Spirit of TECH

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ABESE: CREATE. CHANGE. IMAGINE.

Last spring, the Louisiana Tech electrical engineering junior thought there should be an interdisciplinarygroup of students working in a collaborative, entrepreneurial spirit to develop products and services.

Now up and running: ABESE, (Association of Business, Engineering, and Science Entrepreneurs). Erwin is CEO. Other officers are accounting major Cara Biersmith, civil engineering major Jacob Clanton, mechanical engineering major Robin Pollard, and electrical engineering major Josh St. Cyr.

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CEnIT Inventing the Future of Business

CEnIT, the Center for Entrepreneurship and Information Technology, teams the College of Engineering and Science with the College of Administration and Business in an entrepreneurial quest fueled by interdisciplinary know-how, creativity, and research.

 We are utilizing the strengths of each college to build alliances that enhance our curricula and research opportunities, said Les Guice, dean of Engineering and Science and CEnIT director.

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The Need was Always Real, Now the Dream is, Too

The Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness, begun as a program of the Louisiana Center for the Blind, is now part of Louisiana Tech.

In late 2002, the institute won approval from the Board of Regents. This spring, Woodard Hall hailed the institute s official opening.

 It s an  it now, a real live breathing entity, said Jo Ann Dauzat, dean of the College of Education.  This gives it prominence and an identity.

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Celebrating 30 Years of Biomedical Engineering

Thirty years before the book of genetic instructions for the human body stood brazenly on the brink of completion, Louisiana Tech was already poised to revolutionize biomedical sciences.

In 1972, before he became Tech s president, Dan Reneau the engineer established the biomedical engineering program, with Eric Guilbeau the first faculty member he hired.

 I remember how amazed I was at what was happening, recalled Guilbeau, an Olin endowed professor and chairman of biomedical engineering at Arizona State University.  Dan was able to convince the administration to take a chance on him back when you could count biomedical engineering departments on two hands, maybe even one hand. It was very visionary and included all the challenges of defining the field, and that made it exciting. I remember Dan eloquently arguing biomedical engineering was a new discipline of engineering when most people were extremely skeptical and thought it was a sub-discipline. Dan was very much a part of making that discipline mature, and that came with a huge responsibility to do it right, which he did.

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Hale Hall: Bulldog Tenacity

Tech s historic Hale Hall will get to keep its alliterative name and distinctive H shape as its new incarnation rises daily before the eyes of faculty, staff, and students.

Tech President Dan Reneau both heralded the launch of the new hall and recognized its venerable predecessor during an October 2002 groundbreaking ceremony:

 Hale Hall, more than any other site on our campus, traces the history of our university. After years of planning, we celebrate the beginning of a reconstruction project that will restore Hale Hall to its place of honor as a symbol of our heritage and the promise of our future.

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Now She Won t Have to Go Overseas

Lady Techster standout Cheryl Ford, third pick of the 2003 WNBA draft, is now a standout player for the Detroit Shock. Her selection marks the highest pick ever in the league for a Louisiana Tech player.

Earlier, when the draft and even the season looked doubtful, the Summerfield native worried about the possibility of having to go far from home to play.

 Overseas, I might have to be there three or four months. Some people stay a year, but I don t think I could do that, she said.  I would miss my mom the most; she s my backbone.

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Alumnus of the Year Loves to Laugh

Big band music took the floor; radios pulled families close; Hollywood s  Golden Age glistened.

Times have changed since Doug McGuire arrived at Louisiana Tech, but his love for the university has not.

 I\'m so proud of Tech and my graduation from it, said McGuire, a retired United Methodist minister who was named Tech\'s Alumnus of the Year for 2002.

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William Ardis Marbury Jr., Administration and Business Alumnus of the Year

William Ardis Marbury Jr. earned his bachelor\'s degree in business from Louisiana Tech in 1936. Upon graduation, he entered the fire and casualty insurance business.

In 1944, he and his wife, Virginia, established William A. Marbury & Co. Inc., a managing general insurance agency. After selling that agency, the Marburys and their associates founded Bankers Life of Louisiana. Today the Marbury Companies thrive in Ruston and have had a major impact on the community and its economy.

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Supporting the Educational Mission of our University

The mission of the Louisiana Tech University Foundation is to facilitate support forTech s goals, programs and activities through effective communication with theuniversity\'s internal and external publics. Established in 1962, the Tech Foundation provides support to the university through contributions from alumni and friends, as well as through the management of endowments. Areas targeted for this support include faculty, students, student recruitment, athletics, and the printing of university publications such as The Tech Report.

The value of foundation assets at the end of the 2002 fiscal year was $41.7 million.

In 2002, the amount of matching gifts initiated by employees and received from corporations increased to $257,001.

Employees can consult their human resource departments to determine the availability of matching funds and send a matching-gift form with their gift.

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