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Kettering University

 
Hoover's Profile: Kettering University
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Kettering University
1700 W. 3rd. Ave.
Flint, MI 48504-4898
MI Tel. 810-762-9500
Toll Free 800-955-4464
Fax 810-762-9837

Type: School
On the web: http://www.kettering.edu
 Employees: 425

Sometimes referred to as the "West Point of Industry," Kettering University specializes in engineering, science, and mathematics programs. Other academic fields include business, pre-law, pre-med, and computer gaming. The private school offers undergraduate and graduate degrees to a small student body of about 2,000. Kettering University was founded in 1919 as the School of Automotive Trades. It later became the General Motors Institute. In 1998 the school was renamed in honor of Charles F. "The Boss" Kettering, founder of Delco Electronics, which was acquired by General Motors in 1936 and absorbed by auto parts manufacturer (and GM spin-off) Delphi in 1997.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending June, 2008:
Sales: $49.0M

Officers:
President: Stan R. Liberty
VP Administration and Finance: Susan K. Bolt
VP Information Technology and CIO: James A. (Jim) Hamilton

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Wikipedia: Kettering University
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Kettering University
KetteringUniversityLogo.png
Established October 20, 1919 [2]
Type Private
Endowment $61,440,589 [1]
President Stanley R. Liberty
Provost Michael Harris
Faculty 145
Students 2,675 [3]
Undergraduates 2,134 [1]
Postgraduates 519 [3]
Location Flint, Michigan, USA
Campus Urban
Colors Yellow and Blue            
Website www.kettering.edu

Coordinates: 43°00′45″N 83°42′45″W / 43.0125°N 83.7125°W / 43.0125; -83.7125 Kettering University (formerly "General Motors Institute") is a university in Flint, Michigan, offering degrees in engineering, math, science, and business. The campus is located along the Flint River on property that used to be the main manufacturing location for General Motors. It is named after inventor and former head of research for General Motors Charles Kettering.[1]

Ninety-eight percent of seniors are employed or accepted to graduate schools before graduation. One out of 15 alumni either own their own business or are high-level managers in leading companies (see Notable Alumni). Although the school's undergraduate population is small with approximately total 2,000 students[2], it annually graduates the most mechanical engineers and is ranked by US News and World Report as one of the best schools without doctoral programs for undergraduate engineering education.

Contents

History

The history of Kettering University is deeply tied to the development of the American automotive industry. The school was originally founded as The School of Automobile Trades on October 20, 1919 by Albert Sobey under the direction of the Industrial Fellowship of Flint as a night school, training individuals for careers in industry. In 1923 the school became known as the Flint Institute of Technology. General Motors acquired the school on July 12, 1926, renaming it General Motors Institute of Technology. In 1932 the name of the school was shortened to General Motors Institute.[2]

GMI focused on creating leaders for business and industry (sometimes called the West Point of Industry[3]) and pioneered many educational firsts including the co-op program (following the development of this program at the University of Cincinnati in 1907), freshmen level manufacturing courses (Production Processes I & II), and automotive degree specialties. A fifth-year thesis requirement was added in 1945, along with the ability to grant degrees. The first bachelor's degree was awarded on August 23, 1946.[2]

The co-op program required applicants to find a GM division to be their sponsor. Work and school were mixed in six-week rotations, dividing the student body into A-section and B-section. At any given time, when A-section was in school, B-section was at work. After six weeks, B-section would go back to school and so on. This resulted in students moving eight times per year and a 48-week school/work year. Because General Motors used the school to train its engineers, tuition was partially subsidized.

In June 1980 (the Class of 1985) co-op rotations were expanded to twelve weeks. After GM reduced operations in Flint, the company and the University separated on July 1, 1982, although GM continued to hire co-ops from GMI.[2] The name of the institution became "GMI Engineering & Management Institute" although the letters "GMI" were retained to allow easy identification with the old General Motors Institute. New co-op employers began participating, including Magna International of Canada, and the University began charging full tuition.

On January 1, 1998 the school's name was formally changed to Kettering University to:

  • create an identity separate from General Motors and the auto industry,
  • avoid confusion with General Motors University, a General Motors training center created in 1997[4].
  • honor Charles F. Kettering, an early 20th century inventor, a proponent of cooperative education, and an early benefactor of the school.[5]

Admissions

Kettering University
Presidents

The 2006 freshman class of 398 students was selected from 2,157 applicants with 1,534 admitted. 86% of freshman scored 600 or above on the math section of the SAT and 84% scored over 500 on the verbal section[6]. Students averaged a 3.54 high school GPA and an average ACT score of 26[7]. Approximately 83.4% of the degree-seeking undergraduate student body is male[8].

Academic programs

Kettering University offers Bachelor of Science degrees in Applied Mathematics, Applied Physics, Biochemistry, Business, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Engineering Physics, Industrial Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. The university also offers a Bachelors of Business Administration.[9]. The University also offers Master's degrees in Business Administration (MBA), Information Technology, Manufacturing Management, Operations Management, Manufacturing Operations, Engineering Management, and Engineering [10]. Although courses differ with major, for most undergraduate programs, completion of 160 credit hours is needed for graduation.

Kettering is one of the few engineering schools that prepares students for the workplace through 100% participation in a co-op program. In addition to classwork, students spend half the year acquiring full-time professional work experience. This is broken into four rotations of 11 week terms. The student body is separated into two sections, A and B. A-Section attends classes from July to September and then from January to March, while B-Section attends classes from October to December and April to June. During the three-month periods between class terms, students work full-time with one of over 600 co-op employer partners[11]. As a requirement to graduate, each student must complete five work terms and a major project for their employer in the form of a thesis. On average a student earns between $40,000 and $65,000 throughout their co-op experience[12]. The curriculum is designed to be completed in four and one-half years, although it is possible to complete it in four years.

Campus

C.S. Mott Engineering and Science Center
Frances Willson Thompson Hall

Kettering University consists of six buildings and nearly 90 acres (360,000 m2) of land. In 1995, Kettering built a park spanning over much of this land. In addition to this, the Connie and Jim John Recreation Center opened on August 5, 1995[2]; it offers students a larger selection of activities. With over 75,000 cubic feet (2,100 m3), some of the more notable aspects are its Olympic sized pool, indoor track and numerous tennis, basketball and racquetball courts[13]. These enhancements totaled over $7 million dollars to construct[14].

Kettering offers two of these six buildings for student housing. The school's Campus Center is the location of the Admissions and Public Relations offices as well as the student cafeteria.

The C.S. Mott Engineering and Science Center opened in July 2004[2] and contains an entire fuel cell systems and powertrain integration labs[15]. This $43 million dollar facility also contains several other laboratories such as emissions, bioengineering and various others for the core science courses for most students.

Kettering is also one of the few schools in the nation to have a crash safety center, in which students are able to experience crash testing and develop effective safety equipment[13]. Also located in the Academic Building, Kettering offers a variety of other engineering labs such as machining, welding, polymer processing and injection molding[16].

Student life

48% of students live in either the 445 student residence hall or Campus Village Apartment complex adjacent to campus, capable of housing 211. Kettering students stay involved in over 15 Greek organizations, student government and recreational activities[17].

Clubs

Kettering Student Government sponsors many student clubs to promote an atmosphere conducive to social interaction. Most clubs receive money from the University to operate. However, some clubs are self financing, either because they wish to avoid the restrictions placed on the Kettering Student Government (KSG) sponsored clubs or because they are unaware that funding is available. For a full list of clubs, see the list of student organizations at the bottom of the page.

Greek life

The university has a very active Greek system, which is recognized as an excellent source of service opportunities and leadership training. Over one-third of the student body is currently involved in a Fraternity or sorority. Before on campus housing was available, membership was as high as 80%.

Many North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) fraternities have chapters at Kettering as do several National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) sororities. The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) has several local chapters that are also affiliated with Kettering. Each group has a school-wide council that its members participate in. These councils are designed to keep communication lines open between the different groups, and to facilitate relations with the University on matters such as school-wide events and membership. In addition to the recognized organizations there are several unrecognized organizations including a local Christian fraternity and a local Christian sorority. For a full list of the Greek letter organizations on campus, see the list of Greek Letter Organizations.

During the first few weeks of school, freshmen are "rushed", a period of recruitment where all of the IFC Fraternities host events and attempt to recruit new members. Fraternities promote their events with signs, calendars, personal visits, and by painting the bull dog, a campus tradition.

Notable alumni

Main article: List of Kettering University people

Although Kettering University is a small school, with only 28,000 alumni, a high percentage have experienced extremely successful careers. Some examples of notable alumni include:

Name Graduation Year Occupation
Donald J. Almquist 1955 Chairman, President, CEO, Delco Electronics
Henio Arcangeli 1986 President, Motorsports Group Company, Yamaha Motor Corporation USA
Matt Borland 1993 NASCAR Sprint Cup Crew Chief
Michael Burns 1975 CEO, Dana Corporation
Edward Nicholas Cole 1933 Former President, General Motors Corporation, and Former Chairman, Checker Motors Corporation
Greg Deveson 1984 President-Americas, Magna Powertrain USA Incorporated
Ivan Deveson 1959 Retired Lord Mayor of Melbourne Australia
Russell J. Ebeid 1962 President, Guardian Glass Group, Guardian Industries
Chet Huber 1977 President, OnStar Corp
Henry Juszkiewicz 1974 CEO, Gibson Guitar Corporation
Bob Kagle 1978 General Partner, Benchmark Capital
David Kenny 1984 CEO, Digitas
Harry W. Lange 1975 Vice President, Fidelity Investments; Portfolio Manager, Magellan Fund
James McCaslin 1974 COO, Harley-Davidson Motor Co.
F. James McDonald 1944 Former President, General Motors Corporation
Dane Miller 1969 Co-Founder, President & CEO, Biomet
Kristine Berry Morain 1988 General Counsel, Boys & Girls Clubs of America
Stan O'Neal 1974 Former CEO, Merrill Lynch
William H. Osborne 1983 President and CEO, Federal Signal Corporation
Robert S. Oswald 1964 Chairman, Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems, Knorr-Bremse
Marissa Peterson 1983 Executive Vice President, Sun Microsystems
Dr. Robert Reiss 1960 America's first biomedical engineer
Walter M. Rosebrough Jr. CEO, STERIS Corporation

Notable honorary degrees

Main article: List of Kettering University people
Name Degree Awarded Occupation
Russell J. Ebeid '62 Honorary Doctor of Management July 2008 President, Guardian Glass Group, Guardian Industries
Curtis Carlson Honorary Doctor of Science June 2008 President, CEO, SRI International
Dale E. Kildee Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters December 2007 Member, United States House of Representatives
Chet Huber '77 Honorary Doctor of Engineering June 2006 President, OnStar
Steve Wozniak Honorary Doctor of Engineering December 2005 Co-founder, Apple Computer (external link & photos)
Robert Lutz Honorary Doctor of Management June 2003 Chairman, General Motors North America
Stan O'Neal '74 Honorary Doctor of Management December 2002 CEO, Merrill Lynch
MaliVai Washington Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters June 2002 Former professional tennis player
Dean Kamen Honorary Doctor of Engineering December 2001 President, DEKA Research & Development; Founder, FIRST; Inventor of Segway (external link & photos)
Dave Bing Honorary Doctor of Management June 2000 Former NBA player, Mayor of Detroit
Donald J. Almquist '55 Honorary Doctor of Engineering December 1999 Retired Chairman, President, and CEO, Delco Electronics
F. James McDonald '44 Honorary Doctor of Engineering December 1998 Former President, General Motors

List of student organizations

List of Greek Letter organizations at Kettering

North-American Interfraternity Conference fraternities

National Panhellenic Sororities

National Pan-Hellenic Organizations

References

  1. 1 "America's Best Colleges 2009". U.S. News & World Report. http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/flint-mi/kettering-university-2262. Retrieved 2009-09-10. 
  2. 2 Kettering University Key Dates
  3. 3 College Navigator - Kettering University Enrollment Fall 2006 Data
  1. ^ Inventor of the week, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  2. ^ U.S. News and World Report
  3. ^ Kettering Fast Facts
  4. ^ General Motors Training and Education
  5. ^ Charles Kettering biography
  6. ^ Yahoo College Facts
  7. ^ Princeton Review
  8. ^ [1]
  9. ^ Kettering Undergraduate Programs
  10. ^ Kettering Graduate Programs
  11. ^ Kettering Employer Partners
  12. ^ Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation
  13. ^ a b Peterson's College Close-Up
  14. ^ Whatsupdowntown
  15. ^ fuelcellworks
  16. ^ Kettering Facts
  17. ^ College Data

External links

v • d • e
Colleges and universities in Michigan
Public institutions
Private institutions
Community Colleges
v • d • e
Midwestern Undergraduate Private Engineering Colleges

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

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