Kevin Whitton

(TSU 2003)

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame, Indiana (2005)

Now at Motorola in Shaumburg, Illinois

“The education I received at TSU put me on the road to the job of my dreams, and I know that the people I met there, both in the classroom and on the court, will be with me forever.”

Student Biography:
Coming out of high school it was difficult to decide where to continue my education. I researched several colleges and universities and found that Tri-State University stood above the rest. Besides having an excellent academic reputation, it was one of few schools which showed an interest in both my athletic and academic capabilities.

I graduated from Tri-State in 2003 and was honored to be a member of the inaugural computer engineering class. Strangely, I first came to Tri-State as a computer science major but always had computer engineering in the back of my mind. After taking a few engineering classes during my first two years, I realized that that was where I wanted to be.

In addition to all the educational opportunities at Tri-State, many athletic and organizational possibilities also exist. During my years at Tri-State, I had the opportunity to play four years of varsity tennis. In my sophomore year I was named to the all-conference team and had the privilege of winning the WHAC (Wolverine Hoosier Athletic Conference) invitational doubles tournament that fall. I was named a captain of the tennis team my senior year and was also recognized as a Daktronics NAIA men’s tennis scholar-athlete.

In addition to participating on the tennis team, I was involved with a number of different organizations throughout the campus. I participated in intramural athletics and was a member of the Tau Beta Pi and Eta Kappa Nu engineering honor societies. For a time, I was also able to help other students as a tutor.

During my summers, I was able to partake in three different internships, two of which were acquired through the aid of TSU. After my sophomore year, I worked as an information technology assistant at BorgWarner TTS in Muncie, IN. There I was able to use my computer skills to develop several in-house database products. The following year, I chose to participate in a research experience for undergraduates program offered by the University of Missouri at Rolla. I worked side-by-side with students from much larger and well known universities on adding a direction and guidance system to a yellow robot there affectionately nicknamed Yobot. I was amazed with how well my classroom knowledge was able to prepare me for this project. Upon graduation from TSU, I worked as an embedded software intern at Logikos Corporation in Fort Wayne, IN where I worked on developing a C++ software program to communicate with blood glucose meters from Rouche Pharmaceuticals.

All of my professors at Tri-State were extremely knowledgeable in their fields and were always available to answer questions and help out in any way possible. Several professors would return to school late at night to hold study sessions before tests or to help with projects as due dates approached. I appreciated all their extra time, and I doubt if this type of personal attention would have been possible at a larger institution. I still frequently converse with many of my former professors, and one of them was a major influence in my decision to pursue a master’s degree upon leaving Tri-State.

Following in the path of several former Tri-State University graduates I chose the University of Notre Dame as the site to continue my education. I graduated two and one-half years later with many good and bad memories of the student section on football Saturday, as well as my master’s degree in computer engineering. Along the way, I was able to use the knowledge gained at TSU in serving as a teaching and research assistant for undergraduates at Notre Dame. The research I did during my tenure there is currently the subject of a preliminary patent. During my graduate years, I also enjoyed being a volunteer assistant tennis coach at Saint Mary’s College.

Upon the procurement of my master’s degree from Notre Dame, I faced another difficult decision. I had to decide whether to continue on for my doctorate or pursue a career in industry. I chose to begin a career in industry and am now a happy employee of Motorola in Schaumburg, IL.

Even though I have been graduated for several years now, I still try and regularly keep in touch with both my former professors and my friends from Tri-State University. I have been back to watch several tennis matches and even serve as the honorary coach for one match. I immensely enjoyed all of the time that I spent at Tri-State and firmly believe that the education I received there has been invaluable throughout the course of my graduate work at Notre Dame and now in my career in industry.