King blazes path through math

Christina King teaches math at Owensville High School

Christina King teaches math at Owensville High School on Nov. 3, 2015. An OHS graduate, King plans to pursue a teaching career after graduating from Missouri S&T. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

No one told her she couldn’t do it. No one, that is, but herself.

Christina King graduated from Owensville (Missouri) High School in 1997, and her path was clear — and it didn’t include college.

“It wasn’t really anything I thought I could do,” King says. “Coming out of high school, I wanted to get married and start a family. Going to college wasn’t anything I even thought about.”

Eighteen years later, that thought has been turned upside down, and King is set to become a December 2015 graduate of Missouri S&T with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics.

Before coming to Missouri S&T, King’s path was just as she envisioned it. She married her high school sweetheart, Jason. She had two girls, Kaitlynn and Cassidy.

Before she knew it, King’s children were school age. And with Jason gone for a week at a time working as a welder on railroad bridges, King needed something to do. When her youngest daughter Cassidy, now 15, was in kindergarten, King volunteered at the girls’ school.

The seed was planted for her college career to come.

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For Nicole Galloway, a distinguished spot

Missouri state auditor Nicole Galloway studied mathematics and economics at S&T before graduating in 2004. Sam O'Keefe/Missouri S&T

Missouri state auditor Nicole Galloway studied mathematics and economics at S&T before graduating in 2004. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

Portraits of stately men and influential women dating back to the 19th century line the walls of the Missouri State Auditor’s office. Everything looks just as you’d expect in a political office – stately and refined. But right beside the volumes of the revised Missouri State Statutes sits a vintage postcard proudly declaring Rolla, Missouri, as “the home of the Missouri School of Mines.”

For current Missouri State Auditor Nicole Galloway, Rolla holds a special place not just on her bookshelf, but also in her memory. Galloway earned bachelor’s degrees in economics and applied mathematics from Missouri S&T in 2004. Last spring, when Gov. Jay Nixon appointed her as state auditor, Galloway became the first S&T graduate to hold executive office in the state of Missouri.

“When I was a student, no matter where I went, I knew someone,” she says. “If I was going to Rayl Cafeteria to eat breakfast on my own, I’d end up starting a conversation; I always had something to talk about with everyone. I loved that I never felt alone.” [Read more…]

Seeing it through and seeing through it

Matt Horst won a spot in the coveted 2015 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship program for his work in developing a 3D real-time wideband microwave camera that can produce images. Sam O'Keefe/Missouri S&T

Matt Horst won a spot in the coveted 2015 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program for his work in developing a 3-D real-time wideband microwave camera that can produce images. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

At 7 a.m. on a weekday, many college students are still asleep. Others hit the snooze button and struggle to get out of bed for an 8 a.m. class. But not Matt Horst. He is usually already at work in the Applied Microwave Nondestructive Testing Laboratory (AMNTL) at Missouri S&T.

Horst, a graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering at S&T, spends most of his time working in the lab running simulations, fabricating circuit boards or reading literature related to his research.

The winner of a coveted spot in the 2015 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program, Horst is working to develop a 3-D real-time wideband microwave camera that can produce images. [Read more…]

A cab ride can change your life

Tamerate Tadesse tests a circuit during his senior design lab. A native of Ethiopia, Tadesse has been interested in fixing electronics since he was a child. Sam O'Keefe/Missouri S&T

Tamerate Tadesse tests a circuit during his senior design lab. A native of Ethiopia, Tadesse has been interested in fixing electronics since he was a child. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

One of the biggest moments of Tamerate Tadesse’s life came in a cab.

A ride from Lambert-St. Louis International Airport to Wildwood, Missouri. An inquisitive passenger. An even more inquisitive driver.

Tadesse, a native of Ethiopia, took a job as an airport taxi cab driver after settling in the St. Louis area. His English was not very good, so he practiced by talking to his passengers.

“I like to talk to people, I like to ask questions,” he says. “I’d ask them, ‘How was your flight?’”

So began Tadesse’s conversation with Peter Desloge, chairman and CEO of Watlow Electric Manufacturing Co., whom Tadesse was driving to his Wildwood, Missouri, home. [Read more…]

A golden opportunity

Jamielee Buenemann (left) is recognized by Anna Maria Chávez, CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA, at the National Young Women of Distinction event in New York.

Jamielee Buenemann (left) is recognized by Anna Maria Chávez, CEO of the Girl Scouts of the USA, at the National Young Women of Distinction event in New York.

Growing up in rural Missouri, Jamielee Buenemann learned firsthand that many small-town residents are wary of renewable energy.

“People think it is either too expensive or too complex,” she says.

As a high school junior, Buenemann set a goal to demystify renewable energy and make it a reality for the average citizen. She also made this project the focus of her Girl Scout Gold Award. [Read more…]

Haslag brings her ‘A’ game to the court

Krista Haslag, a senior from Linn, Missouri, celebrates with her teammates after the S&T volleyball team defeated the University of Missouri-St. Louis on Oct. 3.

Krista Haslag, a senior from Linn, Missouri, celebrates with her teammates after the S&T volleyball team defeated the University of Missouri-St. Louis on Oct. 3.

Krista Haslag, a senior on the Missouri S&T volleyball team, knows a thing or two about competing. The 6-foot-1 senior from Linn, Missouri, racked up 18 kills over the weekend to become the university’s all-time leader in career kills with 1,257. (Erin Bekebrede, who played for the Miners from 2008-2011, held the previous record of 1,243 kills).

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Hitting the sweet spot

Arielle Bodine, an applied math and economics double major, recently researched why professional golfers receive endorsements through the Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experience at Missouri S&T. She’s shown here at the S&T Golf Course. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

Arielle Bodine, an applied math and economics double major, recently researched why professional golfers receive endorsements through the Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experience at Missouri S&T. She’s shown here at the S&T Golf Course. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

While some undergraduate students peer through microscopes or write computer programs for their research projects, senior Arielle Bodine made the world of professional golf her laboratory. The applied math and economics double major recently took an eagle-eyed look at the factors that led Phil Mickelson and 46 other top professional golfers to pick up valuable endorsements. Her research was part of the Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experience at Missouri S&T.

“Professional golfers make a significant portion of their yearly earnings from sources that are not tournament purses,” says Bodine. “In fact, many golfers make more money from endorsements and off-course appearances than they do from golfing in tournaments.”

Bodine, of St. Charles, Missouri, credits Dr. Michael Davis, associate professor of economics and an expert in sports economics, with opening the door for her to tackle a research project.

“I was taking his Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory class and he asked me if I had ever done an OURE project,” she says. “I thought it would be cool but had never pursued it. Now I’m absolutely glad I did.” [Read more…]

Stars shine on observatory once more

Ken Goss, a senior in computer science and computer engineering, poses with the S&T Observatory's 16-inch diameter telescope. Sam O'Keefe/Missouri S&T

Ken Goss, a senior in computer science and computer engineering, poses with the S&T Observatory’s 16-inch diameter telescope.

An educational asset has reopened to the public, thanks, in part, to the passion and dedication of one Missouri S&T student.

Ken Goss hosted the S&T Observatory’s first Visitors’ Night in over two years on Aug. 20, 2015, giving over 100 community members, faculty, staff and students the chance to get an up-close look at Saturn and its rings through the university’s 16-inch diameter telescope.

Goss says the event went smoothly. “I have enjoyed providing this service for the public, and it seems the public has responded well, so far.” [Read more…]

Something to cheer about

Cheer and dance head coach Erica Long is a 2003 Civil Engineering alumna. Sam O'Keefe/Missouri S&T

Alumna Erica Long, senior academic advisor in mechanical and aerospace engineering and head coach of the S&T cheerleading squad and Gold Miners dance team, poses with her cheerleaders after practice. Sam O’Keefe/Missouri S&T

When former cheerleaders get together, someone always ends up getting thrown in the air. At weddings, social gatherings or even during marriage proposals, former cheerleaders always find a reason to perform stunts. At least that’s what Erica Long says, and she has been working with cheerleaders at Missouri S&T since she first stepped onto campus as a student in 1998.

Today, Long is the head coach of the S&T cheerleading squad and the Gold Miners dance team. For the fifth year in a row, she’s organizing an opportunity for former cheerleaders to throw each other in the air again.

Since 2011, Long has invited former S&T cheerleaders to return and cheer alongside the current squad during the Homecoming football game.

“It started with a couple of alumni begging me to do something like this,” says Long, a 2003 civil engineering graduate. “The first year we did it, seven former cheerleaders came back, including me, and it’s grown every year since then into a tradition.” [Read more…]

Celebrating ‘110010’ years of computer science

Missouri S&T Computer Science Golden JubileeThe first computer on the Missouri S&T campus — a Librascope General Precision, or LGP-30 — was about the size of two desks. Its memory was nonexistent. It retailed for $47,000, or about $400,000 in today’s dollars.

It was worth the price, too. That first computer sowed the seeds of the computer science program at Missouri S&T, the first of its kind in Missouri and a national leader in the field.

To celebrate, Missouri S&T is kicking off a Golden Jubilee celebration marking 50 years (or 110010 years in binary code) of its computer science degree program, says Pam Leitterman, who earned a bachelor of science degree in mathematics from the university in 1975 and is president of the Academy of Computer Science. The celebration will last through the fall 2015 and spring 2016 semesters. [Read more…]

What you should know about the Nest Home

The Nest Home, the Solar House Design Team’s entry into the 2015 U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, receives its final touches before being shipped to Irvine, California, for the competition.

The Nest Home, the Solar House Design Team’s entry in the 2015 U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, receives its final touches before being shipped to Irvine, California, for the competition.

It’s that time of season again. There’s a crispness in the air, pumpkin is in everything, and Missouri S&T’s Solar House Design Team is promoting sustainable living.

The team just shipped its Nest Home, named for its nature-driven approach, to the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon in Irvine, California. And while team members may not build a new house every autumn, you can bet that at this time of year since 2001 they have either been preparing a house for the competition or devising plans for a future Solar Decathlon entry.

Vote for the Nest Home to win the People’s Choice Award.

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