Halliburton gives $52,000 to College of Engineering
November 15, 2004
By Rafael Mittlefehldt
Halliburton awarded a gift of $52,000 to the
Halliburton representatives Bob Pendergraft, vice president of marketing and strategy, and Arlene Velazquez, university relations presented the gift to Engineering Dean Ben Streetman during an on-campus luncheon.
We want to maintain an ongoing, vibrant relationship with the university, Pendergraft said. Halliburton chose a core group of schools to support, he added. UT Austin was selected because curricula in the
Some of the programs and proposals we received from UT were spot on, Pendergraft said.
Some of the funds provided by Halliburton will go towards equipment for the civil engineering department. Dr. Jorge Prozzi, assistant professor of transportation engineering, said the department plans to acquire a Superpave Gyratory Compactor, a tool which will be used in the laboratory portions of the Asphalt Technology and Asphalt Mixtures Design classes.
Civil engineering students at one time learned about superpave technology by working with the
Halliburtons gift will also support EOE and WEP.
EOEs supported programs include the Academic Leaders Institute (ALI) and several EOE First-year Interest Groups (FIGs). ALI teaches leadership skills to first-year engineers. FIGs allow first-year students to take classes and a weekly seminar together to use each other as resources. EOE offers four FIGs this year, targeting freshman in aerospace engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and civil engineering, as well as one FIG available for all engineering majors.
WEPs programs supported by Halliburton include Graduates Linking with Undergraduates in Engineering (GLUE). GLUE offers students a chance to participate in research opportunities at the undergraduate level to introduce the undergraduate to engineering work experiences and the possibility of a career in research.
Halliburton also supported the LeaderShape-Texas Institute, managed by the Engineering Office of Student Life. LeaderShape is a six-day event held twice a year that offers leadership training to students to prepare them for challenges in the future. Halliburtons contribution will provide that training for 50 students.
Pendergraft, a UT engineering alumnus, said part of Halliburtons close relationship with the university stems from the fact that many Longhorns ultimately choose careers with the company.
We recruit heavily, he said. Its my assumption that were fairly successful hiring UT grads.
During the presentation, representatives from each of the programs supported by the gift spoke to Velazquez and Pendergraft about the importance of Halliburtons support and the future impact it would have on the students participating in those programs. Dean Streetman also thanked Halliburton for their ongoing support of the college and their consistent hiring of our engineering graduates.
Velazquez and Pendergraft then met individually with Dr. Prozzi and program directors to learn more about the civil engineering department and the colleges programs. Afterwards, they received a tour of the Virtual Design Laboratory in the Ernest Cockrell, Jr. building, which Halliburton helped fund in 2002.
Pendergraft recently joined the Engineering Foundation Advisory Council. He graduated in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering.
