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Graduating Co-op Ambassadors

Engineering Professional Practice Spring Banquet 2017

The Office of Engineering Professional Practice recently held its sixth annual spring banquet at Calhoun’s on the River. The banquet was attended by students currently participating in the cooperative education and internship education programs. Also in attendance were distinguished guests Dorothy Bryson, Dean Wayne Davis and his wife Sylvia, and noted alumni J. Michael Stone (CheE ’63). Stone graciously provides the resources for the annual spring banquet, the J. Michael Stone Engineering Professional Practice Leadership Development Program, and the John W. Prados Chemical Engineering Co-op Scholarship.

Michael Stone with Prados Scholarship Winner Derek Watkins

Derek Watkins was recognized as the graduating John W. Prados Scholarship recipient and also gave the keynote senior talk at the banquet. Watkins is a chemical engineering student from Linden, Tennessee, who did his co-op at Flint Group in Arden, North Carolina. In addition to that, Watkins also served as one of our two co-leaders of the office’s ambassador program along with graduating senior Kalese Howse who did her co-op with Toyota in Lexington, Kentucky.

After Watkins concluded his talk, the group heard from Mike Stone directly and he encouraged the students to read the Orange Booklet he published and provided for the graduating seniors and to additionally commit to a plan for lifelong learning.

All of the graduating seniors that were in attendance were recognized during the banquet and received the Orange Booklet, while those who had participated during the past year as Engineering Professional Practice ambassadors were additionally recognized with a framed certificate and a paperweight decorated with the Engineering Professional Practice logo for display in their future offices.

Also receiving special recognition awards for their above-and-beyond contributions to the mission of the office were Nick and Zach Menning, who received the Henry C. Goodrich Service Award, along with Hailee Smith and Derek Watkins, who received the Jerry E. Stoneking Co-op Engineering Leadership Award.

Todd Reeves with Co-op Students

The evening culminated with the announcement of the two new recipients of the John W. Prados Chemical Engineering Co-op Scholarship for the 2017-18 academic year: Evan Boone, a chemical engineering major who has performed his co-op with Kimberly-Clark Corporation in Roswell, Georgia, and Grayson Jones, who has performed his co-op with the Flint Group in Arden, North Carolina. Both students were completing their third co-op rotation this spring and were unable to attend the banquet in person.

The John W. Prados Chemical Engineering Scholarship offers a grand opportunity for students who excel to be recognized in a substantial financial way. To be considered, a student must be in the undergraduate chemical engineering program, have completed two co-op assignments, and be enrolled in business courses designated for the business minor. In addition to the one-year stipend, the Prados Scholars each receives a number of books upon graduation to help them begin building their professional library.

The scholarship is named for University of Tennessee Professor Emeritus, John W. Prados. He has been recognized for excellence and service to UT for more than fifty years, and by organizations around the nation.

The Office of Engineering Professional Practice is dedicated to helping engineering students find educationally relevant paid co-op or internship positions with one of  hundreds of employers. Our program has been in existence helping students add experience to their education since 1926 making it the second oldest program in the south and one of oldest cooperative education programs anywhere.