Chemical Engineering Alumna Shares Pride in Supporting the Vincent Murphy Chemical Engineering Scholarship Fund
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Maxine Cottrell |
Question: What do you get when you mix an intelligent and determined engineer with a talent for working in teams, a passion for lifelong learning, and an interest in giving back to those who help along the way?
Answer: Maxine Cottrell.
Ms. Cottrell, a 2000 Chemical Engineering alumna, is currently a Run Plant Engineer for Nucleic Acids Medicines, part of Dow Chemical's Dow Ventures group. Prior to this role, which she began in 2003, Ms. Cottrell served as a Process Engineer with Dow Chemical Global Process Engineering, working primarily in Midland, Michigan but also working on and sometimes traveling to a variety of processes at sites around the country and around the world including Texas, Louisiana, Brazil, Germany, and China.
When asked what advice she would like to share with current CSU engineering students, Ms. Cottrell encouraged aspiring engineers to take opportunities. "This way," she notes, "you can get accustomed to working with people whose social, cultural, and style traits are different than your own." While Cottrell acknowledges that working on teams is often a challenge in an academic setting, she believes that the ability to work well on teams is absolutely critical for success. "The art of successful teamwork involves good communication, the ability to identify the strengths of each team member, and the willingness to apply those strengths to the project at hand."
Ms. Cottrell has supported the Vincent Murphy Chemical Engineering Scholarship Fund for heartfelt reasons. She shares, "When I was a student, I was fortunate to receive scholarships from a variety of benefactors connected with CSU and the College of Engineering. As a mother and working student that helped make it possible for me to spend a little less time working and more time at home doing homework and raising my child. My daughter is a wonderful, healthy young woman now and I have a job that is more challenging and rewarding than I could have dreamed. I want to be able to help other engineering students the way I was helped. Giving back to the programs and the institutions that were central to one's development just seems like the right thing to do."
The road to Ms. Cottrell's degree was not a smooth one. "I attended college at two different schools right after high school graduation, and I did miserably because I was not engaged by my coursework and did not have clear goals. I entered the workforce, doing my best at whatever jobs I could find, but when my daughter was about four years old I realized that I could not advance in my company without a college degree. And then I was ready to earn that degree!"
Ms. Cottrell started attending a community college, taking classes during the hours that her daughter was in kindergarten, and working in the evenings and on weekends while her mother cared for her young daughter. She notes, "I talked with my advisor, and she encouraged me to explore an engineering curriculum. I attended seminars featuring engineers employed in various industries, and there I discovered chemical engineering. I transferred to CSU, where I was driven and extremely engaged by the coursework and the challenges. My advisor was Dr. Vince Murphy and he was the best guide I could have wished for."
Reflecting on the guidance she received from Dr. Murphy, Ms. Cottrell encourages engineering students to find a mentor. "Identify someone you can trust, whether it is an upperclassman, a more experienced peer, a professor, or an industry contact. Take advantage of that mentoring relationship and ask questions. You will grow as a student and as an engineer. In addition, you should prepare yourself to mentor others. Be willing to share your experiences and help others find their path and the tools that will help them do their job well. The rewards of a mentoring relationship include learning about an issue or problem from the perspective of another person, helping your organization succeed through the success of other individuals, and improving your own communication and teaching skills through the practice of mentoring."
Ms. Cottrell feels a great sense of pride when she reads about the accomplishments of her fellow CSU chemical engineering alumni, and she is equally thrilled to read about the research being conducted by the Department of Chemical Engineering. "It's a great feeling to be a part of that," she states.
To learn more about how your gift can impact our current and future students, visit www.SupportEngineering.colostate.edu or call (970) 491-7028.