Notable Purdue Alumni

Larry Garatoni

Pledge Class: 1958

Mr. Garatoni is a graduate of Purdue University (BSCE 1961) and completed the Owners/President Program of the Harvard Business School. Larry served in the Army Reserve attaining the rank of Captain. He and his wife Judy have four children and 13 grandchildren.

In 1966 Larry and a partner built and operated one long-term care facility. He later bought the partner’s interests. Larry continued building healthcare related facilities and companies and up to 1994, Larry founded and operated several companies under the Health Quest Group name. These businesses included the Health Quest Corporation, Health Quest Development Corporation, Achievement Rehab Corporation, Long Term Care Pharmaceutical Services Corporation, and Health Quest Infusion Therapy Corporation. In 1994 he made a strategic decision to sell all of these companies.

From 1994 – 2007, Larry started or acquired and served as the CEO of three software and internet sales companies:  Achieve Healthcare Technology, FurnitureFind.com, and Winesource.com. All of these business interests were sold in 2007.

In 2007 Larry founded HQ Investments, which is a family office. HQ Investments manages various publicly traded and private investments. Personally, and through the Garatoni-Smith Family Foundation, he and his wife Judy founded the Career Academy and the Success Academy charter schools with an enrollment of 1150 students. He also cofounded Magnet Investors, a local angel investment group.

Randall L. Herrel, Sr.

Pledge Class: 1970

Randall L. Herrel., Sr., currently serves as President and CEO of the Santa Catalina Island Company, a 120-year-old family hospitality, resort and real estate company. Mr. Herrel joined the company in 2007 and also chairs the Finance & Investment Committee and is a member of its Executive Committee. From 1996 to 2006 Mr. Herrel served as President and CEO of Ashworth Inc., a publicly traded global sportswear company. He also served as its Chairman from 2001 to 2006.

Mr. Herrel joined Quiksilver Inc. in 1989 as its Chief Financial Officer and later held the additional position as its Chief Operating Officer. From 1994 to 1996 he served as President. Quiksilver is a publicly traded global sportswear company.

Mr. Herrel is a Director of Storm Industries, Inc., a private real estate, and global industrial products company. He also serves on the company’s Audit and Compensation Committees. Mr. Herrel is an honorary chair of Our Lady Queen of Angels Church capital campaign.

Mr. Herrel graduated from Purdue University with a BS degree in Aeronautical & Astronautical Engineering, Northrop University with an MS degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering and an MBA from Stanford University. He is a member of Legatus and the Purdue and Stanford Business School Alumni Associations. He is married to his wife Carol for 42 years and has two grown children.

Robert J. Adams Jr, PhD

Melvin H. Chiohioji

Pledge Class: 1958

Degrees:
B.S. Electrical Engineering, Purdue University
M.B.A., University of Hawai’i
Ph.D., Business Administration, George Washington University

Graduated from Purdue University in 1961 with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering.  After completion of the Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corp (R.O.T.C.) he was commissioned an Ensign in the U. S. Navy. Following active service, he served in various reserve assignments culminating in his selection to Rear Admiral in 1987. As a Rear Admiral his last position was as Commander of the Second Naval Construction Brigade, responsible for all the Seabee operations in the Atlantic and Mediterranean regions.

Chiogioji’s advanced education includes a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Hawaii in 1968, and a Doctor of Business Administration degree, majoring in Operations Research, from George Washington University in 1972.

A federal civil servant for 27 years, Mel served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy and as Deputy Director and Construction Manager for the New Production Reactor Program at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Admiral Chiogioji is currently president and CEO of MELE Associates, a consulting firm that provides engineering, environmental, management, telecommunication, information technology and training services to federal and private sector organizations. The firm is also actively involved in developing renewable energy projects throughout the world. He is a registered professional electrical engineer, a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, a life member of the Naval Reserve Association, a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers, and the Society of American Military Engineers.

Chiogioji is listed in “Who’s Who in America,” “Who’s Who in the World,” “Who’s Who in Technology,” “Who’s Who in Finance and Industry” and “American Men and Women of Science.” He had co-authored with Dr. Eleanor Oura a book entitled, “Residential and Commercial Building Energy Conservation,” and another book entitled, “Industrial Energy Conservation” – both published by Marcel Dekker, Incorporated.

Jack R. Kelble

Robert W. Lucky

Pledge Class: 1955

Degrees:
B.S. Electrical Engineering, Purdue University
M.S. Electrical Engineering, Purdue University
Ph.D. Electrical Engineering, Purdue University

After graduating from Purdue, Lucky joined AT&T Bell Laboratories, where he initially studied ways of sending digital information via telephone lines. Lucky’s work included the development of the adaptive equalizer technique for correcting distortion in telephone signals in high speed data transmission.

In his current position as executive director of communications sciences research for Bell Laboratories, he coordinates research in areas such as fiber optics, data networks, mobile communication, image processing, and broadband communications technologies and services.

Lucky is active in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), has served as president of the IEEE Communications Society, and has been both vice president and executive vice president of the parent organization. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and received the prestigious Marconi Award in Italy. Lucky has served as editor of several technical journals. Since 1982, he has written a bimonthly column for Spectrum magazine. He is a consulting editor for a series of books on communications, the co-author of a heavily cited textbook on data communications, and the author of the popular book, Silicon Dreams.

Lucky has been on the advisory boards or committees of many universities and government organizations. He has received honorary doctorates from Purdue and from the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

Frederick R. Meyer

Pledge Class: 1946

Degrees:
B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University
M.B.A., Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration

Experience
General Electric Company, 1949-1956; Treasurer, Aladdin Industries, Inc., 1958-1967; President, Tyler Corporation, 1967-1986; President, and C.E.O., Aladdin Industries, Inc., 1985-1999; Chairman of the Board, Aladdin Industries, LLC, 1999-present

Robert B. Nagel

Pledge Class: 1957

Degrees:
B.S. Industrial Economics, Purdue University
M.B.A., The University of Chicago Booth School of Business

Mr. Nagel is a founding partner and currently Chairman of CEO Partners, Inc., an independent management consulting firm specializing in the food service industry. The company provides strategic business counsel to CEOs and senior management, primarily in areas of integration and management of acquired companies, business unit strategy, supply chain efficiency, and shareholder value improvement. Clients include manufacturers, distributors, chain restaurant operators, and trade associations.

Henry J. Ramey, Jr.

Pledge Class: 1948

Degrees:
B.S. Chemical Engineering, Purdue University
Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, Purdue University

Professor of Petroleum Engineering at Stanford University, as well as Texas A&M. Dr. Ramey was also a member of the US National Academy of Engineering.

Theodore S. Rappaport, PhD

John M. Storm

Pledge Class: 1973

Degree:
B.S. Metallurgical Engineering, Purdue University

Purdue’s John M. Storm knows a thing or two about setting the standard for others to follow.  Maybe that is why John has been honored by everyone from Purdue University to the Society of Manufacturing Engineering.

In his first professional job out of the box, John’s innovations resulted in corporate annual savings of $6,000,000.  That’s right, 6 million dollars. In 1977, John started working as a process metallurgist for Detroit Diesel Allison, a division of General Motors.  John was in charge of testing a furnace the size of a small building.  The result was John being on the edge of creating a new industry standard for furnace applications.  John created a furnace application utilizing a methanol nitrogen atmosphere, which saved GM over 6 million dollars per year.

After that savings, John was provided a small staff and given the opportunity to work on whatever project he wanted to.  John decided to begin with creating an advanced computer-controlled heat treating process for gears.  This process eventually became the Micropulse Process, which GM declined to patent.  So in 1986, John and GM gear specialist Mike Chapin decided to patent the  Micropulse Process and go it alone and created Contour Hardening Inc.  Their goal for their company was to create a cost-effective solution to difficult heat treatment applications.

During the first five years of their business, they did not sell a single one of their large expensive machines.  In fact, John estimates losing between three and four million dollars.  But in 1990, Contour Hardening sold its first system to an overseas transmission manufacturer.  The rest fell into place from there.  Between June 1995 and January 1997, Contour Hardening Inc. had a 300% growth period.  In 2002, sales were $11 million.

This married father of two is also an avid race enthusiast and in 1997, for the first time in racing history, advanced hardening and process control technology was used, resulting in a first and second place win at the Indianapolis 500!  Arie Luyendyk crossed the finish line first and Scott Goodyear crossed second, both, using Contour Hardening’s patented gears, which are stronger, lighter than and twice as strong as the industry standards.  In 2001, CHI sponsored driver Sam Hornish, Jr. of Panther Racing who in 2001 won 3 IRL races and the 2001 IRL Championship.  CHI’s gear designs and induction gear hardening can be found in CART, Score (off-highway series) and FIA sanctioned race vehicles.

William D. Young

Pledge Class: 1964

Degrees:
B.S. Chemical Engineering, Purdue University
M.B.A., Indiana University
Honorable Doctorate Engineering, Purdue University

William D. Young joined ViroLogic as Chairman of the Board and CEO in November 1999. From 1980 until joining ViroLogic, Bill was employed at Genentech, Inc., most recently as Chief Operating Officer. As COO, Bill was responsible for all of the company’s development and commercial functions.

Prior to joining Genentech, Bill worked at Eli Lilly and Company for 14 years and held various positions in production and process engineering, antibiotic process development, and production management. He received his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Purdue University and his master’s of business administration from Indiana University. In 1993 he was elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering division of the National Academy of Sciences for his contributions to the development of manufacturing technology for biotechnology-based drug products, in 1997 Purdue presented him the Distinguished Engineering Alumnus Award, and in 2000 was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Engineering also by his alma mater, Purdue University.