Homecoming 2025: Red, Blue and True
Engineering Wildcats honor military, reaffirm commitment to communities.
Alumni rally Bear Down spirit ahead of the football game at the annual College of Engineering Homecoming tailgate, where families share food and laughs with old friends.
The College of Engineering and its partners have ‘Red, Bue and True’ staying power.
“Our first-year retention rates are some of the highest on campus,” David W. Hahn, the Craig M. Berge Dean, told 350 attendees at the 62nd Engineers Breakfast on Nov. 7.
Alongside remarkable growth, the college is remaining true to its purpose of steering students toward the nation’s greatest needs.
As the college expanded academic and research programs to meet workforce demand, 900 first-year and transfer students started in fall 2025, many with an eye on the job market.
Saying, “Students who want to be entrepreneurs recognize the value of engineering,” Hahn applauded the Integrated Business Engineering BS, a degree that fast-tracks undergraduates into business. He also welcomed the Department of Intelligence Operations, which relocated from the College of Applied Science and opens doors to defense and law enforcement job opportunities.
Additionally, Hahn updated alumni and supporters on progress toward goals that affect economic growth, including a 160% jump in research expenditures over the last five years.
In keeping with a workforce training focus, Engineering Student Council President Rohini Ghosh praised the community for helping set up metallurgy internships at ASARCO, a copper mining, smelting and refining company in Tucson.
“Your generosity and commitment to future generations of Wildcats have shaped every opportunity that I had,” said the W.A. Franke Honors College chemical engineering senior.
A college dedicated to the nation's needs
Keynote speaker Jessica Schafer, director of staff at U.S. Space Command and an aerospace engineering alum, tells breakfast attendees that the university’s pioneering spirit is invaluable.
President Suresh Garimella, University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, said the college has adapted well to meet national demands.
"I see the College of Engineering as integral to our strategic vision," he said.
Engineering includes several disciplines historically aligned with priorities in the Office of Research and Partnerships: fusion energy, AI-integrated health care, critical mineral mining, and space and national security.
Other speakers echoed the college's commitment to defense initiatives. U of A Foundation President and CEO JP Roczniak and keynote speaker Jessica Schafer emphasized Engineering’s rapid response to military partnerships.
A 2002 aerospace engineering alum with more than 20 years of Air Force service, Schafer directs staff in the Department of Defense’s U.S. Space Command. The college was the first partner in the division’s Academic Engagement Enterprise, focused on workforce training and research in national security and space exploration.
“The vital research happening at the UA makes it a valuable partner,” said Schafer, adding, “The Space4 Center is working on novel AI techniques to improve space traffic.”
Space4 Center is a $7.5 million Air Force-funded, international endeavor tracking objects in space between Earth and the moon. Systems and industrial engineering professor Roberto Furfaro is the center’s deputy director of engineering.
“It’s crucial we protect and preserve space for continued use,” Schafer said.
2025 Alumni awardees
Alumni of the Year Award
Susan Gray – electrical engineering, BS ‘96
Gray was an engineering student and collegiate swimmer when she started at Tucson Electric Power in 1994. Over three decades, she rose to president and CEO of TEP, UniSource Energy Services and their parent company, UNS Energy Corp. Gray helped found Women in Energy, a group that mentors and inspires women in the industry.
Bear Down Award
Don W. McDonald – electrical engineering, BS ‘65
McDonald spent 40 years in the semiconductor industry, including serving as chief operating officer and board member for Intense Photonics, a semiconductor laser design and manufacturing company. Since 2016, he has mentored more than 30 Interdisciplinary Capstone teams to success at Craig M. Berge Design Day. In June 2025, he and his wife, Sherry, committed $1 million to fund scholarships and biomedical engineering capstone projects.
Advocacy Award
Sharon ONeal – electrical and computer engineering, professor of practice
ONeal spent 35 years at Raytheon, an RTX Business, where she directed more than 550 engineers and became the first female senior fellow engineer. Drawing on that experience, she built the software engineering program from the ground up. She also endowed the Wildcat Engineering Trailblazer Scholarship and founded the Math Science and Technology Funfest in 2003, which has reached more than 75,000 K-12 students.
Professional Achievement Award
David Shilliday – mechanical engineering, BS ‘94
Shilliday leads Honeywell Aerospace's Advanced Air Mobility unit as vice president and general manager, guiding the company's work in drone systems and urban air mobility. He has steered the division to secure more than $10 billion in contracts with partners, including Archer Aviation, BETA, Wisk and Vertical Aerospace.
