University of Arizona College of Engineering alumni now working at Raytheon recently launched “Raytheon Presents!” -- a series of interactive lectures featuring design competitions, demonstrations and videos.

“We wanted to bring some educational entertainment to campus,” said series creator Regina Reed, a 2009 UA aerospace engineering graduate who is now a senior mechanical engineer in control systems and mechanisms at Raytheon.

“The goal of the lecture series is to provide insight into what an engineer does, potential career paths after graduation, and the current technologies at Raytheon Missile Systems,” Reed said. “A main focus of these lectures is to have fun,” she added. “There are interactive aspects to every lecture and we really strive to connect with the students and provide good networking opportunities.

The series kickoff event was Feb. 12, 2015, when the Raytheon team introduced lecturers and subjects for the rest of the semester. Laura McGill, Raytheon’s deputy vice president of engineering, gave a talk about a Raytheon mission to bring down a disabled satellite with an SM-3 missile. Attendees also saw video trailers of upcoming lectures.

The first lecture in the series, to be held Feb. 19 in Room 202 of the AME Building, is “Introduction to Tactical Missile Design: Design Your Own Missile,” which will be presented by Raytheon’s Jon Peoble, a modeling simulation and analysis engineer, and Quinton Hurst, a systems engineer. Lecture attendees will compete against their classmates to design the best missile, then watch it perform during a competition.

Reed’s “Raytheon Presents!” teammates are 2006 aerospace engineering graduate Stephanie Rodriguez and Jeffrey Scogin, a 2008 graduate in optical sciences and engineering.

“All students and faculty are welcome to attend,” Reed said. “In addition to entertaining lecture topics, students will benefit from great networking opportunities.”

Lecture Schedule

All lectures are in the AME Building, Room S202, at 5 p.m.

Feb. 19
Introduction to Tactical Missile Design: Design Your Own Missile

Feb. 26
Aerodynamics: What the Liberal Arts Department Doesn’t Want You to Know

March 5
Ready… Ready… Pickle! Flight Tests

March 12
Race Cars and Rockets: Role of the Mechanical Design Engineer

March 26
Panel, Insight into Your Future: Internships, Résumés, and Interesting Projects

April 2
The Tomahawk Missile: Solve Real Engineering Problems

April 9
Being a Responsible Engineering Authority: YOU Are the Expert!

April 16
Navigation: Wherever You Go… There You Are

April 23
From Drawing Board to Working Product: Design Competition Challenge

April 30
Advanced Warfighter Technology: Unmanned Air-to-Air Combat

Contact

Regina Reed
Senior Mechanical Engineer I
Control Systems & Mechanisms Department
Raytheon Missile Systems
520.794.8602
regina.p.reed@raytheon.com

Top picture:  At the Feb. 12 “Raytheon Presents!” kickoff event, Raytheon mechanical engineer Stephen Bliss previews his March 12 talk by demonstrating how a simple design from an Indy car nose cone inspired the solution to an engineering problem at Raytheon. (Photo: Carl S. Miller)     .