Department of Computer Science, College of Engineering, Drexel University
CS Alumni News
Issue 9/10                                                               Winter/Spring 2012
Drexel Campus
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?
Robert Hessler
Rob Hessler imageClass Year:  1988
Degrees: BS in Computer Science
Currently: Robert's been working for Verizon since 2000; currently he's a lead systems analyst with the call management systems usability and speech sciences team.  His primary responsibility is the voice user interface for Verizon's technical support and order status voice portals.  Robert, his wife, and three children live in Bucks County.  He's an avid distance runner, having completed 12 marathons, as well as an active member of the Knights of Columbus.
Jason Frye
Jason Frye image Class Year:  1997
Degrees: BS in Computer Science
Currently: Jason is a director in the Office of the CTO at BMC Software, with a particular emphasis on Mobility and Cloud Computing.  Previously, he was responsible for all technical marketing functions across BMC's Enterprise Service Management portfolio.  He has served as a Sr Product Manager for BMC's Cloud Lifecycle Management solution and BMC's partnership with Cisco for Unified Computing.  Jason lives in McLean, Va. with his wife and son. Read more about Jason's career accomplishments. 
Barbara (Brake) Timblin
Barbara Drake Timblin imageClass Year:  1989
Degrees: MS in Computer Science
Currently: Barbara worked more than 10 years in the software industry at Oracle, Symantec, Texas Instruments, and IBM Tivoli in technology services and solutions, product specialist, product marketing, sales and distribution, as well as education. Barbara then took 10 years off raising two boys with her husband Andrew in Vienna, Va. Her love for education drove her back into the work force; she received another degree in education with a concentration in mathematics.  Barbara is now an 8th grade math teacher in algebra at Lanier Middle School in Fairfax, Va.
Read more news about our alumni here

In Memoriam: Dr. Werner Krandick

     The Department of Computer Science is very saddened to announce the passing of Professor Werner Krandick, March 26, 2012. He is sorely missed by the Drexel community. 

     Dr. Krandick received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Ohio State University in 1992 where he wrote his thesis, "Symbolic Methods for Polynomial Complex Root Calculation," under the supervision of his advisor, Dr. George Collins. Prior to achieving his Ph.D., he received his B.S. and M.S. in Mathematics respectively at Universit�t Freiburg in 1981 and Universit�t Bonn in 1987.

      He joined Drexel University as an Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science in 2001 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2006. Dr. Krandick was an outstanding professor whose lectures were detailed and precise, allowing students to fully comprehend complicated mathematical reasoning. Read more about his accomplishments as a valuable member of the Department of Computer Science, the College of Engineering, Drexel University, and his research community.

CS Students are Nat'l Champions in Imagine Cup; World Finals Next 

    Team Drexel DragonsSenior Computer Science majors Keith Ayers, Matt Lesnak, and N. Taylor Mullen, who make up Team Drexel Dragons, claimed the national title in the "Game Design-Phone" category at the Microsoft Imagine Cup Finals and are now representing the U.S. at the World Championship held in Sydney, Australia in July. 

     The team's project, MathDash, is a fast-paced game aimed at elementary-aged students, to reinforce math skills via an entertaining Windows Mobile Phone game. Design and development of this game is part of the team's senior design project, and they are working with area schools to field test it. 

     MathDash is joining 106 teams from 75 different countries in the worldwide finals and against projects from Brazil, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Indonesia, Korea, Lithuania, and Romania in the "Game Design-Phone" category. Read moreView pictures of the team's experience at the U.S. Finals here. Watch the MathDash video

VisAssist Takes First Place in CoE Senior Design Finals

      VisAssist, a mobile application software suite to help individuals with visual impairment, won first place at Drexel's College of Engineering Senior Design Group Competition, June 6, 2012. 

     The team, which consists of members Trevor Adams, Nate Bomberger, Tom Burdak, Shawn Busolits, Andrew Scott, Mateusz Stankiewicz, and Nate Vecchiarelli, took top honors in the Department of Computer Science's Annual Outstanding Senior Project Competition, May 22, 2012. Read more about the CS Department's 2011-12 projects here

     The seven members of VisAssist worked closely with Overbrook School for the Blind to develop solutions that help the students' technological needs. The entire suite consists of five products:including the Contrastinator, BinoBoard, Facebook Navigator, Twitter Navigator, and MediaWiki Navigator. The team's mission is to enhance the lives of the visually impaired through the use of technology. For more details about each individual product, visit VisAssist's website here.

Drexel Hosts Third Random Hacks of Kindness Philadelphia

     Random Hacks of Kindness logoMyHighSchoolGuide.com, a local school search tool, was the first place project at Random Hacks of Kindness (RHoK) Philadelphia, held at Drexel University June 2-3, 2012. This is the third RHoK event Drexel has hosted.

     The online high school guide provides users with a listing of high schools in the Philadelphia area and the requirements and academic standards of each to assist in applying. Watch the video of the team's presentation here. LGBTRights.me took second place, offering users LGBT and anti-discrimination legislation by state and municipality, and an immigration law and common terms and concepts resource called PeopleMigrate.com placed third. Read Technically Philly's project recap here.

     RHoK  gathers the brightest hackers and problem-solvers around the world to to create immediately applicable solutions to real world problems. It was founded in 2009 in partnership between Google, Microsoft, Yahoo!, NASA and the World Bank. Read more.

Dr. Robert Sedgewick Presents, Mike Brennan Awarded at Modi Lecture

     mike brennan imageRobert Sedgewick imageDr. Robert Sedgewick (Princeton University) was the distinguished guest speaker at the Fourth Annual Jay Modi Memorial Lecture, April 9, 2012.

     His presentation,  "Algorithms for the Masses" focused on nearly four decades of work toward bringing the study of algorithms into the mainstream, with diversions into computer science education, research on analytic combinatorics, and speculation on the future of publishing, all with significant implications for algorithms research. Download the video hereDr. Sedgewick's research interests include mathematical techniques for the analysis of algorithms, design, of data structures and algorithms, and program visualizations.

     Prior to the lecture, CS Ph.D. candidate Mike Brennan received the Jay Modi Memorial Award, which is presented annually to a Computer Science Ph.D. student in recognition of academic excellence and the potential to become a leader in the field. Brennan is currently working with Dr. Rachel Greendstadt in the Privacy, Security and Automation Lab (PSAL) . Read more about Brennan's academic accomplishments here

     Visit the Jay Modi Memorial Lecture website to view past presenters and learn more about the Ph.D. award. 

Note from the Department Head

Jeremy Johnson image

     On June 15, 105 students graduated from our department with bachelor's and master's degrees, including Louis Kratz and Walt Mankowski, both of whom completed the doctoral program and received their Ph.D.  We had an amazing group of graduating students, as seen by some of the accomplishmentsdescribed in this newsletter. This year's class may have been one of the smallest over the past few years, but the department has seen a steady increase in enrollment as the interest in CS and SE increases to meet industry needs. Besides a healthy job market, computing is in a period of renaissance as people find more interesting applications and challenges (as you'll see in the Random Hacks of Kindness article). 

     This newsletter also brings an announcement that marks an important stage in my life, as I have decided to step down after 10 years as Department Head and return full time to teaching and research.  I have enjoyed working with so many wonderful people and interacting with so many fabulous students and alumni.  I am confident that the department will continue to move forward under the new leadership of Dr. Spiros Mancoridis, who will serve as Interim Department Head.

 

Sincerely,


 Jeremy Johnson

 

Department News & Notes

 

Geoffrey Oxholm presented at the International Symposium on Virtual Reality, Archaeology and Cultural Heritage.

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Prof. Jeff Salvage, CS alumnus Travis Himes develop smartphone application.

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Dr. Dario Salvucci highlighted in San Jose Business Journal and The Atlantic.

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Dr. Ko Nishino, Louis Kratz's research published in IEEE journal.

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Kelly Blincoe wins ACM research competition at ICSE 2012.

 

Click here for more news.

Jobs Opportunities for Alumni

 

Technology Teacher/Tech Support

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Senior Analyst

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Software Engineer

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AI Scientist 

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AS3 / Adobe AIR Mobile Developer

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PhP Programmer

 

Click here for more job opportunities

Quick Links 
Alumni Weekend and Spring Phillies Game
The CS Department sends a hearty thanks to everyone who attended Alumni Weekend and the Phillies Game in May. Pictures of the events are on the department's Facebook and Flickr pages. 
Please contact the editor, Julie Fisher, for any questions or information
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of Computer Science and its newsletter.
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