The Chair's Corner

Eric E. Hellstrom (33K JPG)

It is with a mixture of sadness and excitement that I write to you for this first time as department chair. Sadness because of the death of Frank J. Worzala in August 1996, just weeks after he retired. Excitement and anticipation because of the extensive renovation underway in our building and the dynamic future it symbolizes.

We all miss Frank and his boundless energy, enthusiasm, optimism, and abundant love for life. With Frank's death, the department lost one of its great ambassadors. He always had time to talk to students and give them personal, academic and professional advice. Frank was also a very effective conduit between the department, the college and Wisconsin industry.

Officially, Frank retired on July 1, 1996. In reality, he only planned a semi-retirement. He intended to continue teaching classes in the department and had made arrangements to go to France with Diane, his wife, to work on his materials book. He was also planning to spend time visiting you, our alumni and friends, to ask for your input as we work to shape our future, and to let you know how important your contributions are to the health of our department and the development of our students.

Slated for completion in January 1998, the department's building renovation is transforming our turn-of-the-century building into a high tech facility that I believe will be one of the showcase buildings on the engineering campus. Our physical facilities will soon reflect our long-standing commitment to excellence and state-of-the-art education. Our goal is to become one of the top five materials departments in the nation and to do so within the next 5-10 years. Our talented and dedicated faculty and staff are committed to making this vision a reality.

But we'll need your help. The cost of educating students continues to rise and attracting the best students, graduate and undergraduate, is becoming increasingly more competitive.

A supportive alumni and strong industrial base have always been one of our greatest strengths and will continue to be a critical component of our success. Two new scholarship funds have been established--the Frank J. Worzala Scholarship Fund, in Frank's honor, and the Harry M. Clarke Scholarship Fund in honor of Harry "Ted" Clarke, a 1936 department alumnus. While the Clarke endowment is already $1.1 million strong, the new Worzala scholarship endowment is currently large enough to fund one $1,200 scholarship per year. We would like to offer several multiple-year scholarships to our undergraduates, so if you'd like to contribute, please see the enclosed insert.

We'd also like to hear from you. Let us know where you are and what you are doing by completing the enclosed informational insert. And finally, don't forget to mark May 9, 1998 (Alumni weekend) on your calendar. We tentatively plan to celebrate our renovated building with a special dedication ceremony on that day.

Eric E. Hellstrom
Department Chair