Celebrating the Class of 1970

Lives in: Austin, Texas
Family: Married with 3 children and 5 grandchildren
Career highlight: Lived and worked in 5 foreign countries and visited 50 more
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Volleyball in the courtyard between classes
Favorite professor: Dr. Yao
Favorite hobbies: Golf
Favorite place to eat back then: Jack's drive-in
Favorite place to unwind: Home
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: I was married with 2 kids by the time I graduated, so most of my time was studying or working part-time.
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: Making plans for summer work prior to advancing on to MIT for graduate school.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: Great preparation for further learning and work. I learned to develop solutions rather than memorize answers.

Lives in: Colorado Springs, Colorado
Family: Married to Susan (Hulsbos) Bursch for 48 years. Two children and four grandchildren.
Career highlight: Retired in 2016 as chairman of CED Inc.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Student protests. Kent State. Student government.
Favorite professor: Gerald May
Favorite hobbies: Hunting, reading, and travel
Favorite place to eat back then: Macs
Favorite place to unwind: The SUB
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: Studying in the "stacks,” hanging out in the SUB, and many hours in the engineering buildings.
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: Kent State shooting, student unrest, Vietnam War and National Guard on campus. Lowering the flag on UNM campus.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: It opened many career opportunities. I learned how to solve problems.

Lives in: Oakton, Virginia
Family: Wife Helen Cramond and son Mitchell
Career highlight: Diverse career with aerospace and defense companies.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Working at the Eric Wang Civil Engineering Facility (CERF). I learned a lot beyond the classes.
Favorite professor: Howard Schrier
Worst grade at UNM: B in Structural Stability
Favorite hobbies: Computers, fishing
Favorite place to eat: Old Town
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: Working with the shock tube
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: Demonstrators
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: The work at CERF lead to my career in the defense world. Also, I met people that are friends today.

Lives in: Odessa, Texas
Family: Two sons who are UNM graduates: Jesse Dickson, a civil engineering graduate, and Benjamin is a business school graduate
Career highlight: Starting a business in 1981, which now both sons work at.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: 1970 during Vietnam protests
Favorite professor: Professor Castonguay
Worst grade at UNM: D
Favorite hobbies: Anything outdoors
Favorite place to eat back then: La Hacienda
Favorite place to unwind: Lobo Joes
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: Probably studying in Zimmerman library
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: It gave me the opportunity to create a lifetime career

Lives in: Huntsville, Texas
Family: Immediately after graduation, I married Mary Charlotte Beeson (who received a B.S. in Education). We are blessed with 3 children and 6 grandchildren, some already in college. So, 50 great years of marriage, family creation, AND as Lobo alumni!
Career highlight: My telecom career was nearly all within AT&T, beginning with 5 years in development engineering at Western Electric in Denver, and the rest at Southwestern Bell/AT&T in Houston. I did technical analysis on systems and mostly led engineering groups and project teams. Though I passed the exams to become a registered professional engineer, I generally never used most of the detailed engineering formulae. But the concept of approaching technical problems and organizing groups to reach solutions, often complex, was enormously valuable. I especially enjoyed an extended time, following the re-combination of some "Baby Bell" companies which had earlier been divested from AT&T, working with an engineering team to find the best engineering practices and methods for the new, combined company. We drew flow charts on Post-It's all over the walls. What fun!
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Bringing math as my favorite subject into college, and preferring practical applications, now identifying me as a "STEM" passion student, electrical engineering was the clear choice. Marching through the program in the four years, during my graduating semester (spring 1970), the load was light enough for me to help take the U.S. Census part time. I remember classes in which the professor used several blackboards worth of derivation equations to reach formulae. I feared, "Will I have to reproduce all this on a test?!" Happily, the understanding of what it was all about, along with the specific derived formulae adequately armed me for the tests.
Worst grade at UNM: I find that my 3.35 GPA in electrical engineering was comprised of 51% A's, 31% B's, and 18% C's (most in PE and labs).
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: We 1970 graduates can't help but remember the demonstrations after Kent State, with the New Mexico National Guard called on campus, bayonetting several people. I recently shared memories with the editor of the UNM Mirage magazine following their excellent article in the Spring 2020 issue. Like most engineers, I wasn't involved in the demonstrations, nor did I agree with all their objectives, nor especially tactics. But observing that experience so close to us, combined with a vigorous pursuit and exploration of my faith, led to taking activist roles in churches and society. I value being there.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: From EE classes at UNM, I remember one type of problem that I especially loved: Electromagnetic Fields, analyzed by identifying and using Boundary Conditions. Throughout my career - and life - I found that concept so useful, not only in technical problems, but in social, cultural, faith, and even political subjects. Thanks to everyone who helped make my UNM experience a fondly-remembered foundation for so much else through life.

Lives in: Flatonia, Texas
Family: Married to Tricia Griste with 2 grown sons
Career highlight: Worked 15 years for Hughes Tool Co. as a development engineer then began a career as a science teacher
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Well, I loved every day while in college. All these days are memorable.
Favorite professor: Dr. Wilden, department head of Mechanical Engineering, as well as Dr. Lewis in the Math Department
Worst grade at UNM: C
Favorite hobbies: Woodworking and hunting
Favorite place to eat back then: McDonald’s
Favorite place to unwind: Library
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: Taking general classes in mechanical engineering
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: Well, I thought I still had to take English 102 but Dr. Wilden waived it. I began a career at Hughes.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: This education was paramount to all the work I did at Hughes Tool. It also greatly influenced my teaching career. The preparation was most beneficial. This education helped me to teach others about engineering and its requirements.

Lives in: Temecula, California
Family: He lives with his wife, Catherine (Kyong) with a daughter in San Francisco and a son in Chicago. His daughter is a marketing director in a tech company, and his son is a social worker. He met his wife in Korea before coming to U.S. for studies.
Career highlight: I did a postdoc and was a research associate at the University of Chicago, eventually moving to Amaco Corp. (BP) and retired from there. I was vice president of engineering for Xytel Corp., a company that builds power plants and does large-scale research projects related to that area. I also worked with a company doing process engineering for food/dairy. Retirement took me to California.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: The weather was like spring year-round, and I really loved the Sandias. I loved the campus and the small size of the engineering program — very close and cozy. People in Albuquerque were so nice. All foreign students had a host family, and they invited them over for holidays and they taught them American customs (which was very helpful).
Favorite professor: Definitely Professor Castonguay, the department chair. I also liked I Dr. Crouper (professor in math) and Ken Cox and Dr. McLaughlin in quantum chemistry.
Worst grade at UNM: Not many bad grades
Favorite hobbies: Reading literature, especially classic novels.
Favorite place to eat back then: I didn’t eat much outside of the lab, but liked I Henry's Hamburger
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: I spent most of my time in my research lab in chemical engineering in the main engineering building, Farris. I worked around the clock.
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: Not sure, but there were a lot of hippies on campus.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: That education has been the backbone of my career. They taught the basics, and I learned a lot about applying knowledge to broader areas. I could transition from the petroleum area to bio-medical and food.

Lives in: Albuquerque
Family: Single
Career highlight: Seminary professor for the Chafer Theological Seminary and research engineer for New Mexico Engineering Research Institute
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Being on the UNM gymnastics team that ended season undefeated and #5 in the country.
Favorite professor: Gerald May
Favorite hobbies: Riding my bicycle, playing basketball
Favorite place to unwind: Riding my bike
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: In a Coronado dorm or Johnson Gym, studying or at gymnastics practice
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: It opened many doors for employment and ministry.

Lives in: Burnsville, Mississippi, next door to daughter and grandkids; also has a home in Walton Beach, Florida.
Family: Married to Norma; two children
Career highlight: Retired Navy officer; was in Navy three years and entered Naval Enlisted Special Education Program (NESEP) at UNM, went to OCS upon graduation. After retiring from the Navy, got a degree in mathematics and taught math at the college level.
Favorite or more significant UNM memory: Nothing really as a student. I was married and bought our first house in Albuquerque.
Favorite hobbies: Birdwatching, fishing
Favorite place to eat back then: there was an Italian restaurant west of the Rio Grande that was a converted house with different rooms. You could get a 7-course meal.
Favorite place to unwind: The Baptist Student Union and there was also a Tiki bar we would go to for drinks. The NESEP had a place where all those students would meet too.
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: I graduated in January and was not there.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: It made me an officer in the Navy, and allowed me to retire and begin another career in teaching.

Lives in: Albuquerque
Family: I have 3 daughters and a son, 6 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren. One daughter lives in Anchorage, one in Las Cruces, and the other daughter and son live in Albuquerque. Most of the children and grandchildren live in New Mexico. My wife, Selma, is an RN and worked for Presbyterian, UNM and the Heart Institute. Now retired, she spends a lot of time visiting the sick and looking in on the elderly and homebound members of our church.
Career highlight: I did a lot of things in my years at Kirtland, but the most lasting thing I did started in the mid-1980s, when HQ USAF asked us to develop ways to accurately measure the electromagnetic (EM) shielding on aircraft, shielding that was built into the design to protect the electronics against interference, lightning, and nuclear EMP. During the Cold War, there was a lot of shielded aircraft, and the Air Force and Navy needed to be able to test aircraft to verify that the protection was intact and working. So my colleagues and I proceeded to do just that … and it worked … and it set new standards. And the measurement techniques are still in use today in aircraft factories all over the U.S. They have also been incorporated into the Aircraft Qualification Standards by the FAA. That was the highlight of my career, and I am still working with that technology today.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: For over 2 years, I had the privilege of working for Dr. Granneman on an engineering research contract he had with the Office of Naval Research (ONR) investigating the effects of nuclear radiation (X-rays) on electronic circuits. As a work-study student, I had the good fortune to be assigned to operate and maintain the high-voltage flash X-ray machine used in the experiments and also learned quite a bit about radiation effects from the graduate students who were doing the research. Because of the nature of the work, the Navy had granted me a security clearance. As it turned out, when we all graduated in the spring of 1970, the U.S. was in the midst of a terrible recession. The Vietnam War was winding down, soon to be over. The economy was tanked, and NO ONE was hiring. We were all interviewing and interviewing, but no one was hiring. They were all just filing away the resumes for future reference. It was grim. Then one day, there was a tiny ad in the [Daily] Lobo, and someone had put it on the bulletin board. It said Kirtland AFB is hiring engineers and a phone number. So I called them right away, and they said come on out. It was the Special Weapons Center at Kirtland, which was doing nuclear effects research, including X-ray and electromagnetic pulse effects. When the guy interviewing me heard what I had been doing for Granneman and found out I already had a clearance, he almost leaped across the desk with a pen and a form to sign. I was hired on the spot ... and I guess I liked the job, because I worked there for 48 years and retired in 2018 as a GS-15. Who could ask for better!
Favorite professor at UNM: I had several favorites, but I think my most favorite was Shyam Gurbaxani, who taught me several classes in electromagnetic field theory, which became my favorite subject and carried me through my career at Kirtland. He taught it well and became a good friend as well as a teacher. Also, I very much enjoyed the electronics courses from Ruben Kelly, because they were so clear and practical and taught me new things.
Worst grade at UNM: My worst grade at UNM was a D in mathematical physics at the hands of a distinguished visiting professor from Czechoslovakia. But I didn't feel so bad when I learned that he handed out 4 D’s, and 15 F’s and only passed 4 people, all of whom were graduate students who were taking the course for the second time so they could nullify the F they got the semester before. Fortunately, the university sent him home so he could do no more harm. So, I retook the course the next semester from old Dr. Thomas in the physics department. I had a good time in the course and learned a huge amount.
Favorite hobbies: I always liked camping and fishing, ever since I was in Boy Scouts. Then, when my daughters were in the youth group at church, our leader took us backpacking in the mountains, and I loved it. Their youth group was my second childhood, and I had a blast. We went backpacking in the summer and cross-country skiing in the winter, and we all had a great time.
Favorite place to eat back then: I love New Mexican food
Favorite place to unwind: To really unwind, I like to get away. Go on a road trip or an airplane trip or a camping trip.
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: I was either in class or studying or working my job. I was there for an education, and I didn't have time to participate in the demonstrations or sit-ins. So, I just observed them from a distance.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: My education in EE and electromagnetic fields set the stage for my career at Kirtland. Because of my understanding of fields, I began working with Dr. Carl Baum when he was developing the first EMP simulators and sensors. I got on the wagon at just the right time and stayed with it my whole career.
What are your memories of May 4, 1970?: That was about the time I was fortunate enough to get the interview at Kirtland AFB. Also, I was planning on inviting my parents to come to graduation. I was not interested in sitting through or asking them to sit through a mass graduation in the gym. I always thought those were awful, but the department always had a smaller ceremony of their own. Meet the professors, have a small ceremony, and enjoy some refreshments. That I wanted to do ... and for some reason that year they didn't have it! So, there was no graduation for me, just a diploma in the mail.

Lives in: San Rafael, California
Family: Daughter, Sara Pritchard, who is a professor at Cornell. Partner Betty Dietz.
Career highlight: After getting his degree, I worked for a UNM lab on the south end of Kirtland Air Force Base. In 1972, I got a phone call from the University of Washington in Seattle. They were doing work on a big project called the Arctic Ice Dynamics Joint Experiment (funded by the Navy). I fell in love with polar research and did that until retirement. I was on the project for a number of years, and after it ended I formed a company called Icecasting Inc. (exclusively research activities, mostly for the Navy, and contract R&D for oil companies).
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Originally from Pennsylvania, I enjoyed New Mexico’s mountains, mixed cultures and Hispanic influence.
Favorite professor: Howard “Buck” Shrier
Favorite hobbies: Enjoyed hiking in the mountains and enjoyed the learning process.
Favorite place to eat back then: Hokey Joe's; later on, the bar down the street
Favorite place to unwind: Hokey Joe's
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: I don't remember much, but probably in my office, one of the back rooms of a building. I was there working on my dissertation doing full-time research.
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: I don't remember. I was probably already working on the military base.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: I was very pleased with his engineering mechanics education and it was the basis of everything I did in ice research. I did a much more theoretical course of study.

Lives in: Albuquerque
Family: Wife, Nancy, married 44 years. Two sons and a daughter. All three college graduates. Oldest son is an electrical engineer working at Intel as a manager, second son is an accountant working for the IRS also a manager, and daughter has a psychology degree working for the state of New Mexico as a juvenile probation officer.
Career highlight: After college, I worked at the Rockville lab as a mechanical engineer, then in Houston as an industrial engineer. I returned to Albuquerque working for the USPS as an industrial engineer coordinator, director of operation service, and manager of in-plant support.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: It was the hardest four years of my life, working night and going to school during the day and still manage to graduate in four years.
Worst grade at UNM: Calculus
Favorite hobbies: Reading, cars and traveling
If you could picture yourself back on campus, where would you be?: I didn’t spend a lot of time on campus other than classes. I was at home studying and trying to get some sleep before going to work.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: It provided a good education and foundation for my career.

Lives in: Lake Mary, Florida
Family: Married with two children, ages 42 and 45
Career highlight: Invented a laser target designator for the Army. Built three electric automobiles. Taught electrical engineering courses at Seminole State College.
Favorite or significant UNM memory: During my first two years at UNM, I didn't make very good grades. I was more interested in cars than school. But, after going to Vietnam after my sophomore year, I had no problems. I became an adult in Vietnam and took more engineering courses when I returned. When I applied for admission into graduate school, the committee almost denied my application because of my poor grade point average. If it were not for my physics professor recommending me, I would not have been admitted. I completed my master's degree in electrical engineering and worked 40 years in the military electronics field.
Favorite professor: Dr. Ruben Kelly
Worst grade at UNM: F
Favorite hobby: Built three electric vehicles: a 1996 Chevrolet S-1 Electric, drove to work for 3 years; a 1991 Miata Electric, drove for 5 years; a 1996 Chevrolet Cavalier, built with his students at Seminole State College.
What do you remember about May 4, 1970?: The college was closed due to student demonstrations.
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: My education at UNM was the basis for my continued work in the field of electro-optical engineering.

Lives in: Kingsland, Texas
Family: Wife, Susan; three daughters and one son
Favorite or significant UNM memory: Working within the nascent field of biomedical engineering as an electrical engineer; being given the opportunity to investigate what I was curious about, such as figuring out what the CPU equivalent was in the human mind
Favorite professor: Dr. Erteza
Worst grade at UNM: D (geography)
Favorite hobbies: Walking, golf, and I used to mountain bike a lot but not so much anymore
How did your UNM education impact your life or career?: My education at UNM opened all these doors and encouraged my curiosity. Education teaches you that you need more education, and I've never stopped learning and adapting.

After graduating from UNM, Max completed 23 years of U. S. Marine Corps active duty, serving in various locations worldwide.

He obtained an MSCE and a Masters of Public Administration from Cal State University Long Beach.

After retiring from the Marine Corps, he became the City Engineer for the City of Lakewood, CA, and still has that position.

Max and his wife, Susan, have three sons and reside in Mission Viejo, CA where Susan served three terms as Mayor.

Some of my thoughts: The “new” library and the “Pit” and Ferris Engineering Center were all built during my student years. Today when I visit the campus, it is difficult to recognize anything and there is little open space. But what a great experience to attend UNM!!

Hope to hear from some of you !! mwithrow@lakewoodcity.org, (562) 416-5971 (cell)