Momentum - The Magazine for Virginia Tech Mechanical Engineering Vol. 3 No. 1 Spring 2018 | Page 4

From the Dept Head
Azim Eskandarian
Alum drives success forward
with departmental chair
We can never say enough thanks to our
supportive Alumni. I am very pleased
and honored to report a new $2 million
endowed professorship entitled, the
Nicholas and Rebecca Des Champs Chair
in Mechanical Engineering. In 1962
Nicholas Des Champs earned a bachelor's
degree in mechanical engineering from
Virginia Tech. In 1967 he was one of two
members of the first class of PhD students
in ME. This year he and his wife, Rebecca
have continued their legacy of support to
the university by endowing the department
with this chair position.
To Nick and Becky and all the members
of the Des Champs family, I want to
express my immense appreciation. Their
gift will ensure future generations of
students continue to have access to the
highest quality training and education and
create new and exciting opportunities for
research and discovery.
In this issue we also talk to some of our
female faculty and students to learn more
MOMENTUM
SPRING 2018
about their experiences in being a suc-
cessful woman in mechanical engineering.
They share their stories of engineering
education and life in industry and aca-
demia. While the good news is we are
doing better in inclusivity, there is so much
work yet to be done, and our department is
taking every step to create an all inclusive
and collegial environment for all.
Finally, there is some very sad news I
have to report. In January we received the
news no one wants to hear. George Munn,
who recently joined our ME Advisory
Board, passed away Jan. 21, 2018. In his
time with the board, George became a
vocal member and advocate for the depart-
ment and its students. In addition to his
career in engineering, George served 11
years in the U.S. Army Reserves as a Civil
Affairs Specialist. He most recently worked
as vice president for the Georgia-Pacific
Corporation's Dixie Manufacturing Oper-
ations. I hope you will join me in sending
your thoughts and prayers to the Munn
family.
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