Alumni News from Drexel's Department of Computer Science

Department of Computer Science, College of Engineering, Drexel University

Issue 5 Winter 2011

Welcome to the e-newsletter from Drexel's CS Department. Every quarter we plan to keep in touch with our alumni by sending student, faculty and alumni news and achievements. For more information about alumni events and activities, please visit our Alumni Website.

Where are they now?

John Mattei

Class Year: 1999

Degrees: BS in Computer Science

Currently: John is currently working as a software developer for a certified Microsoft partner, ASI Business Solutions, Inc., in King of Prussia, Pa. Daily development includes writing systems to handle enormous volumes of pharmaceutical data, using Visual C++ and Visual C#.Net. He is also slowly building his own software development company with his father, Ralph, called Mattei Systems Intelligence, which will develop Windows Phone 7 apps. When he's not working, John likes to spend as much time as possible with his family: Bridget, Angela and Peter.

Garry Rosenzweig

Class Year: 1992

Degrees: BS in Computer Science

Currently: Gary founded CleverMedia, Inc. in 1996, an Internet content company that makes games and podcasts. He has produced hundreds of games for CleverMedia's sites and clients. Gary has written 16 books on game programming and guides for new computer users. He produces and hosts MacMost.com, a website and video podcast that teaches people how to use Apple products. He lives in Denver, Colorado with his wife, Debby and daughter, Luna.

Jeanne Steuber

Class Year: 1986

Degrees: BS in Computer Science

Currently: Jeanne has been teaching mathematics at Drexel University for six years. After graduating with her BS from Drexel, she received her MS in Computer Science at Boston University in 1990. She worked as a software engineer for a dozen of years and turned to teaching because of having a family. In her free time, Jeanne is a stroke/turn judge at the Lansdowne YMCA (where her children also swim).

Where are you now?

The CS Department wants to hear from you. What have you been up to since graduating from Drexel? Take a few minutes to fill out our questionnaire and tell us about your life. We're interested and so are your fellow graduates.

CS Celebrates Drexel's 2011 Alumni Weekend with the Phillies

The CS Department has two exciting activities planned for Drexel's Alumni Weekend, May 6-7, 2011. Friday, May 6: Join the department at Citizen's Bank Park and watch the Phillies take on the Atlanta Braves at 7:05 p.m. A limited number of tickets are available at a reduced price of $20 per person (limit 2 per order), so sign up quickly! Saturday, May 7: Enjoy a department tour and reception with fellow graduates at 1 p.m. in University Crossings (3175 JFK Blvd). Afterward, everyone is invited to happy hour at the local pub, Slainte. Email Julie Fisher for tickets to the Phillies game. Register here for Saturday's event.

CS Seeking Graduates from Class of 1986

The CS Department is calling all 1986 alumni! If you are a '86 graduate, or know of a '86 graduate, please email us. This is a milestone reunion for the 1986 alumni and the CS Department would like to commemorate this special occasion. If you are interested in attending the CS Department events, register here. Questions? Contact Julie Fisher at jmf323@drexel.edu.

UPE Hosted Annual Alumni Research Reception & Dinner

Drexel's chapter of Upsilon Pi Epsilon (UPE) hosted its Second Annual Alumni Research Reception and Dinner, Friday, Feb. 25, 2011. More than 50 people attended and reminisced with fellow UPE alumni, current students, faculty, and staff. Students research presenters included:

Gavin Harrison (SPIRAL): Efficient Hardware for Sparse Matrix-Vector Multiplication
Kevin Lynch (Software Engineering Research Group): Aniketos: A Framework for Managing Autonomic Systems
Walt Mankowski (Vision and Cognition): Canonical Patterns of Oriented Topologies
LC Meng (SPIRAL): Autotuning for Modular FFT Algorithms
Geoff Oxholm (Vision and Graphics): Aligning Surfaces Without Aligning Surfaces: Application to Virtual Artifact Reassembly
Paul Snyder (Software Engineering Research Group): An Efficient Fungal-Inspired Overlay for Peer-to-Peer Load Balancing

View the pictures from the event here. This is an annual event that UPE hopes to hold again February 2012. To learn more about UPE, click here.

Video available from Jay Modi Memorial Lecture, Jan. 24

A video is available of the 3rd Annual Jay Modi Memorial Lecture, Jan. 24, 2011. Click here to view the video. Dr. Sven Koenig, associate professor in the Computer Science Department at the University of Southern California, was the distinguished speaker and presented, "Keeping Up with a Changing World." Before the lecture began, Maxim Shevertalov received the 2011 Jay Modi Award in recognition of academic excellence and the potential to become a leader in the field. Read more about Max's research accomplishments here.

This series was established to honor Pragnesh Jay Modi (1975-2007), who joined the CS Department as an Assistant Professor in 2005 upon completing his Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. Professor Modi was an outstanding teacher and rising star in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) community. View past distinguished speakers at the Jay Modi Memorial Lecture website. To see the previous Jay Modi Award winners, click here.

CS Flyers Game Packed a Punch

The CS Department enjoyed an exciting and very entertaining Philadelphia Flyers vs. Ottawa Senators game, Jan. 20. Flyers won 6-2. Pictures of the event are available here. Thank you to all alumni, faculty, students and staff who attended and made this event a great success!

Note from the Department Head

As we begin spring term, we are busy planning for the Department of Computer Science's second annual Alumni Weekend in May. This year's event will kick off with a Phillies game Friday, May 6, followed by a department tour and reception Saturday, May 7. The weekend wraps up with a happy hour celebration Saturday evening at the local pub, Slainte. This year's Alumni Weekend will highlight the 25th year reunion of the class of 1986. We encourage all alumni to drop by, catch up with friends and former faculty, and learn all of the new and exciting things that are happening in our department. I look forward to seeing everyone in May.

Jeremy Johnson