The prospect of restoring Gary’s once majestic downtown City Methodist Church after nearly four decades of neglect may seem highly unlikely.  

On schedule to graduate

But if it were to happen, a Purdue University Calumet construction sciences student has done the initial heavy lifting, so to speak, of preparation.

Merrillville resident and New Lenox, Ill. native Brianne Slick is on schedule to graduate Sunday (5/19) from Purdue Calumet’s construction management and engineering technology program. One of her final assignments was to complete an extensive design project, required of all seniors, that enabled her to apply lessons she has learned as a prospective construction project manager.

Senior project

Her senior project, which she initiated last fall, provided restoration plans for the sanctuary within the multi-faceted, 1925 circa City Methodist Church, once considered among the most magnificent in Indiana.

Changing times in northwest Indiana, however, led to the church’s demise, closing and ultimate abandonment in 1975.

When a Gary faith-based community advocate sought to find out what it would take to restore the grand old worship facility, Purdue Calumet Chancellor Thomas Keon became aware. He then contacted university Professor and Head of the Department of Construction Sciences and Organizational Leadership Anthony Gregory.

“I put it out there as a possible senior project for our students, and Brianne stepped forward,” Gregory said. “She researched the church’s history and did a proposal last fall focusing on the sanctuary portion only. Then she did an analysis to determine whether or not the sanctuary could be made usable and if so, what the rehabbing would cost.”

Dean’s List

For the ambitious, 25-year-old Dean’s List student, the project got off to a challenging start.

“I couldn’t find any architecture plans for the church, so I had to do my own measurements,” she said. “Professor Gregory helped with the perimeter measures, and I did the interior myself.”

And she did them during the brutal winter months of January and February. Purdue Calumet Professors Dennis Korchek and Jose Pena also provided assistance.

She then went about employing lessons of her Purdue Calumet education.

“I had to decide what needed demolishing and what could be replaced,” she said. “Then I did a quantity take-off to determine material needs. I also used the RSMeans software program, which provides material and labor costs based on geographic location.”

Sometimes overwhelming

Though admitting the project at times was frustrating and overwhelming, “I fell in love with the (the building) right away,” she said. “The sheer beauty of the architecture and that it brought so many people together appealed to me.”

Along with other Purdue Calumet construction management and engineering technology seniors, she presented her project last week. A few weeks following graduation, she will begin her professional career in construction as an estimator with an electrical contractor in Denver, Colo.

Like so many students, Slick had other ideas of what she thought she wanted to study after high school. Briefly, she tried civil engineering. Then for two and one-half years, she explored veterinary science while working as a vet assistant. Though she adopted three dogs and two cats, her career path remained uncertain.

Meantime, while continuing to assist her father with home remodeling, she took the advice of family members and friends who encouraged her to resume her college education.

Accredited program nearby

“At the time, I didn’t realize construction management was a degree,” she said. “Purdue Calumet appealed to me because it offered an accredited degree program nearby.”

Three years of study and two paid internships later, she acknowledges that the Purdue Calumet program “covers the fundamentals of construction as to what you need to know in order to manage projects.”

She adds that she also has benefited from helpful professors and flexible course scheduling.

“Brianne is one of those students with a critical mind who makes a professor better,” Associate Professor of Civil Engineering Technology Jose Pena said. “I have no doubt she will be a success in any area and endeavor she initiates. I wish we had more students with her discipline, drive and, above all, capacity for analyzing, asking questions and looking beyond the surface of things.”

One of the best decisions

Reflecting on her Purdue Calumet years, she said, “I can honestly say this has been one of the best decisions of my life. Being a woman in construction is not only a challenge, but it is also a reward knowing that I can do anything I put my heart into…”

Igor Manevski is intrigued by animation.

Creating animated movies

Hoping to learn how to create animated movies is what attracted him to Purdue University Calumet and its computer graphics technology program some six years ago.

After he graduates Sunday (5/19) with a baccalaureate degree, the Crown Point resident and Dean’s List student is optimistic about landing a job in the graphics unit of a Chicago mobile application company.

“It’s looking promising,” the 26-year-old native of Macedonia said.

Glass half full

Then again, he has been a glass half full kind of guy throughout his life.

After moving to America with his parents and sister when he was 10, “I was able to speak English fluently within two months,” he said.

It was during his years at Crown Point High School that he became interested in animation.

“As I watched TV, I took special notice of the fantastic (computer graphics) animated scenes and their details,” he said. “After reading about the software that’s used to design those scenes, I really got interested.”

Closer to home

Ignor Manevski

When the cost of attending an out-of-state animation technical school proved prohibitive and a closer-to-home alternative came up short in his expectations, he turned to Purdue Calumet.

“My sister also came here and graduated in 2003 in criminal justice and gerontology,” Manevski said. “She brought me the (university) catalog; that’s how I found out about Purdue Calumet’s CGT program with a track in animation.”

For his senior design project in animation, he has researched efficiency in computer graphics imaging and developed a series of 3-dimensional, rigid body animated scenes. One is a sports car that he brought to life from his own design inspired by Lamborghini among other super and hyper cars.

“I designed my car from the inspiration of other super cars,” he said. “I added detail that attempts to demonstrate emotion that is so convincing my car appears real.”

Bright future

What also appears real, according to Purdue Calumet Assistant Professor of Computer Graphics Technology Magesh Chandramouli, is a bright future for his student.

“Igor is one of the most talented and responsible students I have worked with,” the professor said. “Owing to his diligence and unwavering commitment, he will scale great heights in his career.”

Reflecting on his Purdue Calumet experience, one that also has included opportunities to serve as a teacher’s assistant tutor, hold a few part-time jobs, conduct freelance work and participate on the men’s tennis squad, Manevski said, “Purdue Calumet has prepared me for greater responsibilities, higher thinking and tackling projects with research. We’re here to learn how to learn in a timely fashion, and I feel well prepared to continue my lifelong learning.”

Engineering Technology

• Hamad  Abbadi,  Mechanical Engineering Technology
• Steven Snyder,  Mechanical Engineering Technology
• Parvizsho Aminov,  Electrical Engineering Technology
• Justin Lasecki,  Electrical Engineering Technology
• Ryan Trgovcich,  Electrical Engineering Technology
•  Adam Morris,  Mechatronics Engineering Technology
• Jeffrey  Davis,  Industrial Engineering Technology

Computer Information Technology and Graphics

• Timothy Albrecht,  Computer Information Technology
• Jonathan Fromin,  Computer Information Technology
• Jonathan Kamphuis,  Computer Information Technology
• Nicole Kirincic,  Computer Graphics Technology
• Michelle Lynn Taylor,  Computer Graphics Technology
• Lindsey Warga,  Computer Graphics Technology

Construction Science and Organizational Leadership

• Brianne Slick,  Construction Management & Engineering Technologies
• Maria Melissa Davidson,  Construction Management & Engineering Technologies
• Michael Darrough,  Organizational Leadership & Supervision
• Stanley Makarowski,  Organizational Leadership & Supervision

The society honors invited scholars who have compiled a grade point average of at least 3.3 (4.0 scale), while encouraging a lifetime of commitment to learning and scholarship.

The inductees represent three academic fields of technology:

Construction Management and Engineering Technology:

• Hector Dones
• Peter Lehotan
• Kimberly Verduzco

Electrical Engineering Technology:

• Hasan Asiri
• Chris Gioiosa
• Timothy Haan
• Ryan Neis
• Christian Nelson
• Roy Sida

Mechanical Engineering Technology:

• Hamad Abbadi
• Ahmed Al Bukhamseen
• Saleh Aldwais
• Yaqoub Almubark
• Abdulrahman Alnassar
• Ali Al-Sulaiman
• Jermain Banton
• Joseph Dzialowy
• Stephen Stocklen

Dean’s List and Semester Honors

• Yazeed Al Babtain
• Ahmed Ibrahim Al Bukhamseen
• Saleh Yousef Al Karri
• Asma Khalid Alali
• Mohammed Albinhamdhah
• Timothy Albrecht
• Saleh Abdullah Aldwais
• Ibrahim Abdullah Alghamdi
• Mohammed Eid Alhajri
• Abdullah Alkhaldi
• Saleh Sulaiman Alkhattaf
• Ali Mohammed Alkuwaiti
• Rashed Mohammed A Almarri
• Abdulrahman Abdullah Alnassar
• Ali Hussain Alromiah
• Bader Hassan Alsaleh
• Meshal Alsuwinea
• Parvizsho Aminov
• Dominic Balderas
• Jermaine Banton
• Anthony Barringer
• Margaret Erika Bauman
• Matthew Bjorklund
• Allissa Blandford
• Diane Brown
• Armando Cabrera
• Michael Cheung
• Traci Jean Childers
• Jeremy Critchfield
• Peter Dalessandro
• Michael Darrough
• Karen Dignin
• Aric Donnelly
• Kalen Dubrick
• Joseph Dzialowy
• Michelle Eriks
• Luis Espitia
• Alyssa Fagenbaum
• L Frain
• Dustin Franz
• Jonathan Fromin
• Lucas Gard
• Ashley Garza
• Chris Gioiosa
• Nikola Golijanin
• Marco Gonzalez
• Douglas Gordon
• Miena Gorgi
• Kevin Grskovich
• Urvashi Gupta
• Timothy Haan
• Miles Hastings
• Andrew Hochmuth
• George Howard
• Adam Hughes
• Rodney Hutsenpiller
• Jonathan Kamphuis
• David Kozak
• Michael Kozlowski
• Joel Kropiewnicki
• Terry Kuzel
• Joshua Laine
• Kurt Laninga
• Jens Larsen
• Justin Lasecki
• Jorge Macias
• Alejandro Madrigal
• Igor Manevski
• Josiah Martin
• Christopher Mihajlovich
• Szymon Mucha
• Amanda M Muha
• Michelle Navarro
• Ryan Neis
• Christian Nelson
• Michael Pavlick
• Dustin Pendrick
• Stephanie Peters
• Keith Pullen
• Majed Hamdi Rawwas
• Jordan Rizo
• Adrian Robles
• Aaron Rogers
• Michael Rourke
• Kurt Salah
• Marshall Santefort
• Eesha Sharma
• Brianne Slick
• Laurel Smith
• Tavia Smith
• Steven Snyder
• Anthony Spain
• Chris Spesia
• Michelle Lynn Taylor
• Esmeralda Torres
• Ryan Trgovcich
• Nicolas Waldmarson
• Lindsey Warga
• Nicole Weishaar
• Jonelle Willison
• Robert Wood
• Ingrid Young

Dean’s List

• Hamad Abbadi
• Ali Hamad Al Marri
• Faisal Hejab Alotaibi
• Matthew Dombrowski
• Tristan Frohock
• Kevin Gill
• Jamie Guijarro
• Aaron Kolb
• Anthony Martin
• Sue McCormack
• Anthony Phipps
• James Roach
• Daniel Seim
• Gina Sepic
• Christopher Waymire
• Eric Weber

Semester Honors

• Abdulmalik Mohammed Ainosa
• Abdulhadi Al Marri
• Rashed Al Marri
• Ali Jafar Alabdrabalredha
• Tawfeeq Alhazza
• Ashraf Alhuzum
• Abdulaziz Aljabr
• Suliman Al-Kharsht
• Emad Alkhawaja
• Hamad Jaber Almarri
• Jorge Almazo
• Yaqoub Almubark
• Saad Almughaidi
• Assem Nasser Alotaibi
• Ali Al-Sulaiman
• Rogelio Alvarez
• Stavros Amanatidis
• Hasan Ahmad Asiri
• Robert Baker
• Neal Ballah
• Stanley Barnes
• Robert Bartlett
• Joseph Bazil
• Andrew Bennett
• Michael Benninghoff Jr
• Nate Billingsley
• Daniel Birkett
• Theodoros Bitzivis
• Michael Boehm
• Joshua Bonneville
• Anthony Borgetti
• Lisa Brown
• Gilberto Cabrera
• Christopher Casson
• Keith Christiansen
• Matthew Cudzilo
• Joel Cummings
• Jessie David
• Jessica Ann Dean
• Joseph Depra
• Hector Dones
• Oliver Doppler
• Shaun Doyle
• Janel Drozd
• Alyssa Duncan
• Ryan Dykema
• Sonia Formosa
• Kim Monique Frazier
• Teresa Gagne
• Justin Gamble
• Hector Garcia
• Ashley Garcia Burns
• Maurice Griggs
• Pedro Gutierrez
• Timothy Hall
• Ryan Handtke
• Joe Hemphill
• Andres Hernandez
• Kevin Hicks
• Cynthia Hill
• James Hillegonds
• Rachael N Hornyak
• Matthew Jaroszewski
• Jeremy Kaiser
• Anupam Kalita
• Cody Kerrigan
• Nicole Kirincic
• Christopher Koenig
• Joshua Koselke
• Dennis Kozak
• John Krohn
• Andrea N Kutzko
• Mehran Latif
• Matthew Leus
• Brian Lichtle
• Julian A Loera
• Armando Lopez
• George Lugo
• Stanley Makarowski
• Zachary Mangerson
• Michael Martinez
• Brittany Massie
• Nathan Matykiewicz
• Jason McCluskey
• Philip Meyer
• Suzanne Mijatovich
• Mohammed Mohammed
• Christopher Morris
• Abby Mummery
• Brian Murray
• Gregory Musch
• Mohammad Musleh
• Steven Muvceski
• Lucas Nieboer
• Kevin O’Hara
• Lana Kristine Olenik
• Bryan Ong
• Ryan Panozzo
• Heather Parker
• Eric Pearman
• Carlos Perez
• Christopher Perkins
• Michael Phillips
• Nicholas Pindara
• Adam Pockrus
• Kurt Popovich
• Jonathan Rada
• Che’Michone B Rayburn
• Thomas Rhoads
• Ryan Richardson
• Joseph Rodriguez
• Christopher Roe
• Eric Rosas
• Branden Ruiz
• Aisha Siddiqui
• Paul Sikora
• Brian Simac
• Sarah Simmons
• Sachit Singal
• John Singel
• Brandon Sirbas
• Robert Slevnik
• Elijah Smith
• William Spoor
• Michael Stam
• Nevena Stanley
• Matthew Staton
• Sarah Steffel
• Christopher Stewart
• Charles Stinnett
• Stephen Stocklen
• John Stompor
• Brett Strohl
• Whitney Sullivan
• Remington Taylor
• Becky Torres
• Heather Tschopp
• Tremont Turner
• Chad Umbarger
• Jose Vargas
• John Vroom
• Araceli Wehrle
• Megan Wesley
• Przemyslaw Wiejak
• Joshua Williams
• Ashleigh Wladyka
• Nenad Zezelj