The Antelope Valley Times

Your community. Your issues. Your news.

  • Home
  • Latest News
  • Local
    • Palmdale
    • Lancaster
    • Los Angeles County
    • Littlerock
    • Lake Los Angeles
    • Rosamond
    • Edwards AFB
    • Acton
  • Crime
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Advertise
    • About
    • Contact Us
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    Show Search

“Homegrown Engineers” celebrate graduation

by The AV Times Staff • January 17, 2014

Front L t R: Alexander Torres – BSME, John Warren – BSEE, Phillip Proctor – BSEE, David Salazar – BSME, Eileen O’Byrne-Hudson – BSME, Christopher Duggan, BSME, Kyle Magnuson, BSEE, Derek Abramson – BSEE. Back L to R: Andrew Bernard – BSEE, Stephanie Reynolds – BSME,  Brandon Coterel – BSME, Kyle Phipps – BSME, Jorel Estrada – BSEE, Stephan Bautista – BSEE, Carlos Camacho – BSEE, Aaron Plasencia – BSME. Not pictured are Jeffrey Middleton – BSME and Padrick Jacoby – BSME. (Contributed photo)
Front L t R: Alexander Torres – BSME, John Warren – BSEE, Phillip Proctor – BSEE, David Salazar – BSME, Eileen O’Byrne-Hudson – BSME, Christopher Duggan, BSME, Kyle Magnuson, BSEE, Derek Abramson – BSEE. Back L to R: Andrew Bernard – BSEE, Stephanie Reynolds – BSME, Brandon Coterel – BSME, Kyle Phipps – BSME, Jorel Estrada – BSEE, Stephan Bautista – BSEE, Carlos Camacho – BSEE, Aaron Plasencia – BSME. Not pictured are Jeffrey Middleton – BSME and Padrick Jacoby – BSME. (Contributed photo)

LANCASTER — The first 18 students to complete their Bachelor of Science in Engineering through California State University, Long Beach’s Antelope Valley Engineering Program celebrated their graduation last month at the J.P. Eliopulos Hellenic Center in Lancaster.

The first of its kind, the graduation celebration honored the 10 Mechanical Engineering students and eight Electrical Engineering students who completed their degrees during the two-and-a-half-year program.

Nearly 200 guests, faculty, and staff attended the event to congratulate the class of Fall 2013.

California State University, Long Beach’s (CSULB) College of Engineering and College of Continuing and Professional Education partnered with Antelope Valley College and Cerro Coso Community College to develop the program.

Classes take place at the Lancaster University Center, offering unprecedented access to the industry and internships with local companies and organizations. Students must have completed their first two years of undergraduate coursework at community colleges or other universities before transferring to the CSULB Antelope Valley program.

The graduation celebration culminated well over a decade of hard work initiated by Robert Johnstone and his “Homegrown Engineers” initiative. Mr. Johnstone, Antelope Valley Board of Trade Aerospace Office, volunteers his time and chairs the Math, Science, Engineering, and Technology Consortium and is co-chair of the AVBOT Education Committee. He is a stalwart proponent and tireless worker for promoting STEM education in the Antelope Valley and, in particular, for helping to bring this undergraduate program to the Antelope Valley.

The celebration featured keynote speaker Shawn H. Phillips, PhD, Deputy Chief of Space and Missile Propulsion at the Air Force Research Laboratory, as well as an introduction from CSULB College of Engineering Dean Forouzan Golshani, PhD, and congratulatory remarks from Edward Knudson, President of Antelope Valley College. The celebration concluded with a recessional and dinner.

“This celebration recognizes a major life-changing accomplishment on the part of our students who will become highly productive citizens and leaders in their profession and in our region,” said Program Director Kenneth Santarelli, EdD. “It is also a major milestone for the CSULB Antelope Valley Engineering Program and all of the Antelope Valley education, community, industry, and government partners who have worked so hard to make this event possible.”

(Information via press release from the city of Lancaster.)

–

Filed Under: Education, Lancaster

3 comments for "“Homegrown Engineers” celebrate graduation"

  1. Oscar Mejia says

    January 27, 2014 at 1:07 pm

    Congratulation to each and every one of you. As an Alumni of CSULB (Aerospace Engineering), I know the standards you had to meet in obtaining your degree. Let’s continue to support this partnership.

    Oscar Mejia B.S., M.S.
    CSULB and CSUN Alumni
    Councilman Candidate for 8 April 2014 Elections

  2. Ed Galindo says

    January 19, 2014 at 9:46 pm

    Congratulations to all the new Engineers. To Dr. Santarelli, Well done! CSULB is an asset to the Antelope Valley. Your progressive attitude towards education is refreshing.

  3. Yo says

    January 17, 2014 at 6:17 pm

    Congratulations to all of you!!

Recent Comments

  • Beecee on Lancaster man killed in crash involving big rig: “No, Lol” Jan 16, 16:08
  • Beecee on Lancaster man killed in crash involving big rig: “REEEEE! Very odd use of punctuation marks and such Ms. Melton” Jan 16, 16:07
  • Mike on Op-ed: Kevin McCarthy and Mike Garcia must resign: “Well Bobby, what are your thoughts about what happened at the nation’s Capitol last week? Enlighten us.” Jan 16, 15:52
  • Mike on Op-ed: Kevin McCarthy and Mike Garcia must resign: “If you want the “straight scoop” stop watching Faux News.” Jan 16, 15:44
  • Mike on Op-ed: Kevin McCarthy and Mike Garcia must resign: “I don’t recall seeing congress celebrating ANTIFA. Exactly when did congress celebrate ANTIFA? Give examples. It wasn’t ANTIFA wrecking the…” Jan 16, 15:43

© 2021 · The Antelope Valley Times. All rights reserved. Terms of Use