2001 Recipients
Donald L. Poggi '51
Don Poggi, in the words of Thomas Edison, legendary inventor and employer of your grandfather, "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." In 1981, opportunity presented itself in the familiar surroundings of your father-in-law's machine prototyping and short-run production company. You and your life partner, Shirley, became business partners, calling your new enterprise Model and Instrument Development Corp.
In 1983, opportunity knocked again when M+IND was asked to help develop a new kind of prosthetic foot. While still working full time for Boeing, where you'd spent 32 years in structures and materials development, electronic product development, business risk analysis, and development and application of system engineering processes for development projects, you took on the challenge and succeeded spectacularly, creating a lifelike, "dynamic response" foot that affords amputees better movement, and better physical condition. Your Seattle Foot© was nothing short of revolutionary, forever changing the world of prosthetic limbs. In 1985 it earned you one of the first Presidential Awards for Design Excellence, which was presented to you by President Ronald Reagan in ceremonies held in the Oval Office.
Under your leadership as chairman of the board, which you assumed full-time in 1987, M+IND grew and prospered. In 1990 the Seattle Lightfoot©, which weighs a third less than the original Seattle Foot©, received Washington State's Governor's Award for New Products.
You extended your leadership and innovation skills beyond the factory floor to the scientific and regional community, serving as Region 11 president and vice president of the American Orthotics and Prosthetics Association. You were founding president of WAMOPA (Western and Midwestern Orthotic Prosthetic Association) and have served as a member of the International Standards Organization (ISO) Technical Committee for Prosthetic Limb Standards and the U.S. Technical Advisory Group. You also serve on the University of Washington Engineered Biomaterials Industrial Advisory Board, which secured and oversees a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center grant of $11 million.
Don Poggi, it is with great pride and admiration that we recognize your distinguished professional achievements and your significant contribution to enabling amputees throughout the world to lead more able and fulfilling lives by presenting you with the Robert H. Goddard Alumni Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement.
H. Richard Freeman '61
Dick Freeman, you have been a leader in aerospace innovation, providing the United States government with sophisticated technology to explore the heavens.
You joined NASA in 1964 to serve as a design engineer for the Nimbus-D weather satellite. As you advanced to positions of increasing responsibility at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, you created vital systems and subsystems for satellite research and the Space Shuttle Payloads Project. For a time, you devoted your technical expertise to the Central Intelligence Agency, where you managed projects for the Office of Development and Engineering.
You have published widely in the field of satellite systems and spaceflight phenomenon. You bring to your work the skills and knowledge you gained at WPI, along with graduate study in feedback control theory. During your studies at Yale University, where you earned a master's degree, and at the University of Maryland, where you earned a doctorate, you made major contributions to your field.
Your three decades of work and devotion have been recognized with awards for service and achievement from both NASA and the CIA. In 1997, WPI's Electrical and Computer Engineering Department honored you with its Newell Award for outstanding contributions to your profession.
You have always found the time to serve your alma mater, as a leader of Washington, D.C., alumni events and as a member of the ECE advisory board.
Today you are part of a new venture, The Aerospace Corporation, designing reliable, cost-effective systems to meet the demands of space exploration in the 21st century.
Dick Freeman, there are few who travel in your orbit. In honor of your outstanding contributions, we present you with the Robert H. Goddard Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement.
Donald H. Foley '66
Don Foley, you have distinguished yourself among your peers and brought great pride to your alma mater through your decades of accomplishments as a technically oriented R & D manager and leader.
Following graduation from WPI with B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering, you earned your doctorate at Syracuse University. In 1971 you co-founded PAR Technology Corporation, an early leader in the automation of retailing, which supplied McDonald's restaurants with point-of-sale terminals. You held several executive positions with PAR, including vice president, research development and engineering. In 1987 you joined DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), the central research and development organization for the Department of Defense. As deputy director and assistant director of special programs, you managed the development of innovative and often high-risk research that promised a significant technological impact on the United States.
You currently serve as executive vice president of SAIC (Science Applications International Corporation), the largest employee-owned research and engineering company in the nation. With more than 41,000 employees worldwide, SIAC specializes in taking emerging technologies in such fields as scientific computing, image processing and signal analysis, and developing products for the defense and commercials markets.
Throughout your career, you have shared your expertise with others; for this, you were honored by WPI in 1996 with the Hobart Newell Award. You have placed a high value on integrity, personal happiness and professional satisfaction, devoting time to an active family as well as your professional development.
Don Foley, it is with great pride and admiration that we recognize your distinguished achievements by presenting you with the Robert H. Goddard Alumni Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement.
Donald K. Peterson '71
Don Peterson, your hard work, dedication and commitment to quality have propelled your career and led to numerous professional achievements.
As president and chief executive officer of Avaya, you are leading an $8 billion company focused on becoming the leading global provider of comprehensive e-business communications solutions.
Following your graduation from WPI with a degree in mechanical engineering, you obtained an MBA from Dartmouth College. You began your career in 1973 as a senior analyst at State Mutual Life Assurance; in 1976 you joined Northern Telecom and advanced through numerous financial and sales positions in the United States and Canada. In 1994 you were named president of Nortel Communications Systems, a company with $800 million in revenue; you held this position for a year before joining AT&T, where you were chief financial officer of the Communications Services Group. These experiences and successes led to your appointment in 1996 as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Lucent Technologies, responsible for executive management and oversight of all financial operations and information systems for the company.
In June 2000 you were named president and chief executive officer of the spin-off Avaya Inc., a company focused on delivering next-generation communication networks to a million customers in over 90 countries.
You have been a constant supporter of WPI throughout your career and a strong advocate for the benefits of corporate partnerships within higher education, particularly within WPI. Appointed to the WPI Board of Trustees in 1997 and currently chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, your talents continue to have an impact on the future of WPI.
Don Peterson, your impressive career has distinguished you and brought great honor to your alma mater. It is with significant pride that WPI presents you with the Robert H. Goddard Alumni Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement.
Francis M. Scricco '71
Fran Scricco, your highly successful career, distinguished by outstanding business acumen and leadership, has brought much pride to your alma mater. As president and chief executive officer of Arrow Electronics Inc., the world's largest distributor of electronic components and computer products to industrial and commercial customers, you are leading a $13 billion company into the new millennium.
Following your graduation from WPI with a degree in mechanical engineering, you earned your MBA from Columbia University. You began your career in 1973 with The Boston Consulting Group and in 1979 you joined General Electric, serving for six years in a variety of managerial positions. In 1992, you became president of the Canadian Subsidiary of Whirlpool Corporation, where under your leadership the $350 million business became Canada's largest supplier of home appliances.
You joined Arrow Electronics Inc. as executive vice president and chief operating officer in 1997, and were an integral force in designing and executing the strategy that guided the company through a North American realignment and into a customer-focused structure. Your organizational talents lent a sense of order to the restructuring of the company. You have brought a new and dynamic leadership style to the global electronics industry's preeminent distributor.
Thriving on change, you never turned down the opportunity to take on a challenge throughout your career. You have always devoted time to your family, striving for balance both professionally and personally.
Fran Scricco, WPI is fortunate to have among its alumni a man of such exceptional professionalism and leadership. We are proud to present you with the Robert H. Goddard Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement.
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