NPRE Students Chosen as Engineers of the Week

The Engineering Council Awards Committee recently has chosen four NPRE undergraduates as Engineers of the Week.

The student organization bestows the title to one or two College of Engineering juniors or seniors every week to give the students an opportunity to highlight their achievements to peers. Each student is showcased professionally with a poster hung in Engineering Hall.

The NPRE students are seniors Valentyn Bykov of Kiev, Ukraine; Peter Fiflis of Indian Head Park, Illinois; Leigh Ann Kesler of Fisher, Illinois; and Cody A. Morrow of Springfield, Illinois.

Valentyn Bykov

Bykov serves as president of the American Nuclear Society (ANS) student chapter. He also is a member of the Illinois Space Society student organization, and enjoys building high-powered rockets.

Bykov’s honors and awards include being a James Scholar, having been named to the College of Engineering Dean's List, and having received the ANS Raymond DiSalvo Memorial Scholarship.

Among his favorite classes, he lists Art History in Global Context. “It was a class that instead of looking at a series of events chronologically, teleported you to a certain point in space and time and made a point or an observation. One moment you are looking at 19th Century colonial empires, then suddenly you are in 10th Century China,” Bykov said. “It was like watching an episode of Doctor Who.”

Asked what he wants to do with his degree, Bykov said, “I'm going to apply the Banach–Tarski theorem on it and get two identical degrees.” (The Banach-Tarski paradox states that a solid object can be split into a finite number of non-overlapping pieces and, without stretching or expanding them in any way, use them to form two objects identical to the first.)

Peter Fiflis

Fiflis has served as a teaching assistant for NPRE 101, Introduction to Energy Sources, and NPRE 201, Energy Systems, and works as an undergraduate researcher in the Center for Plasma Material Interactions. He also is a member of the Phi Kappa Psi Fraternity and the Order of Omega Green Honor Society.

His honors include having been named to the Dean’s List, Membership in the Alpha Nu Sigma Honor Society, being named a Chancellor’s Scholar and James Scholar, and having earned an Honorable Mention in the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship competition.

NPRE 101 has been Fiflis’ favorite class: “(NPRE) Prof. David Ruzic never allows for a dull moment in the class. Every hour something, if not multiple things, explodes, and all of them are to emphasize a point. There is a demonstration for virtually every concept. It is one of the best classes that I have taken, and I have been lucky enough to have the experience of TAing the class as well.”

After graduation Fiflis expects to earn a master’s and, most likely, a PhD, from the University of Illinois.“I want to enter the field of nuclear fusion. I would love to contribute to making nuclear fusion competitive enough for commercialization,” he said.

Leigh Ann Kesler

Kesler is a member of ANS; the Illini Pullers, a competitive quarter-scale tractor building organization; Block I, the student support group for Illini football; and the campus’ Rock Climbing Club.

Her honors include the George H. Miley LENR Undergraduate Scholarship, the ANS Pittsburgh Local Section Undergraduate Scholarship, and a National Academy for Nuclear Training Scholarship.

“My favorite class so far has been NPRE 423 (the plasma lab class),” Kesler said. “I enjoyed this class because I received hands-on experience and knowledge in my chosen field.”

After earning her bachelor’s degree, Kesler plans to attend graduate school to pursue fusion-related research.

Cody A. Morrow

Morrow has served as ANS treasurer the past two years. He has volunteered for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Resource Center, and is Founder of oSTEM@Illinois (out in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). He has been active in Alternative Spring Breaks, iHELP Volunteer services, and the NPRE exhibit for Engineering Open House.

In 2011 Morrow was made an Engineering Council Knight of St. Patrick in recognition of his leadership and many volunteer activities. His honors also include ANS Scholarship 2011; ANS Landis Scholarship 2010; Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Nuclear Engineering Scholar 2009, 2010; Department of Energy Nuclear Engineering Undergraduate Program Scholarship 2009; and NPRE Scholarship 2008, 2009 and 2010.

Russian Fairy Tales and Folklore has been among Morrow’s favorite classes. “I liked this class because it is a great break from math-heavy engineering courses,” he said. “We spent time learning about Russian and Ukrainian culture, beliefs and superstition, considering both the origins and how things changed, and yet stayed the same, with the introduction of Christianity.”

Upon graduation, Morrow would like to work for the NRC or a consulting firm such as Chicago-based Sargent & Lundy^LLC. “I am also looking at other consulting firms in which I can utilize my problem solving abilities as a non-engineer,” he said.