Outlook Magazine - Fall 2024

OUTLOOK ALUMNI MAGAZINE 2024

Alcan 5000 - Andy Lilienthal (’01) and Mercedes Thauer Lilienthal (’00) win 10 day race in their INEOS Grenadier 4X4.

See page 36

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Share Your News We’d love to hear from you, and your fellow alumni would too! Drop us a line about your promotion, a reunion or just to reminisce.

Stout Traditions Your Alumni Association is interested in learning what

traditions were part of your days on campus. Were there bonfires after the hockey games; did you have weekly dances; what event(s) did your fraternity or sorority hold each year? As you think back to those events, please share them with us.

Email alumni@uwstout.edu Phone (715) 232-1151 Online

Share your news or ideas at www.uwstout.edu/alumni

/UWStoutAlumni_Official /UWStoutAlumni /StoutAlumni

Staff Abbey Goers

Drew Davis (’07) , Design Specialist with the VA’s RECOVER team in Minneapolis See Page 26

Communications Specialist, Marketing Communications Jack Hajewski University Photographer/Videographer, Marketing Communications Michael Huggins

Strategic Marketing Officer, Marketing Communications Brenna Jasper

Alumni Relations & Communications Specialist, Stout Alumni Association Cheryl Keyes (‘92) Production Manager, Marketing Communications AJ Liedl

Contents

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34 Blue Devil Hall of Fame

Year In Review

Creative & Brand Manager, Marketing Communications Jerry Poling

36 Driven to the Extreme 38 Donor Stories

Photos of the Year

Communications Manager, Marketing Communications Zach Porter (‘20) University Photographer/Videographer, Marketing Communications Jennie Smith (‘11) Assistant Director of Alumni Relations, Stout Alumni Association

Harnessing the Power of AI

42 45 40 Alumni Awards Class Notes

Feature: By Design

New Kell Golf Center

A thletics

Upcoming Events

Cade Walters (‘14) Graphic Designer, Marketing Communications

Barry Bauer (’83, ’92) works on F-22 & F-35 projects at Lockheed-Martin See Page 12

Feature

BY DESIGN

12 F-22 Fighter Jets for Lockheed-Martin

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Gulfstream Private Jet Interiors

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On Target for Marks & Spencer

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Tesla Supercharger Adapter

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Craftsman of Visual Effects

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Lifestyle Clothing for Nike

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Team Canada x Lululemon

Front Row to Fashion

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3D-Printed & Adaptive Tech for Veterans

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Pringles Package Concept

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The Grand Canyon South Rim Structures

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Scientific Breakthrough Patent Pending

Greetings from Chancellor Frank

Infrastructure Project Previews

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The state-approved $139 million renovation of 50-year-old Heritage Hall , one of UW-Stout’s busiest classroom and lab buildings, is scheduled to begin in summer 2025.

uring the past few years (and past few issues of Outlook), UW-Stout has embraced a new era of opportunity: new infra structure projects; a new repre

Following spring graduation, we will com mence the “Year of Design” at UW-Stout—a yearlong, design-focused celebration. Events begin in May with the return to campus of UW-Stout’s Design Wisconsin, a showcase of innovation from business and industry partners, and the international Polytechnic Summit, and will conclude in summer 2026 with the Walldogs hand-painted mural event that will take place throughout Menomonie. Stay tuned for a full schedule of events. Additionally, thanks to your support and advo cacy, a new esports arena and the Heritage Hall renovation will take a big step forward this year. We are advocating for approval to move forward with plans for renovation of our Recreation Complex, for which we celebrated the largest gift in university history last year from Dallas and Edith Pankowski. And these projects will help to introduce the universi ty’s new Long-Range Campus Plan, which envisions a future state for our university that reflects the unmatched opportunities of our students and success of our graduates. Thank you for your continued support of UW-Stout. As reflected in Outlook and expe rienced everyday both on and off campus, UW-Stout students and alumni are having an impact, demonstrating time and time again that a strong polytechnic university is good for the Universities of Wisconsin, the state, and beyond. With Stout Pride,

sentation of our identity; a new strategic plan; new technology, programs, and approaches to educate students. Innovation in response to workforce and industry factors has guided this university since 1891 and is what distinguishes us as Blue Devils. It is what earned us recognition in 1974 as a “special mission university.” It is what earned UW-Stout the first Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for a four year institution of higher education in the U.S. And it is what the Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents recognized when they amended Regent Policy 1-1 this August to include a polytechnic category and UW-Stout as its sole member. Many Blue Devils may be surprised that this most recent recognition by the Board of Regents did not come sooner, but our push for formal distinction among the UW schools is intentional. As you read in our last issue of Outlook, we are “Building for the Future,” and as you will see reinforced in this issue, this is “By Design.” UW-Stout alumni have used their ideas and education to improve design in the auto indus try, athletics, aviation, entertainment, fashion, interior design, packaging, rehabilitation ser vices, and the sciences. The articles you are about to read are impressive and a sample of what currently exists. They are also a pream ble for what is on the horizon.

The top facilities priority for UW-Stout in 2025 is receiving state approval for the Recreation Complex renovation and addition, adjacent to Johnson Fieldhouse. A $5 million gift, the largest in school history from Dallas ('60) and Edith Pankowski, provided a major boost for the $30.5 million project.

UW-Stout’s state champion esports team will play from a new, state-of-the-art arena in fall 2025 on the first floor of the library, thanks to a $1 million gift from the UW-Stout Foundation. The gift will fund remodeling, equipment and technology.

Katherine P. Frank

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Year in Review

convention , while a student won People’s Choice and Best Animation awards. January - UW-Stout kicked off the new year by announcing a first-of-its-kind apprentice ship program with partners at the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development to train organizational trainers around the state, and the university’s NSA designation as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity for Cyber Defense (CAE-CD) was renewed for another five years. February - Blue Devils made the Women’s Basketball NCAA Sweet 16 after winning the WIAC Championship, and UW-Stout launched a new Center for Rural Opportunity, Pros perity & Sustainability . Packaging students won a Kellogg’s/Packaging Association of Canada Competition for a new Pringles con tainer design, which prompted a visit in March and an official proclamation from U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden . The team continued to rack up awards for the design throughout 2024. March - Gov. Evers returned to campus to learn more about the Department of Work force Development apprenticeship, and the Blue Devil gymnastics team returned to the NCGA national meet . And Momentum West presented the university with a Top Talent Ini tiative Award . April - MilitaryFriendly.com upgraded UW-Stout to gold status, and Stout’s game design programs were ranked in the top five in the Midwest by Princeton Review . Packaging students hosted the international PackJam Conference . Construction management stu dents took second at the national Mechanical Contractors Association of America Final Four and first place in the Associated Build ers and Contractors competition , the latter of which earned them recognition from state Rep. Clint Moses and U.S. Rep. Van Orden . Pro

gram director Barb Bauer was honored with the Wisconsin Technical Education Association 2024 Leadership Award , and Distilled, a board game designed by Professor Dave Beck (with help from Professors Erik Evensen and Cody Reimer) made the NY Times Best Strategy Board Games list. May - UW-Stout’s Valorant team won the D1 Esports State Championship ; construction management students took first place in Ryan Companies’ Pursuit construction compe tition ; Jordyn Springer (’24) was named Wisconsin Academy of Nutrition and Dietet ics’ Student of the Year ; and graphic design students won four gold, two silver and three bronze awards at the Advertising Federation of Minnesota’s Show . After meeting with food science and packaging students and fac ulty, USDA Under Secretary Alexis Taylor announced $20M in funding for the Assisting Specialty Crop Exports initiative. Down state, UW-Stout’s annual industry design showcase, Design Wisconsin , was held at Milwaukee Tool’s headquarters. (In 2025, the event comes home to Stout.) June - Wisconsin Focus on Energy presented UW-Stout with its Energy Efficiency Excel lence Award , in recognition of more than 75 energy-saving projects the university has under taken since 2017. General Motors nominated Julia Hellquist (’23), a mechanical engineering grad, for the national Cooperative Education & Internship Association’s Student Achieve ment Award , which she won. July - Dean of Students Sandi Scott was pre sented the International Association of College & University Housing Officers’ 2024 Parthe non Society Award, and members of our Sus tainability Committee traveled to Washington, D.C., to receive the U.S. Department of Educa tion Green Ribbon School Award .

August - Campus was in full swing long before classes started. UW-Stout was awarded nearly $500K for environmental management proj ects , including a grant for Red Cedar watershed monitoring, and the university was featured on Wisconsin Public Radio for a new solar panel installation on Jarvis Hall. September - University Dining Services received the 2023 Regents University Staff Excellence Program Award for its outstand ing service at Stout, and we proudly welcomed artist William Stoehr (’70), former president of National Geographic Maps, to campus as our Cabot Executive in Residence . October - We celebrated the completion of the South Hall renovation and the launch of a new student Financial Wellness & Literacy Center , which, along with other student sup port and retention efforts, is being funded by a $2.5M U.S. Department of Education award . UW-Stout hosted the inaugural Make48 Career Pathways competition , which challenged high school teams to solve an engineering design-build in less than 48 hours. And stu dents brought home a series of wins, including graduate food science student Areeba Ali (’24) taking first place at BioForward’s BioHealth Competition , a pair of wins at the Midwest Consortium for Computing Sciences Confer ence , and a second-place finish at the DigiKey programming competition . November - Gov. Tony Evers toured labs in our School of Art & Design and Robert F. Cer venka School of Engineering, and just before Veterans Day, Military Times named UW-Stout to its 2023 Best for Vets list. Packaging teams took first and third at the Paperboard Pack aging Alliance student competition in San Diego, and in Arizona they won the Inter national Molded Fiber Association chal lenge . Professor Andrew Williams won his second straight award at the M+DEV gamers

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Harnessing the Power of AI

to leverage university exper tise. It will provide the bridge between the Manufacturing Outreach Center and academic departments to bring applied research; modern technical methods; and laboratory, fab rication and testing services directly to private industry. UW-Stout faculty have exper tise in automation, AI/machine learning, robotics, additive manufacturing, plastics engi neering, packaging, industrial design, fabrication and mate rial properties and testing. The center’s director will be Pro fessor David Ding, who serves on Gov. Tony Evers’ Task Force on Workforce and Artificial Intelligence. How often do we think about the structures inside the prod ucts we use? Anne Schmitz has thought about it plenty while conducting sustainable manufacturing research on mesostructures, or 3D-printed internal lattices that absorb energy and reduce material use. She created a computer model that predicts how the struc tures compress, allowing for design optimization without extensive testing. Her latest research uses AI to fine-tune Enhancing Material Resilience

mesostructure design to poten tially make better products, such as airless tires or bike hel mets with impact-absorbing foam. She conducted the research thanks to the 2021-24 Founda tion’s Fulton and Edna Holtby Manufacturing Engineering Chair award.

Demystifying Prion Diseases

Prion diseases are deadly, and there’s no cure. They include Creutzfeldt-Jacob and mad cow disease, which is transmissible to humans through infected beef. Ava Cinealis (’24) , mentored by Professor Jen Grant, con ducted research on the protein structures of prion diseases. The disease occurs when pro teins develop plaque and mis fold, causing a chain reaction of cell death. Part of Cinealis’ research was conducted using AI software called AlphaFold. “We’re look ing into ways to predict how likely a prion would be to mis fold,” Cinealis said. “There’s still so much to know, but I felt like I was doing valuable work.”

Detecting Rotten Fruit

Spoiled fruit reaching grocery stores — they lose 8% to 10% or more a year — could be a thing of the past if Yuan Xing’s research proves successful. He is developing an automated guided vehicle that would bring fruit in a warehouse to a vision sensor housing a hyper spectral camera. An image of the fruit would be analyzed by an AI algorithm to determine freshness, including presence of bacteria. The vehi cle then would separate the fresh fruit for packaging. Xing received three statewide grants to develop the small scale, spider-like robotic vehi cle, which he demonstrated when Gov. Tony Evers visited campus in spring 2024.

Solutions for Manufacturers

Small and midsize manufac turers in Wisconsin and Min nesota have a new resource — and ally — in their quest for success: UW-Stout’s Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Artificial Intelligence. CAM-AI was created by the Office of Corporate Relations and Economic Engagement

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Demystifying Prion Diseases

Solutions for Manufacturers

Enhancing Material Resilience

Detecting Rotten Fruit

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Outlook 2024

"

It appears in a moment. An immaculate conception. A divine flash of light. An idea that would otherwise require labor to unfold suddenly blooms in a single inhalation. " Rick Rubin, The Creative Act: A Way of Being

BY DESIGN

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esign is all around us. The products we see and use throughout the day. The spaces where we live, work, shop and play. The art, music and entertainment that cause us to act, think more deeply, laugh and cry. Design itself is a product — a product of ideas, the turbid sea of thought that shaped the past, from ancient to just moments ago, and the new ideas ready to “suddenly bloom” that will drive the future. In this issue of Outlook magazine, we celebrate the thinkers who consciously or subconsciously are designers, students who are learning a skill to inspire and change the world, and faculty and alumni who already are changing it by recognizing and acting on their well-spring of brilliance.

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F-22 FIGHTER JETS FOR LOCKHEED-MARTIN

arry Bauer (’83, ’93) remembers the moment early in his career with aerospace giant Lockheed-Martin when his team’s four-year project was put to the test. They had been tasked with designing and developing the leading edges of the Air Force F-22 fighter aircraft, which were key to achieving stealth — avoiding radar detection. When an F-22 vertical stabilizer was mounted on a pole for a radar range test, nothing came back. The work was a success, one of the reasons the F-22 became a stealth jet in the U.S. arsenal. Only when a bird landed on the stabilizer during the test — something that wouldn’t happen on a plane going 1,500 mph — was the stabilizer detected. The F-22 project is one of many successes in Bauer’s 36-year career as a project manager with

Lockheed-Martin. While he may not be a designer, he’s played key roles in leading major projects. His team’s F-22 design remains in use on the state of-the art F-35 made by Lockheed-Martin. On the F-35, he managed the integrated core processor project for the plane’s onboard computer. He led the merger of IT systems when Lockheed-Martin Space and Boeing Defense formed United Launch Alliance. He has worked on projects for the F-16, F-117 and other military aircraft. “Design can go beyond the aircraft. When a plane flies, there’s an army of people you never see working behind the scenes to make it all happen,” Bauer said. “It’s all in the interest of national security. I’m motivated: Some of the threats out there are pretty sobering.”

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Designed by Barry Bauer (’83, ’92)

Sobering also at times for Bauer is the realization that he has managed projects that “have some of the smartest people on the planet” on them. He led the design team that earlier this year received the Engineers’ Council Distinguished Engineering Project Achievement Award for Lockheed-Martin’s Hypersonic Reference Vehicle Application, developed to support the U.S. Department of Defense-funded University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics — UCAH — involving 119 universities, 214 partners and 2,700 people, funded at $100 million over five years. To enable UCAH, Bauer’s team developed a hypersonic reference vehicle, a software modeling tool that could help shape the next generation of hypersonic flight vehicles, or those flying faster than five times the speed of sound. As a country, “We were behind in hypersonic technology so we began to harness the power of universities to do research and then transition results to industry,” said Bauer, who collaborated with defense leaders and the Senate Armed Services Committee. He also has worked as an adjunct professor for 16 years at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, teaching project and business management. Bauer isn’t a pilot, but aeronautics and going fast seem to be in his blood. After high school, he was an aircraft hydraulics and pneumatics technician on the F-4 and other planes for six years in the Marine Corps. He memorized the planes’ operating systems, one reason he was chosen to land on the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier with a pilot to fix an F-4’s landing gear. He soon realized the big difference between himself, the military pilots and others whose careers were really going places — they had a college education. After serving, Bauer earned an industrial technology degree at UW-Stout. He ran cross country and qualified for nationals; after graduating he competed at a high level for many years in marathons and other races. He returned to campus for a master’s in safety and risk and eventually earned two other master’s degrees and a doctorate. Diplomas in hand, the Durand native began to pursue his true passion, aerospace, landing at Hughes Aircraft before Lockheed-Martin. “My goal has always been to master the job and get ready for the next one. It’s been an amazing journey of discovery,” he said.

(Top) F-22 (Bottom) F-35

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GULFSTREAM PRIVATE JET INTERIORS

Designed by Toni Kallies (’12)

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here’s something about a blank slate that stirs ideas in a creator. The sky is the limit. Toni Kallies (’12) sees the possibilities every time

come to life. We make sure it’s the design they expect and the quality they’re looking for,” Kallies said. She has worked on about 400 jets since joining Gulfstream in 2015. She also oversees interior refurbishment for customers who request an upgrade. She earned a master’s degree in project management in 2017. Kallies graduated from UW-Stout in apparel design, and her first job after college was in that field before she found Gulfstream. She found that the general concepts of design she learned at UW Stout transferred seamlessly to interior design. “I never realized until I started working at Gulfstream that design is pretty much in all industries.” Plus, she’s still working with fabric. One of her most impactful UW-Stout courses was in technical clothing design, recalling helping design a mining safety suit that won a national competition. Technical considerations are important in aerospace. “Everything in the air flexes. We have to think about how the materials are reacting to the pressure and the flex of flying,” she said. Designing beautiful dresses was Kallies’ original career goal, but by the time she graduated she realized the beauty of functionality as well. “Design has to be functional in an aircraft. We create these functional furniture pieces but also make them absolutely gorgeous. There’s definitely space for both to exist. Stout prepared me well for the practicality of the industry.”

Gulfstream Aerospace produces a jet in Savannah, Ga., and flies it to Wisconsin to a company completion center in Appleton. The jet, which could be for a CEO, high wealth individual, celebrity or star athlete, is a shell waiting for Kallies and a team of interior designers to bring the cabin to life. While Kallies and team don’t so much design the Gulfstream living spaces, they guide the customer through thousands of options to match their needs and style and help make them feel at home high in the sky. With a $60 million average jet cost, the sky often is the limit in terms of interior customization. Gulfstream has showrooms in New York, London, Dallas, Beverly Hills and Appleton. Kallies helped develop them. “The process is like ordering a custom car but on a grander scale,” she said, noting that customers can see finished planes while choosing their own floor plans and every detail of the living space — wood veneers, fabric for seats, countertops, cabinets, table inlays, flooring, curtains and much more. The visualization team assembles the array of options, which the FAA regulates, and chooses from them to present digital renderings for the customer. Once plans are finalized, workers in Appleton build out the interior to order while the planes are parked in hangars. “We build everything in house, and the design team reviews it all. To see it put together is really breathtaking — and to know the customer is going to be so delighted to see the choices they made

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A STOUT GLIDER

Designed by Aeronautics Club, 1931

esign has been part of UW-Stout’s DNA since Stout Manual Training School opened in 1891. The first students learned how to make

furniture and clothing, among other things. Forty years later, in 1931, students in the Aeronautics Club at Stout Institute designed and constructed a glider. They brought it out of the old Ray Hall to give it some air on the lawn. At right, slightly up the hill and to the north, is Bowman Hall. The club finished the job and succeeded in getting it into the air. The student in the cockpit has aviator goggles on his forehead. Unfortunately, test flights ended that summer when the pilot, Smith, crashed from an altitude of 100 feet, and the glider had to be rebuilt beginning in the fall, according to the Stoutonia. No fatalities were reported.

ON TARGET FOR MARKS & SPENCER

Designed by Dan Runge (’17)

Do you have photos from your days at UW-Stout? University Archives would love to add to its collection. Email archives@uwstout.edu to get the conversation started.

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ales during the holiday season, from Black Friday forward, can make or break a retailer’s year. In 2023, Marks & Spencer of London hoped

Northern,” said Runge, senior structural designer. One of the bus displays, made of corrugated paperboard with graphic overlays, was sent to the Marks & Spener headquarters in London. “I heard all positive things from them,” said Runge, who designed it over five months. “There were unique elements, like curved corrugate. It was an experiment for me.” Runge works at Great Northern’s Brooklyn Park, Minn., facility on a team of 22 employees with six designers devoted to the Target account. They provide a variety of in-store display solutions year-round for one of the world’s leading retailers. At back-to school time, for example, the big bins that hold notebooks and other supplies are designed by Runge and his team. All of his designs need to function as expected and be easy for store employees to assemble. He grew up in Woodbury, Minn., and was happy to find out that one of the top packaging schools in the country was nearby at UW-Stout. He had two co-op experiences with companies, getting a firsthand look at his career before he graduated. “I wanted a job that would stand the test of time,” he said. “My mom worked at 3M with a lot of packaging people, and I was alerted to the career through that.” Runge is enjoying his success. “Just seeing my designs in the stores is very gratifying. No display is as straightforward as you think it could be,” he said.

to make a splash at Target stores by featuring an iconic English double-decker bus display. Target turned to supplier Great Northern Corp. and one of its UW-Stout alum, packaging graduate Dan Runge (’17) to bring the idea to life. Working only with a photo concept and a basic Target fixture, Runge delivered an iconic, red “bus” 8 feet long, 7 feet high and 2 feet wide populated with product shelving instead of passengers. It was designed to separate into pieces and move around each of the 1,800 Target stores as needed. Runge and Great Northern received a nice post-holiday present for the eye catching project: the national Shop! Outstanding Merchandising Award Temporary Display of the Year. “It felt great to get that recognition. This is probably one of the top designs I’ve done in my seven years at Great

“There were unique elements, like curved corrugate. It was an experiment for me.”

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TESLA SUPERCHARGER ADAPTER

Designed by Calvin Klesmith (’19)

s one of the fastest growing automakers in the world, and with its commitment to sustainable energy, Tesla is expanding its Supercharging

various automation projects, such as the Supercharger adapter, solar roofs and power electronics. When the master’s in manufacturing engineering alum entered the industry, he wanted to make an impact and work for a fast-paced company. At Tesla, he’s doing just that. “The simplest design is normally the best design,” said Klesmith, who enjoys using his broad knowledge base and ability to adapt quickly. “New technologies in engineering and automotives can lead to more optimized production processes with lower scrap and higher quality and yield.” For engineering students looking to build their careers, Klesmith encourages them to “get as many internships under your belt as possible. It will definitely help get your foot in the door.”

network for electric vehicle drivers to more than 15,000 locations across North America. Tesla’s Superchargers have more than 1.5 million sessions weekly. New adapters support Ford and Rivian EV drivers at Tesla stalls and will soon be open to General Motors, Polestar and Volvo. One of the driving forces on the team that manufactured the Supercharger adapter was Calvin Klesmith (’19) , senior manufacturing engineer at Tesla’s Gigafactory in Buffalo, N.Y. Klesmith works to support and improve manufacturing equipment through

Tesla Supercharger Map

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CRAFTSMAN OF VISUAL EFFECTS

Designed by Andrew Steidtmann (’15)

n astronaut floats through space outside of a capsule, a musician walks up the vertical pitch of a skyscraper, a man is ensnared in quick-crawling ivy,

dancers are transformed into fire and water – anything is possible in the world of VFX – visual effects. And with a global industry projected to reach nearly $20 billion over the next decade, there is no limit to the creative world Andrew Steidtmann (’15) will help bring to life. Steidtmann, a senior compositor at Barnstorm VFX in Burbank, Calif., leads teams that integrate visual materials into the final cuts of films, commercials, television, music videos and more. “These may be filmed elements, matte paintings, FX simulations, computer generated renders and green screen replacements,” he said. Steidtmann’s portfolio includes Tim Burton’s “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children,” and several series such as Netflix’s “Away,” HBO’s “Euphoria,” ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy,” CBS’s “SWAT” and an upcoming Disney+ series. He’s also worked on music videos for Taylor Swift and Maroon 5, with one of his favorite projects being Panic! At The Disco’s “High Hopes.”

“I really enjoy the variety of projects that I get to work on, but I have a soft spot for the ‘High Hopes’ music video,” he said. “It’s a band I really like, and I got to work with a tight-knit, small team with a lot of time to get it looking great.” Steidtmann first became interested in 3D modeling in high school. At UW Stout, the entertainment design (since renamed animation and digital media) major learned more about the industry and focused on film and visual effects, honing his skills and refining his work. “While what I do as a compositor is considered ‘art,’ a term that actually fits closer would be ‘craftsmanship.’ I enjoy this kind of work and the inspiration is self-perpetuating. Seeing others do cool VFX work makes me also want to do cool VFX work,” he said. Steidtmann also works on personal projects, like small game design or photography. “That’s where I end up putting a lot of my creative expression,” he said.

High Hopes Music Video

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LIFESTYLE CLOTHING FOR NIKE

Designed by Courtney Christenson (’04, ’15)

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BLUE LABEL Exclusive Merchandise

With a B.S. in apparel design and manufacturing and an M.S. in operations and supply management, Courtney Christenson has built a career working with big names, including 3M, JCrew, Lands' End and Nike. We were StoutProud to reconnect with the technical design senior manager about her role and recollections about UW-Stout. UW-Stout: How long have you worked at Nike? Christenson : Eight and a half years. UW-Stout: What is the role of a technical designer? Christenson : As senior manager of technical design for women’s lifestyle clothing, I manage a team of technical designers. Apparel designers design clothes, and then the technical designers make sure the clothes fit, are constructed appropriately and adhere to price and quality. We’re engineers of fit and craft. We are the technical liaison between design and manufacturing. UW-Stout: What clothing do you work on? Christenson : I recently transitioned from men’s to women’s lifestyle clothing. If you are wearing a fleece hoodie, chances are my team worked on it. In the women’s line, we work on fun collaborations like one with pro tennis player Naomi Osaka, as well as fleece and track suits – lots of track suits. And every once in a while, we get extra special projects to work on. I “fit” a Medicon Bearbrick (bear-shaped collectible toy) last year for a special tech fleece 10-year anniversary release. UW-Stout: What do you love about your career? Christenson : I love working in apparel product creation. I love clothes and clothing construction and well-balanced patterns. Sometimes I can’t believe this is my real-life job. Nike is an amazing company to work for. The campus is lovely, the benefits are “bananas,” and I appreciate working for a company that aligns with my values around social justice and sustainability. UW-Stout: What did you love about UW-Stout? Christenson : I’m biased because I worked at Stout as a lecturer for five years, but the professors care about the students and the programs. The size of Menomonie and the size of Stout was good for me, not too big, and not too small. I got to know a lot of people during my undergrad, and I’m still connected to so many people from my undergrad days. There’s a huge Stout contingent out here in Portland, and I work with some former classmates at Nike. The polytechnic approach also helped me master skills that I’m still able to use today in my career.

ONLINE ONLY While Supplies Last

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TEAM CANADA X LULULEMON

Designed by Kirby Hanson (’07)

s UW-Stout apparel design and development alum Kirby Laackmann Hanson (’07) watched the Summer Olympics in Paris from her home in

Vancouver, British Columbia, she and her husband, Tyler Hanson (’08) , and their three sons had a more personal reason to cheer on their nation’s athletes. Hanson is the technical development manager for lululemon athletic apparel company, the official outfitter of Team Canada, which included more than 430 Olympians and Paralympians.

She was excited to see the apparel her team developed as Canada’s Olympians and Paralympians made their way to the medals podium, donning the Team Canada x lululemon Collection, complete with the traditional red and white maple leaf motif. Hanson, originally from Isanti, Minn., believes UW-Stout gave her a strong foundation to jumpstart her career. “The professors were engaging and pushed us to think outside the box and think past a sketch. As a visual learner, it was important for me to have hands on projects and real-life scenarios to experience. That really set me up for success,” she said.

Hanson brought her talents to lululemon in 2015 when she started as a fit specialist in women’s product. As well as helping manage the Team Canada line, she is the technical development manager for men’s casual, overseeing a team of nine. “What I love most is mentoring others, the collaboration and seeing our product come to life,” she said. Developing apparel is a very collaborative process between designers, technical developers and pattern makers, Hanson added. “We first understand the aesthetic and type of fit designers want, then we work with our vendors to make samples. We take a lot of care in our

fittings to make sure we nail the balance and fit of every piece. “At lululemon, we also want to make sure all our product is functional, so there is a lot of wear testing and feedback along the way to make sure we meet our guests’ expectations,” Hanson said. Hanson loves the company culture, its priority of supporting the whole person – physically, mentally and socially – and how it puts employees first. “Lululemon also has some big sustainability impact goals,” she said, as the company is working to reduce its environmental impact, including reducing wasted materials and partnering with leading sustainable materials innovators. Hanson encourages current apparel students to “be a sponge, ask lots of questions, write things down and keep a growth mindset so that you are always learning. Learn from your mistakes, learn from things you did right and learn from others.” Lululemon, based in Vancouver, has more than 710 stores and 38,000 employees around the world. This was the company’s first Team Canada Summer Olympics collection. It previously designed the team’s clothing for the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022.

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nspired by nightmares and obsessions, designers at this year’s annual sellout runway sensation Fashion Without Fabric embraced imperfection and even death itself with grace and dignity. And two designs rose above the rest. The number 13 can strike fear and superstition into the hearts of many. But Klaire Johnson and Emma Walstra flipped fear on its head with their intricate ensemble “The Prime Divine,” representing rebirth, transformation and divine energy. Reminiscent of a phoenix, their design paired a gold foil chest plate and pleated skirt. White plumes and a rhinestone mask and headpiece lifted the audience's eye toward a backpiece that doubled as transformable wings and a gold circle alluding to a halo. Design duo Erika Rivolta and Manuela von Zitzewitz’s “Love of Books” resonated with the audience. A crown of miniature books and red wings arched backward, ready to carry the reader on a journey of the imagination. Complete with an Elizabethan collar of scrolls and a corset shaped like a rounded bookcase, the costume included high-heeled shoes adorned with origami and a gilded skirt made of folded newspaper, giving the impression of a clockface – there is never enough time to read. Recap: 2024 Fashion Without Fabric FRONT ROW TO FASHION

(Right) Klaire Johnson & Emma Walstra's “The Prime Divine”

(Left) Erika Rivolta & Manuela von Zitzewitz's "Love of Books"

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From WEAR 'Best in Show' to Anne Klein Fashion designer and artist Sofia Morin (’24) is bringing her leatherwork to the Big Apple. And we expect to see her talent influence designs for one of the most recognizable lines coming out of New York – Steve Madden’s Anne Klein brand. As an accessories designer, Morin will be responsible for belts, headwear, scarves, shawls and more. Morin began her craft under the eye of Cuddigan Leather founder Jennifer Smail. Drawn to the texture and shape of the material, Morin’s skills excelled. During an internship with Elena Valez – a Milwaukee native turned New York fashion designer – Morin debuted the “Monster Bag” for Valez’s spring 2024 collection. The bag is hand stitched and made of transparent horse leather, with goat hair laced into the strap. After emerging as s spotlight designer in 2023, Morin’s most recent collection, Tradition, won Best in Show at the 2024 WEAR fashion show from a field of 10 collections inspired by social awareness, Gothic architecture, the Dutch Golden Age inspired bridal wear and more. Tradition featured five outfits, complete with custom accessories inspired by personalities in American golf culture, including the “Caddy,” who carried Morin’s custom “Tradition Duffle.” Its classic shape and nostalgic lettering pulled the theme together, with robust leatherwork and hardware to complete its more modern look.

(Above & Left) Sofia Morin's fashion designs

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Outlook 2024

3D-PRINTED & ADAPTIVE TECHNOLOGY FOR VETERANS

Designed by Drew Davis (’07)

n the fourth floor of the Minneapolis Veterans Administration Medical Center, with a panoramic view of the Mississippi River valley,

the culmination of my career experience. Helping the veterans makes the job worth it,” Davis said. The collection in the high-tech, 3D print lab includes, for example: one veteran’s aorta 3D-printed in exact detail that a doctor used to explain what had to be fixed; a half-scale head with a face that can be peeled away to reveal the extent of damaged bone. Davis uses software that takes CT and MRI data, captured by a radiologist, and generates 3D printable files of patient anatomy. He then optimizes the 3D printer settings to print bone and tissue structures. The foot on the counter is part of an ankle-foot system designed for veterans with a prosthesis. The system is attached to the wearer at the end of the prosthetic socket. It slips into a 3D printed foot that is designed for a specific heel height. The veteran can bring in a pair of shoes and walk away with a prosthetic foot for

an office countertop holds a seemingly macabre collection of plastic models: A foot, hand and forearm, a heart, part of a spine, a lower jaw and other small, novel devices. To the visitor, they’re just that. To their creator, Drew Davis (’07) , they are so much more. They are re-creations of actual body parts of veterans based on their MRIs and CT scans. He and the VA’s RECOVER team have brought them — along with adaptive technology devices — to life and in the process have given hope to veterans. At RECOVER, veterans are included in the design process, whether it’s a novel design or adaptive technology. “We take their input and make it real. We’re more of a hacker space. It’s a really cool job,

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University of Wisconsin-Stout

Davis, who has worked at the VA for more than two years, helped design and oversees the manufacture of the wheelchair. The project goes back 10 years, but with his work it has advanced to user testing in Minneapolis and Palo Alto, Calif. “That’s the major reason I’m here. I saw that technology and wanted to be part of it,” said Davis, who previously worked as a project engineer with Stratasys, which makes 3D printers. The standing wheelchair includes 3D-printed parts. If successful, it too could be licensed for commercial production. RECOVER stands for Rehabilitation and Engineering Center for Optimizing Veteran Engagement and Reintegration. Along with the 3D lab, Davis works in the machine shop. He also supports the design engineers with TTAP — the VA Technology Transfer Program. “TTAP is for ideas, devices and therapies that come from anyone in the VA network who wants to develop them. We will apply our experience and skills to help get the idea through industrial design, functional design and design for manufacturing.” Davis majored in engineering technology at UW-Stout with an emphasis in plastics. Seventeen years ago, 3D printing was fairly new technology, but he saw its potential. Once, he was two hours late for a date with his future wife, Jillian McDowell Davis (’05) , when he lost track of time while 3D-printing in a lab. For his senior capstone, he was the only person who 3D-printed his project — a crank arm for a bicycle pedal. His career in engineering and 3D printing has been cycling forward ever since.

that shoe, which slips onto the ankle unit. Imagine a veteran walking into their home, taking off their outside shoes — foot included — and putting on their inside shoes, foot and all. Davis also has designed a system to test the strength and wear of a prosthetic socket, creating a pneumatic testing frame and using custom software to control the tests. “The goal is to come up with a test that can confirm the structural integrity of a traditionally fabricated socket. We can then apply those same tests to start to optimize materials and design of the sockets,” he said. Moving to another floor at the VA hospital, Davis enters a windowless room with an assortment of wheelchairs. One of them is special: A prototype of a manual, mobile, standing wheelchair. Davis sits down, presses a button at the end of an arm with his thumb and the chair slowly rises to a standing position. Then, he rolls forward like he wants to get something from a high shelf. Think of the many more things people in wheelchairs could do if they could move and stand. “It would help empower veterans,” he said.

This edition of Outlook magazine was proudly printed by Spectra Print in Stevens Point, WI. A longtime partner of UW-Stout, Spectra was most recently featured in a story about the design competition and production process that created Chancellor Frank’s 2023 seasonal donor card. ABOUT SPECTRA PRINT Founded in 1930, Spectra Print has evolved to become a leading full service printing services company that excels not only in high-quality printed products but also in marketing, media and publishing services. Spectra Print is G7 Master Qualified by IDEAlliance. CURRENT STOUT ALUMNI AT SPECTRA

• Kristy Boutain (’99) • Jayne Fuehrer (’90) • Scott Hoffmann (’89) • Kay Rasmussen (’03) READ THE FULL STORY

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Outlook 2024

PRINGLES PACKAGE CONCEPT

Designed by Lukas, Ethan & Zach

t’s one of the most recognizable products on the planet — Pringles chips stacked vertically in a cardboard

tube with a plastic lid. Pringles have been sold around the world for more than 50 years. How could the packaging improve while ensuring consumers still recognized their favorite brand? That’s the challenge three students took on in a competition sponsored by Kellanova, a division of Kellogg’s, and the Packaging Association of Canada. The innovative design by UW-Stout packaging majors Lukas David and Ethan Myers and video production major Zach Hoffmire popped to the top, taking first place against an invitation-only field of eight other university teams from the U.S., Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom. UW-Stout’s champion entry stood tall because it: features an oblong — or in industry terms racetrack shaped — rather than round tube to reflect the shape of the chip, preventing breakage; is made of recyclable plastic, unlike the

original can; has a peel-and-reseal tab on the curved, front side of the can for better access; and has a lid that can be used with the side tab to push remaining chips to the top, rather than having to tip the can upside down or reach in to get them out. They developed the idea in the Prent Packaging Laboratories and 3D-printed the final design. In the end, it still looked like a Pringles can but was more user and environmentally friendly.

SPRING 2025 @ UW-Stout uwstout.edu/d-wi 4th ANNUAL

THE GRAND CANYON SOUTH RIM STRUCTURES

Designed by Mary Jane Colter

n January 1892, Mary Jane Colter, 22, began teaching in the carpentry department at Stout Manual Training School after being hired by

James Huff Stout. The St. Paul native, and 1890 graduate of the California School of Design in San Francisco, likely taught freehand drawing and oversaw wood-based projects during the spring semester, according to “An Idea Comes of Age: UW-Stout, 1891-2016.” After returning to St. Paul to teach, Colter’s career as a designer blossomed. Between 1905 and 1935, she became an interior designer and architect of national importance. Most notably, she designed a group of iconic buildings on the south rim of Grand Canyon National Park: 70-foot Desert View Watchtower made from native stone and rising from the canyon like an ancient Native American dwelling, Lookout Studio, Hermit’s Rest, Hopi House and Bright Angel Lodge, as

well as Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon. They are part of a National Historic Landmark district. Colter also designed three classic hotels, among other important architectural work, with Native American and Spanish themes in New Mexico and Arizona. She has been recognized posthumously as one of the country’s earliest female and one of its most important architects.

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SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGH PATENT PENDING

earch the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database, and you’ll discover dozens of Blue Devil alumni and instructors named on patents

ranging from heated firetruck valves and rain showers to methods for producing feedstock materials and using vibration to combat atrophy. Often unsung, these bona fide inventors are long overdue of our esteem. Innovation has long been synonymous with UW-Stout, so new inventions are something to celebrate. Especially when the related inventors—professors Jennifer Grant and Dmitry Kadnikov —can be found in our biology and chemistry labs. But the path to their utility patent application, for a chemical probe that improves detection of an amino acid tied to autoimmune diseases, neurological disorders and cancer, began long before UW-Stout. For decades, locating citrulline on proteins was hit or miss, and Grant, a biochemist, has pursued the motif (the structural site on a protein residue that gets converted to citrulline) since her post-doctoral research. With persistence and more than a little help from then students Dylan Meyer (’14) , now a research scientist at Vertex Pharmaceuticals who did his post-doc fellowship at Harvard Medical, and Justin Olson (’15) , currently a data scientist with Alpha Theory, she solved what had stumped others in her field for decades. Detection of citrullines within proteins, however, still proved a major challenge. Enter Kadnikov, an organic chemist who instinctively employs an iterative “bigger, faster, better” mentality. Kadnikov worked with Grant to design a more efficient, adaptable chemical probe usable by a wider range of scientists. Thanks to a few WiSys grants and their Proteomics and Organic Chemistry II students, the invention is nearly ready for market, and we can’t wait to see how it advances science for the better.

Select Alumni Patent Holders • Dan Anderson ('03) • Lance Clark Bell ('72)

• Adam Kramschuster ('01) • Dustin Mack ('06) • Basil Ogbu ('89) • Chris Plotz ('96) • Jimmy Ray Purser ('16, '23) • Mark Rohlinger ('88) • Charles Schlosser ('72) • Craig Schultz ('86) • Hans Sitte ('68) • Andrew Smith (’06) • Jim Strasser ('00) • Matthew Sundquist ('88) • Keely Hogan-Braker Wheaton ('04) • Ron White ('87)

• Dale Bohnert ('90) • Shane Cleasby ('90) • Jed Copham ('97) • Patrick Cosgrove ('85) • Eric Erpenbach ('98) • Colin Feuster ('20) • Eric Fiel ('05) • Paul Glamos ('19) • David Guelzow ('92) • Kevin Guthrie ('83) • Jerome Johnson ('81, '84) • Ken Kartman ('81, '99) • Dennis Kiffe ('72) • Nathan Kodesh (‘04)

If you’re not on our list, submit your details! Let Us Know UWStout.edu/Alumni-Patents

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