist received his B.A. in chemistry in 1969 from the University of Minnesota Duluth. He completed his Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1972 at Cornell University. Following a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, he joined the faculty at the State University of New York at Stony Brook rising to the rank of professor of chemistry. In 1984, he moved to Notre Dame as professor and department chair.
Professor Helquist’s research is concerned with the development of new methods in synthetic organic chemistry, including the preparation, structural study, and applications of new transition metal organometallic complexes as catalysts and reagents for asymmetric synthesis, and the structure, synthesis, mechanism of action, and pharmaceutical development of biologically active compounds including antibiotics and antitumor agents, many of which have their origins as natural products.
In addition to his regular faculty and research responsibilities, he consults for the pharmaceutical industry, and frequently offers courses and special lectures elsewhere in the United States and abroad through the American Chemical Society (ACS) Short Courses and the ACS Speakers Service Programs. He maintains close collaborative research ties with laboratories in Sweden, Belgium, Denmark and Japan.

Mr. Eric Swildens: Bachelor of Science - Computer Science 1990
Eric Swildens has been a computer science innovator since his high school days when he wrote software for the Minnesota Educational Computing Corporation. He graduated from the University of Minnesota Duluth with a B.S. in Computer Science in 1990. Mr. Swildens then held a succession of increasingly challenging positions in software development. In 1996 he founded Microline Software in Sunnyvale, California, which developed user interface software. One year later he oversaw the purchase of Microline Software by Blaze Software and continued to design software for them until 1998 when he joined Resonate, where he oversaw the development of Linux software. In 1999 Mr. Swildens, with two co-founders, created Speedera Networks, a web-based content delivery company, where he continues to serve as Chief Technical Officer. While at Speedera he has been granted five patents for his software. Mr. Swildens is well known in Silicon Valley as a high-tech entrepreneur and software developer.

Dr. Odin Christensen: Bachelor of Science - Geology 1970
Dr. Odin Christensen received a B.A. in geology from UMD in 1970 and then went on to obtain his Ph.D. from Stanford. He spent three years in academia as an Assistant Professor of Geology at the University of North Dakota where he taught mineralogy, petrology, geochemistry, and economic geology. He moved on to a position as Research Geochemist with the Earth Science Laboratory/University of Utah Research Institute as a member of a team developing geothermal exploration technology.
In 1981 he joined Newmont and has had a variety of positions, both in minerals exploration and at company mines. He rose through the ranks to become Chief Geologist for Newmont Mining Corporation. He left that position in 2001, to become the Exploration Manager for Empress Minera Inti Raymi for a year, a mine operated by Newmont. He retired in 2002 to become an independent consultant. In the past year, he has been working in Mongolia and Brazil.
He is an avid long-distance mountain runner, having completed the Hardrock Hundred six times. He and his wife ran the Superior Trail 100 in 2000.

Dr. Sylvan Burgstahler: Mathematics and Statistics Faculty 1961-1997; Department Head 1964-1972
Dr. Sylvan Burgstahler received his undergraduate degrees in Engineering Mathematics (B.S. ’51), Master of Science (’53) and Ph.D. (’63) in Mathematics from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. He was a Fulbright Fellow in 1953-54. He joined the faculty of the UMD Department of Mathematics in 1961, and he was appointed department head the following year. During his nine years as head and until his retirement in 1997 Professor Burgstahler played a crucial leadership role in the growth of the department to its current size. He was instrumental in establishing the department’s balanced mission emphasizing both excellence in teaching and scholarly activity. His numerous campus and university service contributions have had a profound and lasting influence in the development of our campus to what it is today.
Throughout his career, Dr. Burgstahler has devoted extraordinary time and energy to the service of the national mathematical community, including terms as President and Governor of the North Central Section of the Mathematical Association of America, numerous leadership posts, as well as charter member and President of the Head-of-the-Lakes Council of Teachers of Mathematics. His achievements have long been acknowledged by the mathematics community, and in 1996 Sylvan Burgstahler received the Meritorious Service Award from the Mathematical Association of America.

Inductees September 15, 2005

Left to Right: Chancellor Kaathryn Martin, Brian Kobilka, Kathleen Annette, Dean James Riehl

Dr. Kathleen Annette: Bachelor of Arts - Chemistry 1977
Kathleen R. Annette is the Area Director of the Bemidji Area Indian Health Service, a position she has held since 1990. After she graduated from Red Lake High School, Dr. Annette earned a bachelors degree in chemistry from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1979 and then an M.D from the University of Minnesota in 1983. After completing a family practice residency in Duluth in 1986, she was board certified and became a medical officer with the Indian Health Service (ISH) at Cass Lake, MN.
Dr. Annette’s C.V. is punctuated by many “firsts”. She is the first Minnesota Ojibwe woman to earn an M.D. and the first woman to serve in her current position. Dr. Annette is a member of the White Earth Band of Chippewa and a native of Minnesota. She has spent her entire professional career serving the medical needs of our region’s Indian population. The Bemidji Area Indian Health Service serves nearly 100,000 American Indians from 34 federally recognized tribes in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan.
Dr. Annette serves on many boards and task forces and has been recognized numerous times for her excellent service, leadership and accomplishments. Among them are the 1993 U.S. Public Health Service Outstanding Service Award, 1998 Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service from the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, 1999 Commendation from the Tribal Leaders of the Oklahoma Area IHS and the 2000 Presidential Award for meritorious executive performance.

Dr. Brian K. Kobilka: Bachelor of Science - Biology 1977; Bachelor of Science - Chemistry 1977
Brian K. Kobilka graduated Summa Cum Laude from UMD in 1977 with Bachelor of Science degrees in both biology and chemistry. He obtained his medical degree from Yale University School of Medicine in 1981, trained in internal medicine at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis (1981-1984) and served as a research fellow (1984-1989) and assistant professor (1988-1989) at the Duke University School of Medicine. In 1989 Dr. Kobilka joined the faculty of the Stanford University School of Medicine where currently he is Professor of Medicine, and Molecular and Cellular Physiology.
Professor Kobilka has led the way in researching the physiology of adrenergic receptor subtypes, including signaling and intracellular trafficking in cardiac myocytes, particularly through the use of “knockout” mice. Adrenergic receptors form the interface between the sympathetic nervous system and the cardiovascular system and play a critical role in the regulation of cardiovascular function. Professor Kobilka initially cloned the first beta-adrenergic receptors in 1986, and contributed substantially to the establishment of modern molecular pharmacology. He has since pioneered direct biophysical studies of conformational changes in the receptors. Professor Kobilka has authored an impressive 124 publications in such high impact journals as Nature (6), Proceedings of the National Academy (14) and Science (4). His numerous awards and honors include the Nahum Prize for Thesis Research, the 1994 Syntex Prize in Receptor Pharmacology, the 1994 John Jacob Abel Award, the WSCI Young Investigator Award, a Howard Hughes fellowship, the 2004 Arthur H. Briggs Lectureship, and the prestigious 2005 Jacob Javits Award in the Neurosciences.

Inductees September 29, 2006

Back Row, L to R: Vice Chancellor Bruce Gildseth, Charles Taylor
Front Row, L to R : Edward Bersu, Glenn Morey, Gerald Ostroski, Howard Levine, Dean James Riehl

Dr. Edward Bersu: Bachelor of Arts - Zoology 1968
Edward Bersu was born and raised in Duluth and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Zoology and Chemistry in 1968. After serving in the U.S. Air Force from 1968 to 1972, Dr. Bersu completed his Ph.D. degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1976 and joined the UW-Medical School faculty in the same year. He is currently a Professor in the UW-Madison Department of Anatomy and an Affiliate Professor in the UW-Madison School of Education’s Department of Kinesiology. Dr. Bersu’s major research interests have included investigations of the morphology of human malformation syndromes associated with verified chromosomal imbalances such as trisomy.
Dr. Bersu served as Interim Associate Dean for Students for the UW-Medical School in 2003 and 2004. He has chaired the UW-Madison Biological Sciences Executive Division Curriculum Committee and for the past four years has chaired the campus committee that facilitates policies associated with the American Disabilities Act. Dr. Bersu is an advisor for the UW-Madison Biology program and sits on the Biology Degree Executive Committee.

Mr. Gerald Ostroski: Retired Engineer from Minnesota Power
After graduating from the University of Wisconsin, Gerald (Jerry) Ostroski began his Minnesota Power career in 1963 as an Assistant System Planning Engineer and steadily assumed positions of increasing responsibility. He retired in July of 2002 after 39 years of service to Minnesota Power. Mr. Ostroski also served as a director or officer of several other Minnesota Power subsidiaries including Distributed Energy Systems Corp. He also served on the Board of Directors of the Minnesota High Technology Association, and serves on and chaired the University of Minnesota's Natural Resources Research Institute Industry Advisory Board. Prior to his retirement, Mr. Ostroski was a Registered Professional Engineer licensed in Minnesota and North Dakota.
Jerry Ostroski’s career-long interest in new technology and computers and in how they could transform the electric utility industry was legendary at Minnesota Power. Also legendary is his leadership in the group of industrialists and legislators that lobbied to establish engineering programs at UMD in the early and mid 1980s. This leadership continued as he served as the Head of the Engineering Advisory Committee and Scholarship Committee and continues to be active in supporting and promoting engineering education at UMD. In addition to professional society memberships he is active in many philanthropic organizations.

Dr. Howard Levine: Bachelor of Arts - Mathematics 1964, Bachelor of Arts - Chemistry 1964
Born in St. Paul, Howard Levine graduated from Duluth Central High School and moved on to the University of Minnesota Duluth, where he graduated in 1964 with a B.A. (summa cum laude) in mathematics and chemistry. He continued his schooling in mathematics at Cornell, earning an M.A. in 1967 and a Ph.D. in 1969. After stops at ETS in Zurich, UMTC and the University of Rhode Island, Dr. Levine moved in 1978 to Iowa State University where he is currently Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences in the Department of Mathematics. He is on the editorial board of numerous journals and has been a department head at Iowa State. Dr. Levine has published more than 100 referred works and presented over 250 invited lectures, and he is listed in the ISI Web of Knowledge among 300 highly-cited mathematicians. An expert in the field of partial differential equations, one of his recent research interests is mathematical modeling of tumor-driven angiogenesis.

Dr. Glenn B. Morey: Bachelor of Science - Geology 1957
Glenn B. Morey is presently Professor Emeritus, University of Minnesota, Winchell School of Earth Sciences. After earning a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1957, Dr. Morey enrolled in graduate studies in the Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis that resulted in both a Master's degree (1962) and a Ph.D. degree (1965). Both degrees focused upon aspects of rocks of Precambrian age in the Lake Superior region. He joined the professional staff of the Minnesota Geological Survey as a geologist in 1965 and became Principal Geologist and General Supervisor of geologic activities in the Precambrian terrane of Minnesota in 1973. He was named Associate Director of the Survey in 1976 and in 1979 Chief Geologist was added to his title. From 1986 to 2001, the year of his retirement, Dr. Morey held the titles of Professor in the Department of Geology and Geophysics, where he was a member of the graduate faculty in the areas of stratigraphy and sedimentology; and Associate Director and Chief Geologist, Minnesota Geological Survey.
Dr. Morey’s research activities and interests have been general geologic mapping in Minnesota, especially in the Archean rocks of northern Minnesota; stratigraphy and sedimentology, with emphasis on interrelationships of tectonics and sedimentation in rocks of Proterozoic age; Minnesota’s mineral resources, with particular emphasis on iron ore of the Mesabi range of northern Minnesota and manganese resources of the Cuyuna range in east-central Minnesota; and an abiding interest in the history of geology, particularly the Lake Superior region.
Dr. Morey’s professional accomplishments are well-documented in over two hundred publications, including geologic maps, books, and reports. Early in his career, in 1972, he co-edited with then Survey Director PK Sims the book, Geology of Minnesota: A Centennial Volume. It remains today the single most important and best compendium of the state’s geology. His constant and broad interest in Precambrian studies is apparent in the majority of his scientific papers, and his dedication to field studies and geologic mapping produced dozens of maps on local, regional and state scales. Other publications point to Dr. Morey’s dedication to public education. In 1996 he received a Teamwork Award from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for creating and producing “Geology of Minnesota—A guide for Teachers.” In 1986 the Institute on Lake Superior Geology awarded him the prestigious Goldich Medal for “Outstanding contributions to the geology of the Lake Superior Region”.

Dr. Charles Taylor: Bachelor of Arts - Chemistry 1952, Bachelor of Arts - Physics 1952
Charles W. Taylor earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from UMD with a double major in chemistry and physics in 1952. He then entered the graduate program at the University of Wisconsin. Shortly after completing a Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1956, Dr. Taylor accepted a scientist position in the Central Research Laboratory at 3M. His distinguished career at 3M spanned nearly four decades and included a variety of projects focusing on organic chemistry, biochemistry and medical devices. In addition to numerous records of invention, Dr. Taylor holds a dozen patents on pressure sensitive adhesives, dental restoratives, high performance polymers and biocompatible materials. When he retired from 3M, he had achieved the highest level of scientist, namely 3M Corporate Scientist.