Angie Cooksy: 0:08

Hello and welcome to the Bradley University Podcast. I am your host, Angie Cooksy. Actually, I'm a co-host with my co-host.

Ben Jedd: 0:15

Ben Jed.

Angie Cooksy: 0:16

I really got to get better at Ben.

Ben Jedd: 0:17

You're doing great.

Angie Cooksy: 0:18

Uh so Ben and I get to tell the stories of campus. My role on campus, I serve as the vice president for enrollment management, marketing and communications.

Ben Jedd: 0:26

And I am assistant vice president for marketing and communications.

Angie Cooksy: 0:29

And as I said, we get to tell the stories. And so that's really the goal of the Bradley University Podcast is to have people in and around Bradley's community who are amazing humans doing remarkable things, come on and give everyone an opportunity to learn a little bit more about them. And so with that, I think we're going to jump right into our guests today. We have Kerrie Shatler, who is, excuse me, Dr. Kerrie Shatler, chairperson of civil engineering and construction, and Dr. Joshua Lewer, Associate Dean for Future Initiatives and Economics and Finance Department Chair at Bradley University, joining us today. All right, let's get started with Dr. Kerrie Shatler and Dr. Joshua Leur with a little bit about your backgrounds and what your journey to Bradley has looked like to the seats that you're sitting in today. Kerrie, let's start with you.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 1:18

All right, great. So my journey started out. I'm originally from the Detroit, Michigan area and went to school at Wayne State University. And upon graduation there with my PhD, started looking at where I wanted to find my new university home. And that path actually I only applied to two universities because I wanted to be really focused. One of them was Bradley. And the reason I was so attracted to Bradley was because there was my specialty area is transportation engineering. And there wasn't a current faculty in that position. And I could have I was and could have been the only faculty in that role, which gave me a lot of flexibility to grow the program, to develop the program. So starting out as a young assistant professor, um, that opportunity is what made Bradley so attractive. So uh gosh, after that, I've been at Bradley now for 20 years. Uh so gosh, so many long journeys. Um so I went from being an assistant professor to an associate professor, um, then got promoted to full professor early uh because I was engaged in a lot of external research and a lot of scholarship and uh bringing me now to being the uh first female chair uh in in engineering. So uh it's also an elected position. So now I'm uh finishing up my my third year uh and hopefully continuing in that role.

Angie Cooksy: 2:57

Oh my gosh, I love that story. Joshua, what what's your background to the seat you're sitting in today?

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 3:02

That's a great story, Kerrie. So I um went to the University of Nebraska Lincoln. My family is from Omaha, and I grew up in Omaha. My parents were dentists. And um after I graduated in economics, I have an economics PhD. I went to uh Texas. I was out West Texas AM University, which is in uh canyon, which is near in between Lubbock and Amarillo, so it's way out west. And I had a really good time there. Got a lot of things done, got a lot of research research done, and I think it kind of set me up to move back to a a private institution like Bradley. I always wanted to be at a university where students were students, that that undergrad student population. Um they're mainly dedicated to their learning because they're usually not married and they're usually not working full time. It's a special place kind of coming back to a a private school like Bradley. And if you can recall, um I've been here 17 years now. Um the the program where I'm up with with economics is the has a great history. It had uh Cal Goldberg. Many people here listening remember Calman Goldberg. There was a actually a brass uh bust, like a figure bust, a face bust of him in the back atrium. And I always kind of show my students there about the history. And um I'm actually f very th thankful I get to teach Cal Goldberg's class. It's Econ 100 Introduction to Economics. So I always tell the students about Cal Goldberg and his history. But today I find myself working with uh Chris Malacharuvu uh in administration. I've kind of moved up through the ranks as well, as Kerrie has, and I'm the second associate dean for future initiatives, and I work together with the Caterpillar College of Engineering and the Foster College of Business on bringing those two uh groups together, and it's been really fun.

Ben Jedd: 5:08

That's awesome. Uh I love hearing about that. You've both been with Bradley for some time. Could you uh kind of elaborate on what you love about your job? Uh Kerrie, you can go first.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 5:22

So I would say what I love the most about my job are the students. And time and time again, you know, not every day is great, um, but I I feel very fortunate. I feel like I have a switch. And, you know, I could be having maybe not a perfect day. And then a student walks in uh, you know, and needs some help, or I'm going into the classroom and all of a sudden there's a different energy about me. I forget, you know, everything that happened that might have been worrying me. And uh just that ability to turn on, you know, and do what we're here to do, which is, you know, teach undergrad students, graduate students, you know, our our whole student body, whether they're engineers or non-engineers, or help them out in any way we can because it's it's all about how you impact another person's life and what kind of difference you can make to that person's life and their well-being and their um their success even after graduation. So um now as department chair, I feel like, you know, I I I can work with students and I can work with faculty in meaningful ways, and then work with other administrators like Dr. Lewer. And, you know, uh just interfacing on all those different levels with the sole mission to make a difference is why I wake up uh and give it my all on the hardest of days.

Ben Jedd: 6:49

I love that. Thank you so much. How about you, Joshua?

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 6:53

I think the favorite thing that I enjoy at Bradley is is the mentorship to my students for sure. And those are long-lasting relationships. Um we get invited to their weddings and like their sp you know, special events, meet their family. That's really the most important thing that it has real value. Because we're in the business of building people, is what we are. We're in the business of building people. Um I also really enjoy bringing together um teams from the Foster College and the Caterpillar College, the the faculty and the staff. And um we're we're putting together all kinds of new programs. And one of the things I'm really excited about right now and makes me happy is that we have um a group of about 28 um uh period D150 students come into campus um on a program called the Business and Engineering Club. And it's just our first pilot program, and the students that are coming love it and how we how it just affects me in a happy way. And the students I see the students that are coming, they're enjoying their time, getting to explore what we do in the engineering college and the foster college, they learn so much, and at the end of the this last um year, they would come up and thank me and um give me cards and stuff like that. So these little things that you you know um they add up quite a bit.

Ben Jedd: 8:18

So that's wonderful. I I think uh I'm going to steal we're in the business of building people. That's that is a great tagline. So uh one of the reasons I think Angie and I were so excited to talk to you both is your positive attitudes. You're both just like bleeding Bradley red, right? And and it's just it's really inspiring. So thank you. Uh could could you share a student or an alumni story that highlights the Bradley experience or an experience that you think is really exciting? Uh Joshua, let's let's start with you.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 8:54

Sure. Um you know, I've got so many great stories from Josiah Uhrlich to I'm gonna tell you, I'm gonna tell you a different story about Nick. And he was a student of mine uh maybe close to eight years ago now, and uh kind of a quiet individual, um really was a very thoughtful person, and I could tell that he enjoyed um working with other people, and he didn't know which direction he wanted to go in his life, and it ended up over a period of four years, you know, we got to know each other. Um we were ended up actually playing golf together as a student in a faculty. That's really fun. And then one day he said, Hey, I want to go to grad school. In fact, I want to go maybe go to seminary. And uh my parents um they this can't drive me. Could you could you drive me out to Indiana? And I said, Sure, I'll go out there. And so we got to spend some time together again. And when he got married, I was at his wedding, and just that story, you know, not every student's gonna be like that. More pe some people are like, oh, I'm gonna keep my life personal. But uh Nick and I really um uh have a good relationship to this day. So yeah.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 10:03

I love that. Kerrie, what about you? Yeah, so some of the um mo most special stories um that I had with with students stemmed from the interaction uh and mentoring them with externally funded research grants. So I I had an opportunity um to do some research with the Illinois Department of Transportation. Uh and there, you know, we we studied the effectiveness of the flashing yellow arrows uh for traffic signals and a redesign uh of right turn lanes and um work zone safety and red light running and all kinds of um different projects. Um but one just in general, my philosophy with the research projects is you know, I provided a lot of guidance to the students, but also allowed them to flourish. So there's one research team, and I have a student email that I typically look at that if I'm having uh if I need a quick pick-me-up. But um uh her name is Beth, and she was working on the project, and you know, she said that you know, sometimes because civil engineering or any engineering program is a little rigorous, and you know, she would be working on the project, but still studying and trying to manage her full workload. And sometimes I think she felt a little bit lost. And uh she mentioned several different times like how grateful she was that she could be a part of a team, a part of a group. So I had a grad student, Minoj, he was leading that. He's still in town working for some uh one of our consulting firms, doing an amazing job from what I hear. You know, Bet Beth has graduated now and is doing amazing work in engineering as well. But she's saying, I never fit in anywhere before. I didn't quite, you know, I was in engineering and and that was fine. But she said, you know, working on your projects, working with the team and with you, and and of course I always share funny stories. So if they're struggling, you know, uh, I'd say, oh, because I I'll admit right now, I did not get a 4.0 in my undergrad program. So I struggled in certain classes too. So I would share that with her, and and she just felt that that was very helpful, that you don't have to be perfect. You know, you just you know have to be part of a team and have to be motivated and inspired. And, you know, you can do great things even without a 4.0.

Angie Cooksy: 12:30

These stories that you all are sharing about these really amazing students that you have leads me to put you both on the spot a little bit. And I think the reason I want to ask this question is because when when I get to talk to faculty at Bradley or I talk to staff or I talk to students, everyone talks about how amazing the people are, but they talk about it externally and talk about the others around them. And it's hard to get people to talk about themselves and why they themselves are so amazing. So what I'm gonna ask each of you is why or what are you unapologetically exceptional at? Why are you so great at what you each do?

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 13:05

I always like to say I'm good at a lot of things and not great at many things.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 13:14

Um, one, you know, uh one thing that I I can truly own, I am very um kind of shy, believe it or not, and very humble. Um, but in the um my specific specialty area in the highway safety realm, um, I mean, and those research projects that we got, you know, they were competitive proposals, and I even beat out um some of the transportation uh faculty at U of I. That's so cool. So um I would say I'm I'm super duper the best of the best. Highway safety, highway safety evaluation engineer.

Angie Cooksy: 13:54

So and I think that's what we want people to hear. I know that's what we want people to hear about. That's why we want to do this is to give people an opportunity to hear more than just what they see in front of the classroom, but to get to know each of you a little bit more and know that oh my gosh, the things that you guys are bringing to the classroom are based on years of experience and deep, deep knowledge and expertise in your area. So thank you both so much. Is there anything you would like to add as we wrap up uh your episode today?

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 14:24

Joshua, should we share our study abroad experience?

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 14:28

We have to do that.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 14:28

We have to do that.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 14:29

I love it.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 14:30

I'll let you start and then I'll just chime in.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 14:33

Yeah, this was one of our this was one of the best experiences we've had on um our 20 years for Kerrie and 17 years for me. Is that um we we were we put together a a convergence class that was a first of its kind that we went and studied abroad. It was team taught by Kerrie and myself. This was this January, January of 2024. And we recruited our students and we got funding. Some alumni gave a donation to a couple of donations. We got a couple donations to uh some students had really outstanding scholarships where they didn't pay anything because the donors gave so much, which our you know our Bradley alumni gave, and we flew students over. And I'll tell you a quick story. I think Kerrie remembers this story. Um some of our students, this was their first time on an airplane. And we we drove up to Chicago or we went on a bus, and then we when we on Chicago we went directly to London. And I remember when this uh nice young lady came up to me, she says, Dr. Larr, I don't think I can do this. I I can't do it. And she was so scared and she was shaking. But by the end of the program, she was smiling ear to ear and just had a great experience. And um, I see her every once in a while. Um, she's now a senior this year, and she we just kind of just reminisce and um that that was one of my yeah. So, but anyways, do you have any do you have anything extra to add? I mean, that's just one story of many.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 16:02

Yeah, well, the the cool thing the uh about the course uh was we did, you know, convergence and we taught us the subject of sustainability. So not only did we have just business students and just engineering students, but we had students from um the sciences and from other areas across campus. So it was a really neat experience too, um, you know, for non-engineering students not to be afraid of whatever I'm teaching.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 16:29

True, that's true.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 16:30

So um, but then we, you know, just developing the the the whole thing, it started too with just like a strategic idea. We were at Joshua and I were at a at a workshop um hosted within the college, and we said, oh yeah, let's let's um you know develop a a course in in sustainability, co-teach it, go to London.

Ben Jedd: 16:53

Yeah, you guys wanted to go to London. That was the case.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 16:56

Originally when we yeah, London is well, and London is um one of the top ten cities in terms of sustainability. So just to go and and see all their infrastructure and and everything really brought the the learning uh to the classroom. But um we had some really cool speakers, uh, which was awesome. Uh Joshua, I'll let you talk about the speakers.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 17:18

Yeah, don't forget about Kevin Addison. I know he was our one of our Bradley guys, and he came over to Bradley and gave a talk, and we invited him, and he set us up with like what to do, you know, he helped us out a little bit, but and he had all of his connections because he's uh like VP at HSBC or something like that.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 17:35

Real, real high caliber.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 17:37

Yeah. We had incredible speakers like CEOs of like Plastic Energy and um was it Tommy Armstrong? What was Tommy's? Tommy Eaton. Tommy Eaton um from Clean the World and he and he has his own company called Bamboo Brush.

Dr. Kerrie Schattler: 17:51

Yeah. And we had uh Dr. Wanda Lewis from uh the UK. She uh she came and gave a very engineering lecture. We apologized. The students got a little frightened, even I think I was frightened a little, but it was a great learning experience.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 18:06

Yeah, that was one of my favorite things ever done at Bradley. Yeah, I'm glad to know we ought to do it together.

Ben Jedd: 18:13

I absolutely love that and really wish I could take that course because you guys seem to be your passion is obvious. So I I I love that. Thank you both so much for joining us today.

Dr. Joshua Lewer: 18:27

Thank you.

Angie Cooksy: 18:28

Yeah, thank you. And we also need to go build a class so that we can go to London. That's our new that's our new life goal. Um, this has been our episode of the Bradley University Podcast. Again, if you have ideas for a name, send them our way. We are uh sourcing those. But it's a place from the Hilltop Studios in the lower level of University Hall where we get to tell the stories and share the stories of Bradley University. That's all for us this time. See everybody next time.

Ben Jedd: 18:58

Thanks. Go braves.