Savannah Maples is a senior in Industrial and Systems Engineering. She is also enrolled in the Spanish minor program. After completing her Bachelor’s degree, she plans to earn a Master’s degree in Auburn’s Industrial Engineering program in conjunction with the Occupational Safety and Ergonomics Injury Prevention Center. She hopes to work in the medical field one day, applying engineering principles to hospitals to bring better healthcare to her community.

Savannah was an Executive Board member during the creation of the Auburn oSTEM chapter and currently serves as oSTEM’s treasurer. She is a member of 100+ Women Strong at Auburn, the Society of Women Engineers, the Honors College, and the Honors Congress. She has earned several scholarships, including AU Presidential Scholarship, AU College of Engineering Dean’s Achievement Scholarship, Mercedes Benz Scholarship, and Joe W. Forehand Endowed Scholarship. During her sophomore year, she was an Outstanding Industrial Engineering Student of the Year nominee. She has been on the dean’s list every semester of her academic career.

During her time at Auburn, she has worked in the Honors College office at the front desk. She has also been a notetaker for students with accommodations in several of her classes. In her free time, she enjoys sewing, knitting, reading, and sleeping.

Liana Wood is a junior majoring in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Brentwood, Tennessee. Liana worked as a Systems Engineering Intern for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics during the summer of 2020 , where she led the design, development and implementation of a database system to facilitate communication and documentation amongst the members of her team. Liana will be returning to Lockheed Martin in May of 2021 to continue support ing a nd inciting innovative solutions for her team . Liana greatly enjoys working to support national defense initiatives and the meaningful endeavors of Lockheed Martin.  

Liana continues to relish her various academic opportunities at Auburn University. Liana has completed a minor in Spanish, culminating in an immersive study abroad experience during the s ummer of 2019 in Barcelona, Spain. Additionally, she was selected based on her academic achievement to participate in the Business-Engineering Technology minor program, through which she had the opportunity to compete with her team in the 2020 Auburn University Tiger Cage Competition, earning a title as a Finalist and winning $5,000 in startup capital for her team . Liana is a member of the Honors College and has been recognized on the Dean’s List each semester since she began her degree program at Auburn in the fall of 2018.  

Moreover, Liana serves as a leader and member of several Auburn organizations . She serves as a Cupola Engineering Ambassador for the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering and as a Student Liaison for 100+ Women Strong. Additionally, she supports the Society of Women Engineers as Secretary and previously served as the Publicity Chair. Liana enjoyed contributing the greater Auburn community as a Community Outreach Committee Leader for the Big Event at Auburn from 2018 to 2020. Liana is also an active member of the Tau Beta Pi, Alpha Pi Mu, and Phi Kappa Phi honor societies , in addition to her social sorority Alpha Gamma Delta. Liana will always believe in “work, hard work” with a “human touch” to “best serve the country by ‘doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God . ’”  

Justin Rist  is currently a junior majoring in Industrial and Systems Engineering. He is from Madison, Alabama, where his parents (both Auburn Engineers) influenced him from an early age to have an engineering approach to solving problems. This fall, he is beginning a Co-Op program with GE Appliances in Louisville, KY.  As a supply chain Co-Op with GE, he will be required to study assembly lines and implement changes to improve safety, efficiency, and quality.

As an active member of the Auburn family, Justin is dedicated to improving himself and his university through academic achievement and campus involvement. He has been selected to the University dean’s list and been a member of the Honor’s College every semester he has been a student. Playing the saxophone, he has served as a member of the Auburn University Marching Band and Concert Band, along with smaller ensembles such as the Nova Quartet. Justin strives for excellence in these ensembles, as he wants those who see him perform to experience the same excitement and pride that he has for Auburn.

Outside of education and work, Justin serves as a dedicated member his home church. Through his church, he had both leads and participated in mission and service projects focused on objectives such as building repair and outreach. These projects include service in locations such as Memphis, TN; Atlanta, GA; and Aosta, Italy. While a student at Auburn University, Justin will continue to improve himself, his community, and his university through his dedication and hard work. 

Caitlyn Kilianski is a senior in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Madison, AL. Starting in fall of 2015, Caitlyn began co-oping with Rheem Manufacturing Co. in Montgomery, AL, and has since completed four terms within their industrial engineering department. During her co-op, she was responsible for doing many time studies, creating and updating line balances, creating and updating routings, and dealing with the overall efficiency of the manufacturing plant. She is looking forward to her final two years at Auburn and is excited about getting more in-depth with her major. "Co-oping has been a wonderful experience, and it has taught me so much about being an engineer in the real world. It teaches you how to interact with fellow workers and how to take initiative. However, I am excited to be back to classes at Auburn as well. I started co-oping my first semester sophomore year, so I have not gotten to take too many major classes yet. I am hoping to apply my knowledge gained from my co-op in my future classes and continue to learn new things."

Since starting at Auburn in 2014, Caitlyn has also been active with WEGL 91.1, Auburn University's on-campus radio station. She has hosted a radio show once a week every semester she took classes. She was also involved on WEGL's staff for two years, as assistant program director. Caitlyn loved volunteering there and got to take advantage of her creative side. "I love math and engineering--but I also love being creative! Being a part of WEGL has given me a chance to interact with people that I typically wouldn't meet in my classes. It has also allowed me to be creative and put my love of music towards something significant." Caitlyn has also been a member of The Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers for two years. She also had the distinction of becoming a member of two honor societies: Tau Beta Pi and Alpha Pi Mu. She was recently elected to serve as the vice president of Alpha Pi Mu for the upcoming school year. Caitlyn has also earned a spot on Dean's List consistently throughout her time at Auburn. In addition to receiving the Joe W. Forehand Endowed Scholarship, she is also a recipient of the American Cast Iron Pipe Company Annual Scholarship and Auburn's Presidential Scholarship.

Helen Custodio is a senior from Alexandria, VA. She began as a co-op with Rexnord Industries in the summer of 2013, and has since worked 4 full semesters with them. She has worked in the Quality, Safety, and Continuous Improvement programs, and has gained a wealth of new knowledge from each experience. Her tasks have included making training videos for specific machines in Rexnord’s Mexico plant, redesigning a cell layout, participating in Kaizens, creating a Gantt Chart timeline for an extensive General Electric order, and implementing 5S techniques throughout the shop floor. Her favorite part about working in a manufacturing plant is the limitless number of projects to be worked on - there is always room for improvement, so there is no opportunity to be bored. In addition to making improvements that can be noticed throughout the shop, she was able to learn about and deal with the complexity of human interaction and how that plays into making these improvements last. 

As a high-achieving scholar, Helen earned distinction in the engineering honor societies Alpha Pi Mu as well as Tau Beta Pi, in which she holds the position of Corresponding Secretary. She also serves as Philanthropy Chair for Alpha Omega Epsilon, the nation’s oldest engineering sorority, and has organized a school supply drive for Auburn Daycare, a visit to Monarch Estates Retirement Home to deliver Valentines, and a fundraiser to benefit Children’s Miracle Network through AU Dance Marathon. With Helen’s leadership, AOE has also volunteered for various engineering related events, such as the Baja racing competition, Nanodays (a science learning day for children), and BEST Robotics.

Helen and her fiancé, James, are active members of Church of the Highlands and they enjoy attending church services and Bible Studies in their free time. Her hobbies also include running, playing guitar, and reading. Throughout the summer of 2014, she was able to combine her love of the outdoors with her passion for the sanctity of life as she walked across the country with Crossroads, an organization that sends groups of 10-15 college students and an RV to walk in a relay from California to Washington, D.C., bearing shirts that read “Pro-Life”.  Over the course of almost 3 months, Helen walked around 200 miles, witnessing to all she came into contact with and speaking at churches to raise funds and promote her cause. Her trek went through California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, where she was dropped off to resume her co-op rotation, as the rest of the group continued traveling up to Washington, D.C.

Katy Reynolds is a senior in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Hoover Alabama. Interesting facts about Katy are that she loves the color pink and she has an identical twin sister. She Co-Oped for Eberspächer Exhaust Technology in Tuscaloosa, AL. Katy worked on the continuous improvement team where she designed material handling strategies, improved plant safety procedures, and developed documentation for service parts. Last summer, Katy went to intern for Michelin North America in Tuscaloosa, AL. At Michelin, Katy worked for the Industrial and systems engineering department where she performed time studies, and made vast improvements to the scrap and repair work stations.

 Katy is an active member in the Society of Women Engineers, and was just elected Service and Outreach Chair. In October she attended the national conference in Nashville, TN where she was offered an internship with Ford Motor Company. This summer Katy will be moving to Dearborn, MI to intern in the purchasing department for Ford.

 When she’s not co-oping or interning, Katy is working hard at school. She has made the dean’s list six times and received numerous scholarships. Those scholarships include: Board of Trustees Scholarship, National Science Foundation Alabama Alliance for Students with Disabilities in STEM Scholarship, Shaw Industries Endowed Scholarship, Accenture Fund for Excellence Scholarship, Persons with Disabilities Annual Scholarship, and Joe W. Forehand Scholarship.

 Katy is involved in various organizations on campus. She’s a member of the American Red Cross club where she donates blood and helps run the blood drives. She also was a member on the Auburn Hyperloop team that competed at Texas A&M in January. Lastly, she is a tiger tutor and helps tutor student athletes at Auburn.

Jessica   Belue   has had several leadership positions while at Auburn. During freshmen year she participated in the Student Government Association’s (SGA) group called Exploring Leadership in Freshmen (ELF). ELF enabled her to meet many people not only in ELF, but also in other SGA programs. “The most important lesson that I learned from ELF is that leaders need to have a support team behind them to make tasks possible,” Jessica says. This summer, she is a Camp War Eagle peer adviser for the College of Engineering. It is very rewarding for her to help the incoming freshmen determine classes and to address concerns about their academic and social success at Auburn. Jessica is from New Market, Alabama and is a junior.  Last semester, she began co-oping at Rheem Manufacturing in Montgomery with the Industrial Engineering Department.  her favorite task at Rheem was participating in a Kaizen event to reduce the downtime between changeovers in the residential water heater department.  She says, "I wanted to make the residential area more efficient by replacing manual equipment with automated machines and provide techniques to make the area function faster.  My main task during my first co-op term was to make the commercial water heater department more efficient by decreasing changeover time, relocating machines, and improving the process to produce water heaters. I completed many time studies for commercial electric and gas water heaters. This was to get an accurate time for the machines to use for calculations about downtime and changeovers in the future.” The other major task that she worked on was creating and auditing Total Productive Maintenances (TPMs) within the plant. “I have had the privilege to work with other industrial engineers that have given me great guidance and mentored me throughout my co-op term. Rheem has allowed me to take real-world problems back to the classroom and apply real-world situations to the material 

Jessica summarizes her thoughts of ISE: “When I think of industrial and systems engineering, I think of efficiency. I think a system should work at its best ability and the way that it was designed to work. Determining ways to improve a system in order to maximize output and profits is just one reason why I chose this field. I think industrial and systems engineering makes me a well-rounded engineer and allows me to approach engineering projects differently than other engineering majors.”covered in Industrial Engineering. I learned more than engineering principles at Rheem; I learned about the business world and how to reduce costs and therefore maximize profits,” Jessica writes.

Eric Gerrits  is a junior from Green Bay, WI. He completed his third term as a co-op at GKN Aerospace, Alabama this past spring and is currently working as an intern at Gulfstream Aerospace in Savannah, GA. He says, “To me, the most important part of working in the real world is learning the so-called ‘soft-skills’ which can’t be taught in any classroom. Every day I had to work with people of many different backgrounds, levels of experience, and education levels. Being able to work well with everyone is vital in any field, but especially for ISE majors. I feel a lot of what we do involves interacting with shop floor workers, other engineers, and vendors from outside companies, and the only way to learn those skills is through real-world experience. At GKN, learning “soft skills” was by far the most important knowledge I acquired, as I did not work much on traditional IE projects. I worked mostly as a Process Engineer, working with floor workers to improve quality and efficiency on various manufactured parts by re-writing work processes to make them easier to comprehend. However, at Gulfstream I had the opportunity to work on IE projects, doing floor layout updates, optimization projects, Kaizen events, ergonomic studies, and current/future state analysis in the Composites Building. The project I feel like I accomplished to most on was a current/future state analysis of the computer systems in the building. With production on a new model plane being ramped up, more computers capable of supporting 3D CAD software were needed on the floor, and the manager of my building used the presentation I put together to sell the upgrades to his Director.”

Although busy maintaining excellent grades and working in the co-op program, Eric keeps a good balance between academic and non-academic activities. He is an active member of the Greek life community in the fraternity Pi Kappa Phi, where he will serve as the Academic Achievement chair this upcoming school year. He also participates in community service activities through the fraternity, including on-campus IMPACT events and events helping people with disabilities. He says, “One of my favorite events is one we do every semester. We obtain funding through our national philanthropy, Push America, and build a wheelchair ramp for someone in the area who is in desperate need of one. I have gone on this event twice during my time at Auburn, and it is a lot of fun, but also helps someone who needs it. I also enjoy working on the Academic Achievement committee, especially helping new members transition from high school to college academics. Between my academic achievement, work experience and Greek life leadership experience, I believe I am gathering the tools necessary to be a successful person both in the work field and in my personal life.”

Gerrits worked this past summer as a Manufacturing Engineer at Northrop-Grumman Corporation in the Undersea Systems division located in Annapolis, MD. He worked on process improvement and layout design for a new product line, but was also exposed to more technical concepts than in previous work experiences. The technical skills he learned include drafting, tool design, and various machining and electrical assembly processes. “I was exposed to the smaller details of manufacturing concepts and techniques which we do not have the time to learn in great detail in a classroom setting. Being able to combine real-world technical know-how with the classical Industrial Engineering techniques learned in a classroom setting makes us much better able to communicate with different areas within a business. We are able to speak technical lingo with the design engineers, but also understand the business concepts and how everything ties together.”

Joshua Hale  is from Sylacauga, Alabama and is currently a junior in the Industrial and Systems Engineering department. This past summer he interned at Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne (PWR) in Huntsville, Alabama under the Process Leader in the Systems Engineering & Engine Performance department. He says, “The main thing that the Process Leader and I do is look at processes that can be improved by eliminating non-value activities. We do this by using many different lean techniques. One technique we use is value stream mapping the process to locate bottle-necks and unnecessary waste. I also participate in the Future Programs department. Because PWR has most of the market share in rocket engine production, they are in the process of venturing out into new business avenues. I am assigned different business opportunities to research and to determine the market demand and growth for that particular business and to determine if PWR has the resources to be competitive and make a profit. Interning at Pratt & Whitney has taught many things about working in the industry. It has taught me how to work and communicate with people of all ages, gender and ethnic backgrounds and also how to take the skills I have learned in the classroom and apply them to real world situations.”
Joshua has had many different leadership positions at Auburn University. He is a mentor in the Plus program and the AT&T minority engineering program. “My main goal is to help incoming students deal with the transition from high school to college by helping them with their time management skills, study skills and other skills to help them succeed in college,” he says. He is also the newly elected president of the Future Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Faculty Club, which is an organization whose mission is to encourage underrepresented minority students to attend graduate school and ultimately enter the professoriate. Joshua says of ISE, “I liked Industrial engineering because I can apply my skills to almost any area of engineering. While other engineering disciplines focus on one specific area, industrial engineering majors have to grasp knowledge from every area.”

Nicholas Cox, from Birmingham, will complete his third co-op rotation with Pratt & Whitney in Columbus, GA this fall. Regarding his work experience, he says, “Pratt & Whitney has given me the opportunity to experience all aspects of the commercial jet engine overhaul business. Witnessing, helping out, and playing a vital role in the day-to-day functions has allowed me to gain wisdom far beyond the classroom. I’ve had the privilege to lead and work on teams with quality engineers, production engineers, mechanics, cell leads, and ops techs, as well as discuss visions and goals with managers. During my first term, working under the Facilities Manager, I implemented a standard identifier for individual machines and integrated them into an operating system and developed a preventive maintenance schedule. I designed a floor plan layout, leading me to redesign marshalling and inspection carts to improve space utilization, attain higher quality, and offer better ergonomics for the inspector. During my second term, working under the Continuous Improvement Manager, I designed baskets for the disassembly, clean, and inspection process that now resembles single piece flow, removes multiple handling points, and mistake proofs the cleaning process, which achieves a faster turn-time, set-up reduction, and higher quality. Leading a Kaizen team has probably been the most beneficial experience, though. I not only applied many industrial engineering tools, but I learned to communicate effectively the ideas and concepts to others to help provide direction and achieve goals. To put in simple terms, rather than showing someone how to build a boat, with good communication you can teach him to yearn for sailing. This necessitation of communication along with the application of concepts provided by a true hands-on experience has given me invaluable leadership skills, and will surely make Auburn University co-op students like me a competitive hire in the work force.”

In addition to maintaining excellence in academics and participating in the co-op program, Nick is able to balance other on and off campus activities. He says, “I balance my academics with outside activities to ensure I am enjoying life to the fullest. I believe this also makes me well-rounded. As a member of the Auburn University Drumline for the past two years, I recently enjoyed teaching a high school drum camp here at Auburn University. I’ve also played drum set with the renown big-band, jazz group, The Auburn Knights Orchestra. In addition to music, I’ve managed to take part in University Program Council, Institute of Industrial Engineers, and even run the most recent Mercedes Marathon. Each of these experiences has provided me with a mental and physical challenge that cultivates my leadership skills that help me achieve success throughout life.”

Andrew Johnson  is a junior in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Decatur, Alabama. He is also pursuing a commission in the US Air Force through Auburn’s AFROTC program. He has just completed an internship at Hoerbiger Automotive Comfort Systems, Inc. in Auburn, where he undertook several major projects in the production and engineering department over the summer. Some projects included creating contingency systems for critical manufacturing equipment, redesigning existing system layouts for improved efficiency and operator comfort, and participating in a Kaizen blitz activity for continuous improvement. This recent work experience has “helped me learn some of the intricacies and processes in automotive manufacturing, and understand the tasks and challenges of manufacturing on a large scale.” In previous years he worked internships at Joe Wheeler Electric Membership Corporation in Trinity, Alabama, and National Packaging Company, Inc. in Decatur, Alabama.
Besides participating in ROTC, which provides great opportunities for students to develop leadership skills, he is also active in intramural sports and community service projects. He has captained several teams as part of Auburn University’s student recreation, and works continuously with Tiger Habitat for various building and service projects in the Auburn area. He is also an active participant in Auburn Christian Fellowship, and looks to pursue greater involvement with that organization in the coming year.

Kim Krietemeyer, from Dothan, Alabama, is a senior in the Industrial and Systems Engineering department who is also pursuing a Business minor. Kim spent the past summer in Columbus, Georgia interning with Aflac at their worldwide headquarters working in the Project Management Office as a Business Systems Analyst intern. Regarding her work experience, she says, “Aflac gave me so many opportunities that I never could have dreamed of having as an intern. Even though I worked in the IT Division I was always in contact with the business portion of the company. This gave me the opportunity to develop my personal skills as well as to understand the workings of a large company and how each department plays a crucial role in the life of the business. During the summer I was able to complete the current state analysis of the process that determines the commission amounts agents are paid. This analysis included hours of interaction with employees along with many diagrams and documents. My background as an IE helped tremendously when my project team began thinking of possible process and system improvements. I was also given the wonderful opportunity to make multiple presentations to stakeholders of the process and executive management, including the Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer of the company. My experience at Aflac has given me invaluable hands-on experience while improving my leadership and communication skills.”
While maintaining her high academic achievements, Kim has also taken part in other campus organizations. She is currently President of her sorority which she says is the most rewarding experience she has been blessed with. When describing this leadership role Kim says, “I have learned so many lessons through my position that will benefit me throughout my life and career. Although leading a sorority of over 180 young women is not always an easy task, the demanding nature makes the rewards even more meaningful.” In addition to her sorority, Kim is also a member of the Cupola Engineering Ambassadors, through which she is given the opportunity to interact with many prospective students and alumni of the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering.

Philip Martin  is from Mobile, AL, and is a senior in the Industrial and Systems Engineering department and is also pursuing a minor in Business. Philip spent his summer interning at Aflac Worldwide Headquarters in Columbus, GA in the Account Implementation Management (AIM) department. In regard to his work experience, Philip says “It was very interesting to work in the corporate environment. The company is constantly changing and adapting to the market, in both a creative and strategic manner. Everyone working in the department and in related departments was completely on board with any changes or upcoming projects and excited as well. I learned that every department and element of a corporation such as Aflac, even though the company is very successful, is constantly in need of change and improvement. I also learned that people are a corporation’s most important and valuable aspect. Everyone I worked with was so kind and helpful, and I now understand that there is more to work relationships than simply a goal or accomplishment. This opportunity has taught me many things about myself and about the working world, including a new level of work ethic and human relations, for which I am very grateful.”

Philip also believes that it is very important to maintain a good balance between strong academic and social lives. According to Philip, “it is very difficult to be a leader and to be active outside of the classroom without taking care of your personal responsibility. Individual accomplishments fuel my desire to take advantage of my free time. I founded Auburn Students for Life, an official campus organization, and I am currently working towards making Ultimate Frisbee an official Club Sport, of which I am Captain and President. I also believe much of what I accomplish can be attributed to a very solid Christian foundation. As an active member of the Catholic Student Organization, I continue to build on this foundation.” In summary, Philip says “I am very honored, blessed, and thankful to be an IE and to have the opportunity to pursue my education in IE. I know that this field of engineering was meant for me, and never have I fit so perfectly into any academic classes or subjects than I do to those of IE.”

Heather M. Layne, a senior in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, has been named a Forehand Leadership Scholar for the spring 2007 term. Founded by Joe W. Forehand – Auburn ISE alumnus and former CEO of Accenture, this new and prestigious scholarship recognizes ISE undergraduate students who have demonstrated academic excellence along with strong evidence of leadership accomplishments and potential.

During her time at Auburn University, Heather has been involved in numerous and varied campus organizations that have promoted service to the university and community. Within these activities, she has served in various leadership capacities that have incorporated organizational and interactive planning. Beginning with her freshman year, Heather was chosen to be one of the 50 members of Student Government Association’s (SGA) Freshman Forum. As a Forum member, she represented the freshman class at Auburn and organized events geared for her fellow classmates. Through Forum, she also devoted time to giving back to the community through activities including cleaning up local roadsides and volunteering at the Humane Society and a retirement home. During her sophomore and junior years, Heather served as treasurer of her social sorority, an SOS orientation leader for students transferring to Auburn, and a member of the AU Academic Honesty Committee. As treasurer, she was responsible for the monthly collection of dues, weekly deposits, and the daily management of her sorority’s budget. As an SOS orientation leader, Heather led groups of transfer students through an extensive, one-day program in which they learned about the services, programs, and traditions at Auburn University. Through the Birdsong scholarship, she was granted a study abroad opportunity to Austria the summer before her senior year. During Heather’s senior year, she served as vice-president of her sorority and was chosen to be a member of Cater Society which is a selective, honorary group of fifteen senior women recognized for their leadership qualities and contributions to women at Auburn University. Currently, Heather serves as a member of SGA’s Elections Board whose goal is to maintain a fair campaigning season. During the biannual campaigns on Auburn’s campus, candidates who violate the Code of Laws are required to come before the board for a hearing. Finally, for the past three years, she has served as an ambassador to the College of Engineering through the Cupola Engineering Society. Representing the face of the college, she has interacted with prospective, current, and former engineering students.

One of Heather’s goals as she began her college experience was to not only graduate with an engineering degree, but to gain leadership and teamwork skills through non-academic campus involvement. She values and has devoted her time to excellence in both academics and leadership accomplishments which she hopes will better prepare her for future industry endeavors.

Chris Patterson, a senior in the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department, has been named the inaugural Joe W. Forehand Leadership Scholar. Chris is from the Birmingham area. The scholarship was founded by Auburn ISE alumnus Joe Forehand, Chairman of the Board and former Chief Executive Officer of Accenture, the world’s largest consulting firm. The scholarship recognizes academically superior ISE undergraduate students with demonstrated excellence in leadership accomplishments and potential.

Chris, a recent inductee into Alpha Pi Mu Industrial Engineering Honor Society, has completed a full three rotation co-op with Kaydon Custom Filtration Corporation in LaGrange, GA. Regarding his work experience, he says, “At Kaydon I worked under both the head manufacturing engineer and the director of research and development, which led to a wide array of daily tasks and term long projects. I was able to be involved in literally every aspect of the plant, from working on the assembly lines to gain a feel for the plant and an appreciation of the floor operators, to designing of new prototype parts, to laboratory testing of new materials, to process improvement efforts, to validation and implementation of new equipment. This varied work experience has given me the chance to communicate and work alongside everyone: operators, engineers, lab technicians, and even upper management. The diversity of work I was able to be involved in has greatly enhanced my ability to actively apply knowledge learned in the classroom, and has given me the capacity to learn on the fly as well. While the hands-on learning experience speaks volumes on its own in terms of enriching my learning experience at Auburn, I believe even more beneficial is the level of professionalism, maturity, and leadership my co-op experience has afforded me. While these traits are not necessarily learned through one’s course of study, they are essentials in the workplace and are among those characteristics expected by employers.”

In addition to maintaining excellence in academics and participating in the co-op program, Chris is able to balance other on and off campus activities as well. He says, “While I strive to achieve academically, it is equally important to be a well-rounded individual who is an active contributor to the greater community. My involvement in Auburn Christian Fellowship, a local campus ministry, and Auburn University Housing and Residence Life have granted me the opportunity to be involved in more than solely academics. As a member of leadership at Auburn Christian Fellowship, I have had the fortune to help coordinate and participate in mission trips and outreach activities, as well as help lead worship on a weekly basis. As a Resident Assistant on campus, I have been able to not only lead my peers, but also interact with residents from literally all over the globe. This position involves interaction with residents on a daily basis, planning/implementation of events, and coordination amongst the group of staff to help foster a real community and an enjoyable place to live. Each of these activities has allowed me to grow greatly in maturity and further refine my leadership skills. Being able to be involved in each of these organizations has given me a real complement to academics which I have been blessed to have.”