NEWS

COES Distinguished Alumni are (from left)) Ronald S. Lindsey, Matthew Wallace, Lt. Col. Paul Konyha, Dr. Marsha Friedrich, Dr. Kenny Crump, Kathleen Cummings (received award on behalf of Joshua Cummings), and Jeffrey Plauche, with Dean Hegab. Not pictured: Douglas Houston, Michael Couvillion, Jesse Wilkins and Dr. Bruce Patton.

The College of Engineering and Science at Louisiana Tech University honored its 2019 Distinguished Alumni on January 25 with a ceremony at the Davison Athletics Complex. College alumni are selected for this award for a lifetime of career success and commitment to the Tenets of Tech. Honorees have excelled as industry experts, served as community leaders and are role models for future engineers and scientists in their fields.

“We are proud to recognize these alumni,” Dr. Hisham Hegab, dean of the College said. “They are not only recognized leaders in their fields, but have also made meaningful impacts on their communities. Each one exemplifies what students enrolled in engineering and science courses at Louisiana Tech can achieve in the future.”

The honorees are as follows.

• Biomedical Engineering – Dr. Marsha Friedrich, OB/GYN of a private practice, Shreveport, Louisiana
• Chemical Engineering – Douglas Houston, Retired President/ CEO at Houston Interest (HI), Tulsa, Oklahoma
• Civil Engineering – Matthew J. Wallace, President /Structural Engineer at Aillet, Fenner, Jolly & McClelland, Inc., Shreveport, Louisiana
• Computer Science – Michael Couvillion, Chief Technology Officer at Alchemy Systems and Founder/CEO of AlexaGuru, LLC, Austin, Texas
• Construction Engineering Technology – Jeffrey Plauche, Senior Vice President – PreConstruction & Development at Boh Bros. Construction Co., LLC, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
• Electrical Engineering – Dr. Kenny Crump, Statistical Consultant, Ruston, Louisiana
• Electrical Engineering Technology – Ronald S. Lindsey, Senior Electrical Engineer at Benteler Steel/Tube Manufacturing Corporation, Shreveport, Louisiana
• Industrial Engineering – Joshua Luke Cummings (awarded posthumously), formerly Director of Transmission and Key Accounts for CenterPoint Energy in Houston, Texas
• Mathematics – Jesse Wilkins, retired from McDermott International as a pipeline and platform designer, Hot Springs Village, Arkansas
• Mechanical Engineering – Lt. Col. Paul Konyha, Flight Director at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Houston, Texas
• Physics – Dr. Bruce Patton, Nuclear Engineer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee

For more information about the Distinguished Alumni Awards, contact the College of Engineering and Science’s Office of Development at 318.257.4971 or by emailing the Director of Development Devin Ferguson at devin@latechalumni.org.