2011 Graduates

Name: Christie Alston
University/Date: Old Dominion University, September 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Robert Ash
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: The Boeing Company

Name: Jennifer Arney
University/Date: University of Virginia, August 2011
Degree: MS in Mechanical Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Robert Lindberg
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: Northrop Grumman Corporation, Virginia

Name: David Barnes
University/Date: University of Virginia, August 2011
Degree: MS in Materials Science and Engineering
Advisor: 
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: PhD Candidate, University of Virginia

Name: David Billingsley
University/Date: University of Maryland, June 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. James Hubbard
Thesis Topic: The Design, Fabrication, and Flight Testing of an Academic Research Platform for High Resolution Terrain Imaging
Present Position: AAI Corporation, Hunt Valley, Maryland

Name: David Busnardo
University/Date: North Carolina State University, May 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Robert Tolson
Thesis Topic: LIDAR-Aided Inertial Navigation Over Rough Terrain
Present Position: 

Name: Charles Cimet
University/Date: North Carolina State University, December 2011
Degree: MS in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Robert Tolson
Thesis Topic: The Effect of Atmospheric Uncertainty on Mars Entry, Descent and Landing
Present Position: MIT Lincoln Laboratory, Lexington, Massachusetts

Name: David Covington
University/Date: Old Dominion University, September 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Colin Britcher
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: 

Name: Stargel Doane
University/Date: Old Dominion University, August 2011
Degree: PhD in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Drew Landman
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: 

Name: Eric Faierson
University/Date: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, August 2011
Degree: PhD in Materials Science and Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Kathryn Logan
Thesis Topic: Structure-Property Relationships of Tantalm Carbide-Foams and Synthesis of and Interpentrating Phase Composite
Present Position: Quad City Manufacturing Laboratory, Rock Island, Illinois

Name: Luke Gibbons
University/Date: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, September 2011
Degree: PhD in Materials Science and Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Don Leo
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: Consultant, National Institute of Aerospace

Name: Jared Grauer
University/Date: University of Maryland, June 2011
Degree: PhD in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. James Hubbard
Thesis Topic: Modeling of Ornithopter Flight Dynamics for Feedback Control
Present Position: Dynamic Systems Control Branch, NASA’s Langley Research Center

Name: Eric Greenwood
University/Date: University of Maryland, May 2011
Degree: PhD in Aerospace Engineering
Advisors: Dr. Fredric Schmitz and Dr. James Hubbard
Thesis Topic: Fundamental Rotorcraft Acoustic Modeling from Experiments (FRAME)
Present Position: NASA’s Langley Research Center

Name: Ryan Kupchella
University/Date: North Carolina State University, August 2011
Degree: MS in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Paul Cooper
Thesis Topic: Modeling and Evolution of Mesoscale Morphology in C/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites
Present Position: Corvid Technologies, Mooresville, North Carolina

Name: Thomas McQuigg
University/Date: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, July 2011
Degree: PhD in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Rakesh Kapania
Thesis Topic: Compression Afer Impact Experiments and Analysis on Honecomb Core Sandwich Panels with Thin Facesheets
Present Position: Orbital Sciences Corporation, Dulles, Virginia

Name: Daniel Nelson
University/Date: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, December 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace and Ocean Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Bernard Grossman
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: United States Air Force

Name: Dennis O’Connell
University/Date: Old Dominion University, May 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Jerry Creedon
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: 

Name: Courtney Spells
University/Date: Georgia Institute of Technology, August 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: 
Thesis Topic: 
Present Position: Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc., NASA’s Langley Research Center

Name: Casey Thomas
University/Date: North Carolina State University, May 2011
Degree: MS in Aerospace Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Robert Tolson
Thesis Topic: Aerodynamic Validation Using MER and Phoenix Entry Flight Data
Present Position: 

Name: Rick Wilder
University/Date: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, May 2011
Degree: PhD in Electrical Engineering
Advisor: Dr. Robert Clauer
Thesis Topic: Magnetosphere/Ionosphere Coupling
Present Position: Post-Doctoral Researcher, Atmospheric & Space Technology Research Associates (ASTRA), LLC, Louisville, Colorado