CETA Day, December 12, 2008

CETA once again showcased our talented students on CETA Day. Several seniors presented their capstone projects, first-year students demonstrated a robot project required for their Engineering and Design class (ES 143), and a second-year architecture class, Architecture Design II (AET 233) presented their final projects.

Some of our senior projects are solutions to real-world problems brought to us and sponsored by local industry; others are projects that students propose themselves; all require a demonstration of results. These projects are a valuable integrative experience for CETA students, who must demonstrate what they have learned over the course of their time here through the work they present. Any program accredited by ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology), as many of our programs are, requires its seniors to produce capstone projects.

We were joined by approximately 30 students and teachers from the University High School of Science and Engineering, one of two magnet schools on the University of Hartford campus. In addition to taking in some of the projects presented on CETA Day, the high-school students saw demonstrations of our digital audio studio and took part in a team-building exercise, making a free-standing tower of spaghetti and mini-marshmallows, that we use in our first-year dialog courses.

University High-School students creating a tower of spaghetti and mini-marshmallows in a team-building exercise.

Here are some of the presentations made on CETA Day.

Audio Engineering Technology Program

Senior Projects

Motion Detection Camera
Phillip Jackson and Sher Thao

Sher Tao demonstrating his motion detection camera for visiting University High-School students.

Dust Collector Control System
Martin Morris

Vacuum Tube Audio Subwoofer Amplifier
Edward “Ted” Dreger

Civil Engineering

Senior Water Quality Projects

Vapor Phase Catalytic Ammonia Removal (VPCAR) System
Tiffany Cartier, Steve Mgrditchian

Laboratory-Scale Water Treatment System
Joshua Bartkus, Ricky Mears, Dennis Meurer, Ben Sobocinski

Laboratory-Scale Oxygen Binding Filter Test for New Britian Water Department
Michael Grygus, Jill Gazzi

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Engineering and Design Boe-Bots

Team Andrew Sloate
Ultimate Snow Removal Roe-Bot
Adam Clark, Carolyn Halaburda, Aaron Lesky, Mark Savo

GRR
Fire-Rescue-Bot
Geoff Clark, Rob McManus, Ryan Prieston

MAD B
Boe-Bot Rescuer
Emmanuel Cruz, Bandon Luckain, Amanda Reyes, Dan Wright

Boe-Bot Rescuer

Electrical Hustlers
Using the Boe-Bot to Reduce Manual Labor in a Manufacturing Plant
Danny Cruz, Greg Lallman, Ian Magor

Far Guard
The Latest in Home Security
Stacey Connelly, Teja Gandhi, Rob Piwonski, Theresa Sobocinski

Munchkin Mess Mover
Keeping Designated Lines Clean One Bottle at a Time
Jake Chaloux, Tom Ludorf, Phil Scalise

The Flame Fighter 3000
Emily McMullan, Matt Peeler, Evan Shaughnessy, Chris Tokarz

Code Blue Rescue with Wall-E III
Jenna Daly, Steve Florkiewicz, Madison Tobar

The Nuclear Power Plant Plumber
Dave Asplund, Jared Canney, Cameron Madge

Team M.A.C.E.
Shooting Grounds
Michael Aboumrad, Cody Hucke, Andrew Karis, Eric Steinberg

Boe-Bot: Wired Guidance
Christopher Connor, Ralph Savastano, Richard Smith, Daniel Suttmeier

Boe-Bot Bug
Amy Golebieski, John McCann, Michael O'Neal

Autonomous Driving Boe-Bot
Zohaib Hasan, Nathaniel Perna, Jeffrey Portal

Stair Climber
Garrett Lord, Richard McDougall, Gary Pelkey

The CAT
Onur Akan, Christopher Brown, Jeffrey Laning

Security Bug
Sean Arkin, Brett Jacobs, Christopher Mazella, Nicholas Powell

Rescue-Bot
Stephen Hrica, Paul Eginton Kautz, Jaleesa Kirton, Cody LaBar

Burgler Buster Bot
Jeffrey Neddermann, Daniel Florio, Alec Sibilia, Mehmet Melik

Construction Boe-Bot
Craig Healey, Michael Spindler, John Heaton IV

The Equalizer Bot
Martin Bowes, Zeljko Jagodic-Kuridza, Simon Kudernatsch,
Anthory Panebianco

Dancing Theremin
Thomas Burns, Daljit Cheema, Clinton Fleming, Peter Guzewich

Bot-Bot. No, It’s Paranoia!
Hakeem Barge, Spencer Brooks, Vincent Hynes, Mark Turner

Sammy the Sort-Bot
Harrison Flynn, Daniel Roditski, Kyle Siderski, Amy Sinkiewicz,
Shemika White

Department of Architecture

AET 233, Design II Projects

Translation of an author’s or artist’s work into a retreat house for that author or artist

Todd Conant
Daniel Condon
Spencer Dauer
Ashley Delvecchio
William Leo
Amanda MacDougald
Taimur Malik
Ashley Michaud
Bartek Pociecha
William Stochmal
Judson Thomas
Ervis Zeneli
Derek Zero

Ervis Zeneli explaining his design concept to the jury.

On December 4, Connecticut Innovations (CI) sponsored an Entrepreneur’s Day Luncheon Seminar at the University of Hartford attended by students and faculty from CETA and the Barney School of Business. Featured were speakers from CI, a quasi-state agency created by Connecticut in 1989 to provide strategic capital and operational guidance to emerging companies in high-tech industries such as energy, biotechnology, information technology, and photonics. Although CI was originally funded by the state, it has been self-supporting through its investments since 1995. Among the organizations supported by CI are early-stage technology companies and university-business research collaborations.

Dean Louis Manzione welcomed students and faculty from CETA and Barney as well as people from CI and other organizations. He stated that we owe a huge debt of gratitude to CI, who bring together people from technology and business to the benefit of both. Lou also thanked various people who helped to create the luncheon seminar including Roz Reaback, director of major & leadership gifts, Ann Lankford, CETA, and Sandi O’Donnell, Development, who translated the idea into the luncheon; Clif Scorso, assistant dean of CETA, who supported the logistical planning, and Irina Naoumova, assistant professor entrepreneurship, Barney School of Business, who likewise worked to ensure the success of the seminar.

Dean Manzione welcomes participants to the Entrepreneurs Day Luncheon Seminar.

Dean Manzione pointed out that entrepreneurship lies at the heart of U.S. prosperity; the opportunity for average people to start their own businesses is unmatched by other countries, and that opportunity provides a huge advantage, not only to individuals but to the country as well. And so the state of Connecticut, through organizations like CI, ensures that people have help in commercializing their ideas.

Charles Moret, managing director of business development for CI , followed Dean Manzione in emphasizing the importance of entrepreneurship. CI brings people together, he said, to develop their ideas, making sure that people have the help they need to bring their products to the marketplace.

Charles Moret addresses the seminar.

Following Mr. Moret was Mike Roer, the executive director of the Connecticut Venture Group and president of the Entrepreneur Education Foundation, who spoke about the Collegiate Business Plan Competition. This statewide event invites college students to submit business plans that are reviewed by business financing experts. At the spring 2009 finals of the competition, the deadline for which is April 14, 2009, the finalists will make three-minute presentations of their plans to experts who will determine the winners. Top prizes include start-up grants and technology grants.

Mike Roer explains the importance of the Collegiate Business Plan Competition.

Anthony Cuifalo and Brian Smoliga, from Central Connecticut State University, won a start-up grant in last year’s competition. They emphasized how useful the advisory board they formed with CI’s help has been. Feedback on their own ideas and fresh points of view have been extremely important for them as they work on their business called Digi-Wait in an incubator supported by CI. Cuifalo and Smoliga said that other start-ups’ experiences have guided them as they work toward marketing their product.

Anthony Cuifalo and Brian Smoliga explain how the start-up grant they won last year has helped them begin their own business.

Dan Wagner, an investment associate with CI, reiterated the importance of investing in start-ups for the economic well-being of the state and the country.

Dan Wagner addresses the seminar participants.

Irina Naoumova, assistant professor of entrepreneurship and director of the Barney Institute for Entrepreneurship at the Barney School of Business here on campus pointed out that Connecticut learned from the Asian economic crisis of a few years ago and from various studies that show that when entrepreneurship is strong, economies grow. She offered a collaboration of business with engineering and technology and thanked all the speakers.

Irina Naoumova makes the closing remarks at the luncheon seminar.

Students from both the business school and CETA who attended this luncheon seminar expressed their interest in being able to work together start their own businesses.

CETA Contributes to Open Hearth

Open Hearth, founded in 1884, is one of Hartford’s most respected human service agencies, a residential living program for homeless and addicted men in recovery. Located in downtown Hartford, Open Hearth offers a traditional emergency shelter, a transitional living program, single room accommodations, and a home ownership program. It also operates a wood products business that serves as a work therapy program for the organization and supplies firewood to more than 1500 residences and restaurants.

CETA is proud to have sponsored a tee in Open Hearth’s Sixteenth Annual Benefit Golf Tournament held this fall at the Hartford Golf Club and which raised money for the organization’s operating budget. The honorary event chairman of the event was Boston Celtics’ player and coach K.C. Jones, who is currently special assistant to the Director of Athletics here at the University of Hartford doing color commentary for the men’s basketball team.

Clif Scorso, CETA's assistant dean; Ann Lankford, CETA's liaison manager and Open Hearth board member; and Eric Ringwood, Open Hearth's director, with the sign that appeared on the course during the outing.

CETA is also connected to Open Hearth through our liaison manager, Ann Lankford, who also serves as Student Services manager for our Architecture students. Ann sits on the Executive Committee of the board, chairs the Department of Corrections Comittee, and serves on several other committees, including the 125th Anniversary Planning Committee, which has been organized to celebrate this major milestone in Open Hearth's history, which occurs in 2009.

CETA hopes to continue our connections to Open Hearth.