Mechanical engineering unveils new student leadership suite
September 16, 2019
Mississippi State University’s department of mechanical engineering officially unveiled its new student leadership suite on Monday, September 16.
Members of Eddie Johnston’s family, including his wife Pam, unveil the Johnston Leadership Suite. Joining them are MSU mechanical engineering department head Pedro Mago, GTI president and CEO David Carroll and former mechanical engineering faculty member Keith Hodge.
Created thanks to a $250,000 donation from GTI, the new Edward “Eddie” Johnston Student Leadership Suite provides meeting and presentation space for mechanical engineering student leaders from groups such as the ME Ambassadors, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Mechanical Engineering Ladies Organization and the Mechanical Engineering Minority Organization.
The gift from GTI is in memory of former Bagley College of Engineering student Eddie Johnston. Johnston was the senior vice president of research and technology development at GTI. He attended Mississippi State in 1983 and 1984 and then again from 1988-1992.
“Always looking to the future, Eddie spearheaded the effort to create this novel collaborative environment for student leaders, in addition to connecting students with energy industry experts through the Undergraduate Seminar Series,” said David Carroll, President and CEO of GTI. “He was extremely proud of being a Mississippi State alumnus.”
“These engineering students will be tomorrow’s leaders, creating innovative new technologies that could help secure the world’s clean energy future. GTI is excited about the opportunity to introduce the next generation to a prosperous career that will benefit society at large.”
The new leadership suite in Carpenter Hall will feature a display with video conference capabilities, wireless connections for presentations and meetings and space for student leaders to host visitors and potential collaborators.
“I am thankful to GTI for their strong support to create the Edward “Eddie” Johnston ME Student Leadership Suite,” said Pedro Mago, department head for mechanical engineering at Mississippi State. “I am honored to have Pam Johnston, Eddie’s wife, and their family, and David Carroll, GTI President and CEO, at the opening of the new suite. We hope that this suite embraces Eddie’s vision of improving the quality of education and leadership skills of our ME students.
“We are also grateful to Paula Gant and Kristine Wiley, from GTI, for speaking to our ME Undergraduate Seminar Series sponsored by GTI. We will be forever grateful to Eddie and GTI for their vision of helping our ME department and students.”
The GTI donation will also create an endowment to help fund the Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Seminar Series, which was established in 2016. The series hosts guest speakers that provide information to mechanical engineering students about different career paths, including scientific research, in an effort to help those students set career goals.
GTI is a leading independent research, development, and training organization addressing global energy and environmental challenges.
The Bagley College of Engineering is online at www.bagley.msstate.edu and can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube at @msuengineering.
Mechanical Engineering is the largest academic department within the Bagley College of Engineering and the third largest department at Mississippi State. The department is well recognized nationally and internationally for its excellence in engineering education, research, scholarships, service and outreach.
Mississippi State University is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.
By: Philip Allison