Obsessed With Food Felicia Wu has an appetite for nutrition and food safety - MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI MAGAZINE - MSU Alumni Office
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MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI MAGAZINE FALL 2021
Obsessed
With Food
Felicia Wu has an
appetite for nutrition
and food safety
KURIEN: DAIRY
REVOLUTIONARY
MSU SAVED
MY LIFE
LOOK
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Phone:
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a letter from someone—a student, a faculty member, an administrator—
a letter from someone—a student, a faculty member, an administrator—
Online: go.msu.edu/fall-21
Online: go.msu.edu/fall-21
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FALL 2021
26 Kurien:
A Body
of Good
34 Obsessed
With Food
DEPARTMENTS
40 MSU Saved
My Life
3 FROM THE PRESIDENT
5 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
7 BENEATH THE PINES Judith Pearson, a 1975 graduate of the
18 SPARTAN STORIES College of Arts and Letters, biographer and
26 FEATURES cancer survivor, shares her battle with the
51 GREEN & WHITE disease and how a major discovery at
53 CLASS NOTES MSU helped to save her life years after
55 IN MEMORIAM she graduated.
KURT STEPNITZ / GETTY IMAGES / GENNARA PHOTOGRAPHY
64 FROM THESE SCENES
ABOUT THE COVER: Food scientist
and John A. Hannah Distinguished
Professor Felicia Wu, pictured in Read, share Spartan online:
the field, studies the effects of go.msu.edu/Spartan-mag
agriculture on human health and the Spartan is distributed three times
environment. Photo: Kurt Stepnitz, a year to alumni, donors and friends
who make annual gifts to MSU of
University Communications
$100 or more. To make a gift, visit
givingto.msu.edu.
Email address changes to: UADV.
Records@msu.edu Or mail: UADV
Records, 535 Chestnut Rd., #300,
East Lansing, MI 48824
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 1
As Spartans, we journey together. With Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee, ’73, as the 2021 Grand Marshal of Homecoming, Spartans far and wide are celebrating the ways in which we combine our knowledge, skills and passions in pursuit of a brighter world. Learn more at homecoming.msu.edu
FROM THE PRESIDENT
Dear Spartans
A
new academic year is increased its undergraduate graduation
underway, and you can rate to 81.3% and this year had record
feel the excitement applications for admission. We recently
across MSU’s campus. opened our impressive STEM Teaching
Following science and and Learning Facility at the former
data, we’ve worked diligently—and Shaw Lane Power Plant, which will be a
I hope you made some difficult decisions—to offer focal point for educational innovation.
always feel a safe, in-person college experience and We finalized a transformational
welcome to join working environment.
I passed my second anniversary
partnership with Henry Ford Health
System in Detroit that will benefit
us on campus, at MSU in August, pleased with the medical education and research and
enjoying the progress we’ve made to position the enhance health care opportunities while
university for the opportunities in addressing health disparities. And a
sights and front of us. MSU’s new strategic plan new partnership with Apple, the Gilbert
sounds of a will benefit from the work of two other Family Foundation and Rock Family of
vibrant place important presidential initiatives that
were recently released.
Companies is helping MSU establish
North America’s first Apple Developer
where living and Although largely over Zoom, I have Academy in Detroit. The initial cohort
learning thrive, enjoyed the opportunity to meet with of students enters this fall.
many alumni and donors throughout I enjoyed traveling across Michigan
and where Michigan and across the country. I this year, with visits to Detroit, Flint
our students am grateful to all who have expressed and the Traverse City area. I truly
demonstrate the tremendous confidence in us along with a value these opportunities to meet the
strong commitment to MSU. MSU faculty and staff engaged in our
true definition of Reflecting that commitment, the gifts communities. I always encounter many
Spartans Will. and pledges we received in the past year devoted alumni and students as well,
are a source of great pride, with $232.2 and I look forward to more visits around
million contributed between July 1, the state and beyond.
2020, and June 30, 2021. I hope you always feel welcome to
Alumni stepped up and showed their join us on campus, enjoying the sights
Spartan pride, with a 39% increase in and sounds of a vibrant place where
giving from the previous fiscal year. And living and learning thrive, and where
of the 70,512 donors, approximately 15% our students demonstrate the true
were new donors to the university. My definition of Spartans Will.
thanks to all who contributed. Go Green!
GENNARA PHOTOGRAPHY
The past two years prioritized health
and safety while building the university’s
momentum across our education,
research and outreach missions. MSU
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 3
2021
Celebrating Alumni Service Award
Dr. Barbara Ann Given, Ph.D., ’76
Spartan Distinguished Alumni Award
Achievement
Ms. April Madonna Clobes, ’94, ’00
Dr. W. Delano Meriwether, ’63
Mr. Toichi Takenaka, ’68
As Spartans, we strive to solve the
world’s problems, change minds, impact Honorary Alumni Award
communities and better the world.
Ms. Patricia L. Merry
The Alumni Grand Awards program
recognizes the best of the best — Philanthropist Award
those alumni who are doing wonderful
Mr. Robert Wilfred Schaberg, ’64
things and making an impact daily in
their companies, communities and for Mrs. Anna Lou A. Schaberg
Michigan State University.
Young Alumni Award
Ms. Lauren Nicole Bealore, ’11
Nominate an exemplary Spartan
Dr. Praise Matemavi, D.O., ’10
or learn more at:
alumni.msu.edu/alumni-grand-awards. Mr. Kyle Andrew Welch, ’09
LETTERS
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT
SPRING 2021
PRSRT STD
U.S. Postage
PAID
Michigan State
University
VOL. 4 ISSUE 3
During a quiet walk on campus, it
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI MAGAZINE SPRING 2021
occurred to me that the six bridges EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Stephanie Motschenbacher, ’85, ’92
crossing the Red Cedar have missed
EDITOR
a few things during the pandemic
SPARTAN MAGAZINE
Tim Cerullo ’08
too. The basic job of supporting
pedestrians who need to cross a COPY EDITOR
Linda Dunn, ’13
Unreasonable
river may seem unremarkable,
& Unforgettable
The Enduring Legacy
until you consider who has crossed
INSPIRATIONAL
PUBLIC ART
CLASS NOTES AND BENEATH
THE PINES EDITOR
these bridges.
EMBRACING THE
of Eli Broad CREATIVE ARTS
Alex Gillespie, ’17
Spring 2021 magazine content is available One bridge seemed to stand out
5/14/2021 9:30:08 AM
ART DIRECTOR & DESIGNER
as a symbol. You know the one that
online at: go.msu.edu/spartan-spring-21
Iain Bogle
connects the stadium and the library. No matter how you spent
your fall Saturdays, that bridge was important. It got you to the WRITERS
Devon Barrett, ’11
game or to a place to study. And the sounds we heard on those Liam Boylan-Pett
Saturdays—the drums of the Spartan Marching Band or the roar Lois Furry, ’89
of alumni and students, cheering together—clearly announced Kristofer Karol, ’07,
Emily Lenhard
that you are part of a community. Judith Pearson ’75
These common experiences are felt across generations. In Daniel P. Smith
this issue you will read about several Spartans who crossed these Russ White, ’82, ’01
bridges and went on to grow economic opportunity in India, CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
support the cancer survivorship movement, and diversify medical Kee-Ri Burkitt
education. Matt Davenport
Emilie Lorditch
I am also pleased to tell you; we have added to the Spartan ed- Kim Popiolek
itorial team. Tim Cerullo, a 2008 graduate of the College of Arts Chelsea Stein ’13, ’15
and Letters with a degree in English, began serving as the Spartan COPYRIGHT 2021
magazine editor May 10. He is passionate about being a Spartan University Advancement
and looks forward to meeting many of you in his new role. You MSU Alumni Office
Spartan Way
can reach him at cerullot@msu.edu. 535 Chestnut Rd.,
Room 300
From the Banks, East Lansing, MI 48824
517-355-8314
alumni.msu.edu
MSU is an affirmative-action,
equal-opportunity employer.
Stephanie Motschenbacher, ’85, ’92 TO SUBMIT LETTERS Email SpartanMag-
EXECUTIVE EDITOR, SPARTAN MAGAZINE azine@msu.edu. Or send mail to: Editor,
535 Chestnut Rd., #300, East Lansing, MI.
48824. We reserve the right to select and
edit letters for length and clarity.
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 5
LETTERS
ELI BROAD LEGACY ENJOYING SPARTAN MAGAZINE
I just need to express my disap- I have been following the articles
pointment in the coverage of Eli and look of Spartan magazine for
Broad in the latest issue. quite a while now, and I want to
Maybe it is because my undergrad- complement (the team) on such
uate degree was in Urban Planning an outstanding issue that you just
and I was familiar with his Kaufman published featuring Eli Broad.
and Broad company. Maybe it is I wanted to write because I have
because he had donated so much enjoyed the last two issues featur-
money to MSU for the business ing people who have done so much
school and other endeavors for MSU. for the University. Keep up the
Regardless, I was surprised that only good work and let me know if there
two pages (of which approximately is any way I can be of assistance to
1/2 was in pictures) were devoted to you.
his legacy at MSU. Sincerely,
With his picture on the front of Edward Deeb. ’60
the magazine, I was expecting more BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI
extensive coverage of his life and
legacy.
Needless to say, I believe he NICE STORY, HARSH WORDS
deserved more. I enjoyed reading the “Invincible
Thank you. Grit” article in the Spring 2021 is-
Dale Farland ’75 sue of Spartan magazine. The story
ORACLE, AZ of Dalal Salomon is very inspiring.
One of the main points of the arti-
SPUDS IN SPACE cle is that Dalal succeeded in an in-
While reading the Space Garden dustry that was and continues to be
article in the Spring 2021 Spartan dominated by males. However, the
magazine, I happened to remember author’s comment about her 1982
an article titled: Free Out of This job in Washington D.C. being in an
World Potato Dinner Recipes. office and an industry dominated
The Better Homes and Gardens by “macho middle-aged white men
article celebrated the potato as the with Ivy League backgrounds”
first food ever grown in space and wasn’t necessary. Disparaging
provided information on how to white males detracted from the
get a copy of The National Potato positive story that the author was
Promotion Board’s brochure, Spuds trying to tell. I would remind the
in Space, featuring out-ot-this-world author and the editors at Spartan
recipes. magazine that white males rep-
Unfortunately, I never did obtain a resent a significant percentage of
copy of SPUDS IN SPACE. MSU alumni, donors and readers.
Had to share… Sincerely,
Ruth Gingrich Scott D. Williams, ’82
LANSING, MI ADA, MI
6 FA L L 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DU
Beneath Pines the
News & Views from MSU
Essentially
MSU
It’s no secret campus has been
quiet lately, but it certainly
hasn’t been empty. Throughout
the pandemic, frontline workers
have been on campus, work-
ing hard to keep MSU safe and
operational. Thanks to their
efforts, it’s ready for a new
school year.
Read the full story on page 8
MSU
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 7
BTP COVID-19 News
KONAR NOKKEN
feet with nearly 600 structures,
maintenance and landscaping
work never stops.
Those 700 staff members
performed myriad tasks, from
sustaining grounds and MSU’s
arboretum to keeping the MSU
Surplus Store & Recycling
Center functional. Konar
Nokken made sure to continue
SSRC’s mission to manage waste
as a resource. Throughout the
pandemic, he drove around
campus picking up recyclables
from building loading docks
and transported them to the
material recovery facility.
Nokken began working at the
Essentially MSU
SSRC as a high school student
in 2011, graduated high school
in 2012 and continued on staff
until 2016. After a few years
Front-line workers kept campus safe and operational away, he came back in 2019.
during a global pandemic. By Liam Boylan-Pett “I have 10 years of history here,”
he said. “It’s my second home,
Over the past 18 months, campus in buildings and elevators to maintain basically.”
was quieter than usual. No strings clean air in preparation for a return When the many students,
of students walking along the Red to campus. faculty and staff who, like
Cedar. No crowds of tailgaters filling MSU’s front-line workers kept Nokken, view MSU as a second
campus with the smells of barbecue. campus running safely. home, return to campus, they
Fewer graduation ceremonies and “Campus doesn’t stop running will find it remains the lively,
gatherings. just because we’re in the middle of beautiful campus it always has
Campus was not empty, however. a pandemic,” Lou Slater, service been. Thanks to the essential
MSU’s Infrastructure Planning and garage supervisor, said to IPF workers who maintained MSU,
Facilities (IPF) custodians adjusted communications. He explained his campus will once again have
their routines to fit Centers for teams were on campus “the whole students sitting along the Red
Disease Control and Prevention time, doing demanding work, the kind Cedar, tailgaters cheering
standards. Sign makers worked of work that’s critical to MSU’s health on Spartans and graduates
with carpenters, electricians and as a university.” celebrating and posing for
metal workers to create signage While many of MSU’s faculty and photos as bells ring from
on campus to help maintain social staff worked remotely, IPF had about Beaumont Tower.
distancing measures. The facilities 700 staff working in-person and on
maintenance team installed campus throughout the pandemic. On MORE ON
hundreds of air purification devices a campus that is 24.7 million square WEB Learn more: ipf.msu.edu
8 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUBTP COVID-19 News
From Harrison to
Hagadorn and
everywhere in between,
the IPF staff made
sure campus grounds
and facilities shined as
they should. Thanks to
the team of nearly 700
in-person workers for
keeping MSU safe and
serviceable in the face
of a global pandemic.
MSU / NICK SHRADER, INFRSTRUCTURE, PLANNING AND FACILITIES
24.7million
MSU’s campus is
24.7 million square
feet of space
with nearly...
600
structures to clean
and maintain
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 9BTP Science & Technology
GUT FEELING
Why do some babies react The MSU-UNC research
to perceived danger more team discovered that the gut
than others? According to new microbiome was different
research from Michigan State in infants with strong fear
University and the University responses and infants with
of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, milder reactions.
part of the answer may be found These fear responses—
in a surprising place: an infant’s how someone reacts to a
digestive system. scary situation—in early life
The human digestive system
is home to a vast community of
can be indicators of future
mental health. And there
SPECIAL DELIVERY
microorganisms known as the is growing evidence tying A group of student Spartan Engineers has
gut microbiome. neurological well-being to caught NASA’s attention with an innovative idea
the microbiome in the gut. using electric delivery drones that “catch a ride”
The new findings suggest on public transportation vehicles.
The student research project calls for a novel
that the gut microbiome
electric drone latching and charging system to
could one day provide
be placed on top of public transports—saving
researchers and physicians battery energy and optimizing the payload
with a new tool to monitor capacity up to four times compared to state-of-
and support healthy neuro- the-art delivery drones.
logical development. MSU’s student team is one of three university
squads that will each receive a grant of their re-
MORE ON Learn more: quested amount up to $80,000 from NASA and
WEB go.msu.edu/gut
have started further research and construction.
MORE ON
WEB Learn more: go.msu.edu/msu-nasa
$80,000
An MSU student team was one of
only three in the country to receive a
NASA grant to develop their idea to
charge drones as they “catch a ride”
GETTY IMAGES
on public transportation vehicles.BTP Campus
SPARTANS
FOR LIFE
R
eady for a double take?
Back in 2002, when
Dori Ranck, ’85, was
preparing her twin
daughters Elizabeth and Erika
to become Spartans, they were
featured in the MSU Alumni
Magazine. All that preparation
paid off this past May when the
twins graduated with degrees in
Human Biology. Congratulations
to the Ranck family.
Screening for Dementia with AI
With the support of a grant worth $3.9 million, Michigan State University
researchers are developing technology that scans speech and vocabulary
patterns to catch early signs of Alzheimer’s disease.
Jiayu Zhou, an associate professor in MSU’s College of Engineering, is
leading the effort that’s powered by artificial intelligence, or AI, and funded
by the National Institutes of Health. In collaboration with Oregon Health
& Science University and Weill Cornell Medicine, the goal is to code an
easy-to-use smartphone app to help assess whether a follow-up medical
MARTIN STEINHALER, GETTY IMAGES / MSU / RANCK FAMILY
diagnosis is needed.
“Alzheimer’s is tough to deal with and it’s very easy to confuse its early
stage, mild cognitive impairment, with normal cognitive decline as we’re
getting older,” said Zhou.
Although there’s currently no cure for Alzheimer’s, catching it earlier
could help doctors and researchers develop treatment to slow or halt it
before it does irreparable damage.
And Zhou believes that AI can detect more subtle shifts in speech and
behavior earlier and more reliably than human observers. Packaging the
power of AI in an app would make assessments more affordable and accessi-
ble than medical diagnostics, such as MRI scans and in vivo testing.
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 11BTP Partners
The Total Package
A $10.8 million gift from global packaging innovator Amcor to the
Michigan State University School of Packaging will establish an
endowed faculty position focused on sustainability and support
renovations to the School of Packaging building.
Amcor CEO, Ron Delia
The contribution is the largest cor- “The endowment for a faculty posi-
porate gift to the School of Packaging, tion for sustainability and the circular
housed within the College of Agriculture economy, represents Amcor’s shared
and Natural Resources. commitment with MSU to excellence
“We are grateful to Amcor for its and innovation in the future of pack-
support and recognition of MSU’s lead- aging,” said Matt Daum, director of the
ership in packaging education,” MSU MSU School of Packaging.
President Samuel L. Stanley Jr., M.D., “This investment in the School of
said. “Sustainability presents tremen- Packaging is not only exciting for Am-
dous challenges and opportunities to cor, it’s important to the future of the
1
the packaging industry, and this gift will industry and to responsible packaging
ST help equip the MSU School of Packaging
to be a vital contributor to those efforts.”
in the U.S.,” said Amcor CEO Ron Delia.
“We’re making significant progress in
RANKED Funding for an endowed faculty
position in sustainability provides the
how we design and how we recycle pack-
aging. The students at MSU’s School of
MSU Packaging resources to advance significant re- Packaging today will be the packaging
search, build innovative collaborations leaders that will lead this ongoing push
SCHOOL OF PACKAGING
Programs are ranked
first in the nation and create opportunities for promising for responsible packaging tomorrow.”
according to students to gain real-life research ex-
universities.com perience important to their futures and MORE ON Learn more:
the field. WEB go.msu.edu/amcor
12 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUBTP Partners
MSU STUDENT
VENTURE
CAPITAL FUND
AWARDS
$50,000 TO FIVE
STARTUPS
The MSU Student
Venture Capital Fund,
a collaboration between
the MSU Foundation and
its venture investment
entity Red Cedar Ven-
tures, as well as the Broad
College Center for Venture
Capital, Private Equi-
ty and Entrepreneurial
Finance, allows students
taking FI 444: Entrepre-
neurial Finance to conduct
investment selection, due
diligence, competitor and
monetization analysis
and valuation analysis for
emerging startups.
The student evaluations
RESEARCHERS AIM TO BOOST
translate into real invest-
ments. The startups—run
by MSU faculty, students
and mid-Michigan entre-
preneurs—have a chance
to receive vital pre-seed
CONFIDENCE IN VACCINES
funding from the MSU
Foundation and Red Closing the racial gap in health outcomes and COVID-19
Cedar Ventures to help vaccination rates in Michigan as well as other states is
them thrive.
This year, 35 students
the aim of Michigan State University researchers, funded
presented their evalu- through a $6 million, one-year grant from the Centers for
ations at SVCF’s third
investment celebration,
Disease Control and Prevention. The project is a partnership
awarding a total of between MSU, Michigan Public Health Institute, the
$50,000 to five startups
from the local community,
Community Foundation of Greater Flint and Community
spanning industries from Campus Partnerships for Health. Partners also include
health and wellness to
education and agricultural
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
technology. People, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and the National
Medical Association.
GETTY IMAGES
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 13BTP Excellence
Visual DIGGING FOR DIGITAL DIRT
Olympian As the new director of the MSU Excavations at Isthmia in Greece,
Associate Professor Jon Frey has dug deep into content to create
a new website for the decades-old archaeology project.
In fall 2020, Frey, a classical archeol- storage at the Sanctuary of Poseidon
ogist in MSU’s Department of Art, Art at Isthmia.
History, and Design, began to oversee Visitors to the website will see a
the part of the excavations near Corinth, carefully curated blend of black-and-
Greece, that had been sponsored by white and color photographs taken
Ohio State University since 1987, but throughout the dig’s collaborative
explored since 1952. Charging forward, history as well as educational and
Kelly Salchow MacArthur Frey began expanding the digital archive informative narratives about the
grew up loving art. She for the 60-year-old dig by accelerat- Isthmia site and its mythology.
also loved athletics. Some ing the study and digitization of notes,
MORE ON
told her she couldn’t do photographs, field books, reports and Learn more:
both. Salchow MacArthur artifacts that are held in a remote on-site
WEB msuisthmia.org
set out to prove she could.
This determination led her
down two different paths that
UNEARTHED AND UNVEILED.
eventually intersected. One Associate Professor
path earned her two trips to the Jon Frey is aggregating
more than 60 years of
Olympics as a member of the discoveries for a new
2000 and 2004 United States website.
National Women’s Rowing teams,
the other brought her to Michigan
State University where she’s now
a professor of graphic design in
the Department of Art, Art History,
and Design.
This year, Salchow MacArthur’s
seemingly incongruous passions
merged as she made her third
Olympic appearance, this time as
an Olympian Artist-in-Residence
with the 2020 Summer Olympic
Games hosted by Tokyo.
“I’m completely thrilled. This
is such a high point in my career,
and one of the few times that my
design and rowing have intersect-
ed so clearly,” Salchow MacArthur
said. “It’s the perfect confluence of
opportunities and a way to help tie
our global community together.”
MSU
14 FA L L 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUBTP Athletics
“IT’S A GOLF
SCHOOL NOW” Spartans Reunite
An inaugural event brings together seven
decades of MSU football players.
Michigan State Football “Former players are the
Head Coach Mel Tucker and backbone of this program,
the Spartan football program and they deserve to be a
hosted the inaugural “Spartan part of what we’re doing
That’s what Tom Izzo
texted MSU Golf head Dawg Con” on July 30, bring- today and in the future,”
coach, Casey Lubahn, ing together nearly 130 former Harris said. HALLER NAMED NEW
after watching James players from all eras on MSU’s “Having relationships ATHLETIC DIRECTOR
Piot hoist the Havemeyer campus. with our former players President Samuel L. Stanley Jr.,
trophy. Players from as far back as and connecting with them M.D. has appointed Alan Haller
Piot was three down
with nine to play, but in
the 1950s like Robert Popp is a priority for our pro- as vice president and director of
(1954-58) and Albert Grimson gram,” said Tucker. intercollegiate athletics. Haller,
characteristic Spartan
whose history with MSU Athletics
fashion, embraced his (1955-56), to as recent as 2019 “Darien has done a phe-
runs deep, most recently served
underdog status. and 2020, were in attendance. nomenal job engaging our as assistant vice president and
Today he’s a U.S. Darien Harris (B.A. ’15, former players and bring- deputy athletic director. “Alan
Amateur champion, the
Communications Arts and ing them together. There has been a leader in developing
first-ever born in the
Sciences; M.S. ’19, Business), were a lot of guys who athlete administrators and broad-
state of Michigan, and
ening the depth and breadth of
the first ever Spartan—in himself a former Spartan hadn’t seen each other in a
our diverse talent within MSU
a tournament that’s been player from 2012-15 and the long time. It was definitely Athletics,” Stanley said.
played since 1895. current MSU football director a great event, and it’s just
Piot wasn’t the only of player engagement, coordi- the beginning.” FORMER MSU ATHLETE
Spartan golfer to make a
run in the U.S. Amateur
nated and organized the event. A former MSU football player and
member of the track and field
Championship. Valentina
team, and a former NFL corner-
Rossi swung her way
back, Haller joined MSU in 2010.
to the semifinals of the
He’s credited with being part of
U.S. Women’s Amateur
the successful efforts to recruit
Championship.
MSU’s all-time winningest coach
Mark Dantonio and current Head
Football Coach Mel Tucker.
COMMITTED
1928
37,000 An unwavering commitment to
student-athlete success and sup-
port made Haller the ideal can-
square feet of
didate for the position. “To this
new
The space
year sprinter day, I rely on the principles that
added, and
Frederick P. were forged as a student-ath-
8,500
Alderman (’27)
became the first
square
lete,” Haller said. “It’s my job to
make sure our current and future
Spartanfeet
to win student-athletes experience the
MSU / USGA
renovated
Olympic gold in same transformation.”
Amsterdam, Holland Coach Tucker with Aric Morris, who went on to a career in the NFL
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 15BTP Action of Change
EFFORT TO NEARLY DOUBLE MICHIGAN’S SEXUAL
ASSAULT NURSE EXAMINERS
A new program, led by the Colloge of Nursing and funded by a $1.4 million
federal grant will begin in January and focus on ensuring more registered
nurses have their Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner certification by 2024.
SANE-certified nurses have specialized knowledge and clinical preparation
in sexual assault and abuse cases.
Currently, the state has 175 SANE-certified securing additional clinical hours and place-
nurses; however, they are concentrated in only ments, especially in rural areas.
22 of the state’s 83 counties. By 2024 this pro- The college has worked closely with Rebecca
gram will train an additional 130 nurses, already Campbell (M.A. ’93, Ph.D. ’96, Social Science),
KATHERINE DONTJE
employed in communities across the state, to a professor in the MSU College of Social Sci- PROJECT LEAD AND AN
ensure rural areas have access to these services. ence and advisor to the president on Relation- ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
IN THE MSU COLLEGE OF
“This is an important project for the state and ship Violence and Sexual Miconduct (RVSM) NURSING
our university is committed to helping provide issues, to write the grant and she will serve as
more highly-trained sexual assault nurses to all the project’s research evaluator. The project
communities,” said MSU President Samuel L. will include several partners across the univer-
Stanley Jr., M.D. “I’m proud we could be part of sity including the Michigan Center for Rural
this effort. I thank the federal government for the Health and the MSU Center for Survivors. In
grant and our College of Nursing for their lead- addition, the university will work with state
ership and collaboration with campus experts on agencies including the Michigan Department
this opportunity.” of Health and Human Services, to ensure the
Katherine Dontje (B.S. ’77, MSN ’85, Nursing), right people and areas receive the training,
the project’s lead and an associate professor in which typically takes two years to complete.
the College of Nursing, said this initiative is a The effort aims to increase help-seeking REBECCA CAMPBELL
PROFESSOR IN THE
natural fit for MSU to lead. rates, and decrease the incidence of RVSM by MSU COLLEGE OF
“Access to trained, trauma-informed health developing trauma-informed, intersection- SOCIAL SCIENCE
care professionals is still a significant barrier al programs to address the needs of MSU’s
for survivors, with many having to drive great diverse communities.
distances to find a SANE-certified nurse,” Dontje “SANE programs are a critical resource for
said. “This initiative strengthens our existing sexual assault survivors’ health and well-be-
efforts to improve access to prompt, compassion- ing,” said Campbell. “We look forward to
ate services for survivors of sexual assault.” working with our partners to develop quality
Nurses who participate in the program will clinical training opportunities to address the
engage in online coursework, an in-person clin- national shortage of SANE providers.”
ical workshop and be paired with a mentor for College of Nursing Dean Randolph F.R.
additional clinical hours and experiences to meet Rasch said the college is proud to be leading RANDOLPH F.R. RASCH
TRUMPIE PHOTOGRAPHY / MSU
the certification requirements. the way in connecting rural communities with DEAN OF THE MSU
COLLEGE OF NURSING
Dontje said she believes the college’s commit- skilled nurses.
ment to helping organize all three components “Training SANE-certified nurses to be avail-
is what helped it land the grant, which is up for able in more counties throughout the state
renewal each year. She noted getting certified can possibly improve the lives of countless
can be difficult for some nurses, who have issues Michiganders,” said Rasch.
16 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUYOUR
LEGACY.
THEIR
FUTURE.
LET’S TALK.
PASS DOWN YOUR VALUES AS WELL Our experienced Spartan
AS YOUR ASSETS team brings financial
acumen to help you realize
The MSU Office of Gift Planning is here to help you discover your goals.
ways to leave a legacy that reflects your values and priorities.
Whether it’s student scholarships, research or programs, let
g
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us show you how you can turn your philanthropic dreams g
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Or visit giftplanning.msu.eduSPARTAN STORY Solution Server
A Scoop of Support
In business and philanthropy, 2021 MSU Young Alumni Grand Award recipient
Kyle Welch captures the restaurant industry’s hospitality ethos and opportunity
for upward mobility. BY DANIEL P. SMITH
K
yle Welch does not lack married a fellow alumna, Detroit choc- “Amid a tough year, this was a
ambition. olatier Alexandra Clark, ’10. real shining light for me because
In 2012, a then Soon after, Welch assigned the prin- I knew we were having a positive
25-year-old Welch ciples of scale and service engrained impact,” Welch said of Feed Chi-
took his first steps into in Chicago Scoops’ growth to help- cago’s noble-minded efforts.
restaurant entrepreneurship as the ing others impacted by COVID-19. Feed Chicago recently rebrand-
operating partner of a Little Caesars Alongside other Chicago-area leaders, ed as Prosper Chicago, a move
franchisee group. Welch helped launch Feed Chicago in made to reflect the organization’s
Two years later, the Grand Rapids April 2020. The nonprofit set a simple desire to address local needs
native and his partners purchased a mission: bringing restaurant workers beyond the pandemic. Prosper
Cold Stone Creamery store on the back to work and getting food into the Chicago aims to spur job cre-
outskirts of downtown Chicago. Welch hands of first responders, health care ation and employment training
and his team have since grown Chicago workers and families in need. in tandem with Chicago-area
“
Scoops into the nation’s largest Cold restaurants while also addressing
Stone franchisee with more than 40 food insecurity. The nonprofit
units across a dozen states. What brings me hopes to serve 500,000 meals to
And in early 2020, Welch applied the joy is not chasing at-risk residents within the next
core tenets of his professional life to three years.
philanthropic pursuits as COVID-19 a revenue figure “It’s really a virtuous cycle
rattled daily lives in his adopted home-
town of Chicago.
or a specific number of job creation and free meals,”
Welch said.
“What brings me joy is not chasing of stores, but job It’s also a fitting representation
a revenue figure or a specific number
of stores, but job creation, culture and
creation, culture and of Welch’s enterprising spirit
as well as his earnest desire to
supporting others,” Welch said. supporting others. leverage the hospitality space to
After enduring early hits from encourage the personal and pro-
COVID-19, including temporarily “It was as [grassroots] as it gets,” fessional growth of others.
closing many of his Cold Stone stores Welch said. “A lot of people joining “The Spartan Way is really
and enduring weeks without revenue, together to make things happen.” grinding your way to success, and
Welch used delivery and pop-up drive- By the end of May, and with a that’s something the restaurant
thrus to bring employees back to work hearty assist from Chicago Spartans industry allows,” Welch said.
and to safely serve guests a taste of who partnered with Feed Chicago for “With drive, motivation and a
familiarity and comfort amid abnor- the alumni organization’s 2020 vir- true spirit to serve others, you can
mal times. tual day of service, Feed Chicago had work your way up the ladder.”
“Spartans find a way, right?” said distributed nearly 24,000 meals and
Welch, a proud Spartan who attended restored more than 5,600 paid hours MORE ON Learn more:
MSU basketball camps as a kid and of work to the tune of $84,000. WEB prosperchicago.org
18 FA L L 2 0 2 1 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUKyle Welch, ’09
Broad College of Business
COURTESY KYLE WELCH
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 19SPARTAN STORY Fairness Facilitator
“
Driven by Dignity Had Michigan
Respectfully challenging the status quo and helping State not given me
executive management to see others is Carlos Cubia’s the chance and
philosophy for inclusion and understanding. the opportunity to
M
BY RUSS WHITE, ’82, ’01
show what I can do,
SU School of and inclusion before the work even I probably would
Criminal Justice had a name. “I always had a longing
alumnus Carlos for helping people,” he says. “Being
not be where I am
Cubia is senior vice a voice for the voiceless.” today. Michigan
president and glob- As diversity, equity and inclusion
al chief diversity officer for Walgreens efforts advance around the country, State creates an
Boots Alliance. Throughout his career, Cubia says the key is to value our environment
Cubia has always tried to make room differences, which led to his twist
for everyone. on the Golden Rule. where everyone
“On my way up the corporate lad- “When you accept people for is welcome and
der,” he says, “I was always respectfully who they are and treat them not
challenging the status quo and helping the way you want to be treated but where everyone
executive management to see and hear treat them the way they want to can realize their
others.” be treated, then I think you have a
Before making waves in corporate more engaged and a more produc- full potential.
America, the Pontiac, Michigan, native tive society.”
followed his older brother and sister DEI work continues to evolve
to MSU—the only school he applied as more organizations realize whether that’s how they market,
to and had any interest in attending. that embracing diversity, equity how they communicate or where
Upon graduation, because he always and inclusion is not only the right they recruit.”
wanted to help others, Cubia applied thing to do but also sound business But there is no time to slow down,
for a position in the United States Se- practice. When an organization so Cubia continues to bring the
cret Service. While enduring the ardu- does DEI correctly, it impacts importance of DEI to the fore-
ous application process, Cubia began everything. front. “There are still individuals
a career in insurance, which gradually “Most CEOs and Fortune 500 who feel that this is social work
led him into human resources work. companies realize the value of hav- and has no place in business or in
It was here that Cubia began making ing a diversity strategy that touches decision-making,” he says. “One of
strides in the area of diversity, equity every aspect of the business, the challenges is getting to those in-
20 FA L L 2 0 2 1 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUCarlos Cubia, ’88
College of Social Science
dividuals and showing them research and work together and value the dif- “Had Michigan State not given me
where if you have a real strategy that’s ferences and understand each other’s the chance and the opportunity to
comprehensive in nature, it contrib- perspectives and points of view, the show what I can do, I probably would
utes to the bottom line and the success sooner we’ll start to see the world not be where I am today. Michigan
of your organization, regardless of differently and understand other State creates an environment where
what your organization is.” people.” everyone is welcome and where
WALGREENS BOOTS ALLIANCE
For all of us, the first step toward Cubia sees that happening in East everyone can realize their full poten-
embracing DEI is to educate oneself Lansing. As big as MSU is, it always tial. I see Michigan State constantly
and not turn the other cheek. Because seemed small to him. The universi- striving for that.”
to Cubia, DEI comes down to two ty gave him so much in his student
words: dignity and respect. years, and if he had to do it over again, MORE ON Listen to the podcast at:
“The sooner that we come together he’d be a Spartan every time. WEB go.msu.edu/cubia
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 21SPARTAN STORY National Nourisher
Hungry to Help
For Katie Fitzgerald, making life better for the people
around her is all in a day’s work. BY TIM CERULLO, ’08
I
wanted to work for greater is a deep and diverse system, where a
equity and justice in the typical day means overseeing supply
world.” That was Katie Fitz- chains, managing relationships across
gerald’s mindset when she the network and with other partners,
received her social relations cultivating ties with food banks and
degree from James Madison College diving into federal policy. All while
in 1994. Since then, she has made a keeping her team’s morale high.
career out of doing just that. “It is so varied and incredibly intel-
After graduation, Fitzgerald joined lectually satisfying,” Fitzgerald says
AmeriCorps. That year of service of her work. “And everyone has such
and time spent in the community a deep commitment to what we’re
led her to a master’s degree in social working on.”
work, instead of law school as she That proved especially important
had initially planned. over the past year and a half, as the
“I felt the need to be part of it. I COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc
knew the solutions to a community’s on financial security and food security
problems often come from within nationwide. Between stark spikes in
the community,” she says. “I still demand, supply chain issues and lack
believe that to this day.” of personal protective equipment,
And she would know. As executive Feeding America had to get creative.
vice president and chief operating of- Hunger relief efforts inherently in-
ficer at Feeding America, Fitzgerald volve human interaction and contact,
is helping solve problems and fight so the organization needed to find Katie Fitzgerald, ’94
James Madison College
hunger together with 200 food banks new ways to get food in the hands of
across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. It people in need.
“
“Sorting, packaging, distribu-
tion, referral services all had to
be changed on a dime.” Fitzgerald
I wanted to work for greater equity and recalls. Despite the stresses, Feeding
justice in the world. I felt the need to America made it happen. “I couldn’t
be prouder of the network—the
be part of it. I knew the solutions to a resiliency, adaptability and creativity
community’s problems often come were unbelievably nimble. We’ve
been able to grow and meet the need
from within the community. I still in incredible ways.”
believe that to this day. Incredible, indeed. Between June
2020 and July of this year, the Feed-
22 FA L L 2 0 2 1 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUing America Network of Food Banks Center for Children and Families in College. “He made the decision him-
distributed 6.8 billion meals to Norman, Oklahoma, Fitzgerald and her self,” says the mother of three. So,
people facing hunger. That is a 60% team rallied the community to turn a what will she tell her son as he sets
increase compared to the 4.3 billion small, fledgling after-school program off on his Spartan journey?
meals distributed in fiscal year 2019 for vulnerable children into the first “Pursue something that makes you
before the pandemic began. Boys & Girls Club in the state’s third- feel like a vital person in the world.”
Fitzgerald can look back on a largest city. Fitzgerald calls it one of Sage advice that everyone should
career of fulfilling achievements. The the highlights of her career. follow. After all, it worked pretty well
best part is, they are achievements Rest assured, she is not done yet. for her.
FEEDING AMERICA
that are shared with the communi- And neither are the rest of her family.
ty at large. In one of her previous Her son is due on campus this fall as a MORE ON Learn more at
positions as executive director at the first-year student in James Madison WEB feedingamerica.org
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 23SPARTAN STORY Moderna Man
Fighting on All Fronts
“
In March, I got
tapped to support Helping develop the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine
the Moderna hit close to home for Dr. Ian Moore, head of the
vaccine work Comparative Medicine Branch’s Infectious Disease
because our lab was Pathogenesis Section at the National Institutes of
Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
set up for this and
E
Diseases. BY EMILY LENHARD
my background as
a flu researcher. arly in the pandemic, When the Moderna vaccine
Dr. Ian Moore recalls received emergency use
It was kind of an watching the news as approval from the Food and
easy plug-and-play COVID-19 case counts Drug Administration, Moore
in the U.S. began to felt extremely grateful, which
for me. But I knew climb—first 14, then 20, then 600. motivated him to reconnect with
it was going to be a “Then in March, I got tapped
to support the Moderna vaccine
those who helped him get to that
point.
big challenge. work because our lab was set up “I reached out to three of my
for this and my background as a flu teachers to tell them, ‘Thank you,’
researcher,” Moore says. “It was because I’d had some not-so-
kind of an easy plug-and-play for me. supportive teachers in school who
But I knew it was going to be a big tried to actually discourage me
challenge.” from taking this path, and
Moore is a veterinary pathologist. had I listened to them, this could be
On a typical day, he and his lab help a very different situation,”
investigators conduct research says Moore.
studies and generate and analyze Moore shared details about his
data. Moore works on infectious work on the Moderna vaccine with
diseases like zika, malaria and his teachers and small hometown in
influenza, as well as allergic diseases Alabama. He got a lot of questions.
like eczema. But all that came to a “My ninth-grade teacher,
halt when COVID-19 arrived. we stayed connected, and she
“That helped with the [vaccine] was asking me if she should get
turnaround time. We put everything the vaccine or not, and I said,
else on pause and just focused on the ‘Absolutely.’ Now, she’s had her
COVID-19 vaccine,” says Moore. second dose,” says Moore.
24 FA L L 2 0 2 1 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUShe also became a community
Ian Moore, Ph.D. ’14, liaison and encouraged others to get
College of Veterinary Medicine
vaccinated. She spoke to their local
newspaper, which ran a story about
Moore’s involvement in the vaccine.
“That’s what started me on this mass
information drive because now the
entire community knew what I was
doing. They trusted my opinion and
the information I was giving them,
and that was invaluable.”
Moore felt an obligation to share
vaccine information. “There were
people calling me left and right
about having COVID-19, worried
they would get COVID-19, or about
people I knew who had passed away
from COVID-19. I felt an immediate
need to do something about it, not
just a vaccine, but to get accurate
information to people.”
“Now, [some] people just know
that it’s new and someone wants to
inject it in their arm and that’s all they
know, and people say it’s safe. But I
want to show them that it’s safe, and I
can do that because I performed the
preclinical safety and efficacy studies.”
Moore reflects on everything that
has happened during his COVID-19
vaccine education efforts, all of which
resulted from one grateful phone call.
“It just felt full circle to me. [My
teacher’s] kindness helped me, having
someone who believed in what I was
doing as a child,” says Moore, “and
then for her to be a recipient of a
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
vaccine, 25 years later, that I helped
create. I think it’s pretty cool.”
MORE ON Learn more at
WEB go.msu.edu/moore
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 25.
“
My philosophy in life is
to do as much good
as I can for those who
are less fortunate, but I
would like to live my life
as a common man.
VERGHESE KURIEN
INDIA TODAY GROUP / GETTY IMAGES
26 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUA Body
of Good
In India, Verghese Kurien revolutionized
the dairy industry. In East Lansing,
he helped set the table for continued
excellence and advancement in research
that combines food and humanity.
BY TIM CERULLO, ’08
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 27M “
ilk. It is a staple in many
households. The thing
about staples is, they are I am delighted to hear that
easy to overlook. The ev-
eryday is often taken for
I have been selected for the
granted. At Michigan State, much work award. It is indeed a very great
is rooted in the opposite. Researchers honor, but I’m also aware that
take nothing for granted as they seek
new solutions for populations around it is not so much any personal
the globe and right here at home. No contribution I may have made
surprise. In East Lansing, there is a long
history of contributions to the food
that is being recognized here.
world, and the world in general. Not It is more a recognition of
least of which is the story of the the heroic efforts of 6 million
late Verghese Kurien.
For anyone unfamiliar with the “Milkman of In-
farmers, whose elected chair-
dia,” here is a primer: After receiving an engineering man I am, to pull themselves
degree in India, Kurien made his way to MSU where up by their bootstraps and
he earned a master’s degree in mechanical engineer-
ing in 1948. When he returned to India the following produce more milk to meet the
year, Kurien began working as a dairy engineer at the growing demands of the Indian
small Government Research Creamery in Anand—
just as the country was in the throes of battle against a
population that is really
milk monopoly. being honored.
For years, the Polson brand had been overpower-
ing dairy producers. The giant would buy milk from VERGHESE KURIEN, ’48
Acceptance speech at the World Food Prize, 1989
farmers for next to nothing and sell it for massive
profits, while paying little mind to food safety. The
country was milk deficient. It was at this time, from
the creamery in Anand—now home to the interna-
tionally renowned Amul dairy cooperative—that
Kurien fought for better treatment and protection for
dairy producers of India.
As rural farmers organized local cooperatives,
Kurien orchestrated an effort to take ownership
of their product, bringing everything in-house. He
used his engineering background to build processing
plants, and his entrepreneurial mindset to set up
marketing campaigns and shipping schematics. That
way, local producers would be able to distribute their
milk to local consumers. And that meant fresher,
28 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DU2
(CLOCKWISE)
1. THE TRINITY
Standing between Spartans
Kurien and Harichand Megha
Dalaya is Tribhuvandas
Kishibhai Patel, founder of the
Amul Co-operative Movement.
The trio came to be known as
the Amul Trinity.
2. KURIEN’S FAMILY
Kurien was born into a middle-
class family. His father, Dr. P.K.
Kurien, was a surgeon who
3 worked at a government-run
hospital. Kurien is pictured
1 here (top row, in the white
shirt) with his parents, broth-
ers and sister.
3 - 6. WELL ACQUAINTED WITH
THE WORLD’S POWERFUL AND
INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE
Kurien’s fame quickly spread,
and the important work he
was doing attracted numerous
influential and important peo-
ple throughout the decades.
He is pictured here with:
3) Prince Charles of the United
4 Kingdom; 4) Indira Gandhi,
prime minister of India; 5)
Francisco Aquino, executive
director of the World Food
Programme, and 6) the king
of Thailand.
From the 1950s onward,
Kurien met with every single
NAIK FAMILY / AMUL / KURIEN
prime minister of India, even
including the current prime
minister, Narendra Modi (albeit
prior to Modi becoming prime
minister in 2014).
6 5
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 29LEARNING AND GROWING safer dairy products for all. In just cation Arts and Sciences), professor
Verghese Kurien got a chance a few years, the co-op program in of practice and a senior specialist
at Michigan State to learn about
more than just engineering Anand blossomed into a movement in the School of Journalism who is
—such as snow and snowball
throwing! of millions of farmers, no longer producing and directing a documen-
answering to private interests, but tary about Kurien.
Kurien was able to take his
growing knowledge and suc- rightfully in control of their milk. For the film, Pavangadkar is work-
cessfully apply it to help India’s
dairy farmers. He took the small
The project was such a success in ing on two separate productions
Kaira District Co-operative Milk the region, it was named the na- simultaneously: an Indian version,
Producers Union, which began
with merely two village coop- tional model for dairy distribution. which will receive wide release in
erative societies and 247 liters This was labeled Operation Flood, multiple languages, and an Amer-
of milk, and grew it to become
the world’s eighth-largest dairy in which Kurien helped deliver milk ican version that interweaves
company in the world.
to the masses via farmer-led co-ops Kurien’s journey with that of today’s
Source: International Farm Comparison
Network (IFCN) across the country. international students. He hopes to
Today, India is the world’s number have the films ready for release on
one milk producer. And Kurien’s Kurien’s 100th birth anniversary
model has been mirrored by China later this year.
as well as countries in Southeast What fascinates him about
Asia and Africa. Kurien? “Of course I knew who he
“He was a real visionary who built was, but I didn’t know he went to
a complete infrastructure. Cold MSU until 2010. And I have been
storage, transportation, rural man- here since ’02. The story is known
KURIEN / AMUL
agement, even schools,” says Amol worldwide but hasn’t been told from
Pavangadkar (M.A. ’05, Communi- an MSU perspective.”
30 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUTHE AMUL PLANT IN ANAND, THE
ORIGINAL COOPERATIVE SITE
DEVELOPED BY KURIEN
The Amul model has helped
India become the largest milk
producer in the world. More
than 16 million dairy farmers
now share their products
via 185,903 cooperatives
throughout India.
Source: Amul.com
AMUL
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 31Kurien, who died in 2012, won the
World Food Prize in 1989, and was
India’s National Milk Day
awarded all three Parma awards, repre-
senting India’s highest civilian honor. He
received the MSU Distinguished Alumni
Award in ’91, and an honorary doctorate
in ’65. To this day, Kurien’s MSU degrees
hang prominently in his family home.
“Above the awards and everything else,
it’s about pride in what’s been achieved,”
Pavangadkar adds. “He defines the mis-
sion and mindset of the premier land-
grant university.”
“ True development
is not the develop-
ment of land, or
of cows; it is the
development of
men and women.
VERGHESE KURIEN, ’48
College of Engineering
It’s true, Kurien’s influential model
has changed the course of food distri-
bution, safety and management sys-
tems around the globe. But there is so
much more to it than milk. Creating
change, bettering lives and working
together to make the right things
happen. It’s the kind of Spartans A 2017 newpaper placed in the Indian Times commemorating Kurien.
Will that lives on in East Lansing,
where today’s minds are combining India has been the world’s leading milk producer since 1997,
research with outreach. Globally so it’s fitting that every year on November 26, Kurien’s
engaged for the greater good. The birthday, India pays homage to the doctor’s legacy and the
Milkman would approve. beverage he revolutionized.
AMUL
32 FALL 2021 A LU M N I . M SU. E DUKURIEN
TURNED TO
ANOTHER
SPARTAN
TO HELP
MAKE IT
HAPPEN
PERSONAL PHOTOS OF MR. SANJAY & MRS. MONA NAIK AND OF MRS. AKANKSHA NAIK & MR. BERNARD ADAM (DIRECT FAMILY OF HARICHAND MEGHA DALAYA)
As he was making early H. M. DALAYA
progress in Anand, Kurien Dalaya and Kurien
met at MSU and
knew he would need were actually in the
same graduating
technical support. With a class there.
bit of coaxing, he recruited
AMUL’S CORE THREE
fellow Spartan and engineer All three men,
Harichand M. Dalaya Kurien, Patel and
Dalaya, were
(M.S., ’48) to visit the recognized as pillars
of the cooperative,
operation in Anand. whose profession-
alism and integrity
helped to build an
Initially, Dalaya planned on a short institution that was
stay but wound up settling at Amul trusted and helped
lift the farmers out
Credit: stevanovicigor/iStock/Thinkstock®
until he retired. His impact was of poverty.
immediate. The 1955 invention of DALAYA WAS ALSO
the Nitro Atomizer, the world’s first IMPORTANT IN
EXPLAINING THEIR
buffalo milk spray-dryer, bolstered SUCCESS TO THE
WORLD
India’s lean summer milk season Dalaya was frequent-
ly behind the scenes,
and helped finance phase one of being inventive and
Operation Flood. While Kurien taking care of tech-
nical operations, but
was the face of the movement, he he was also involved
in proselytizing to
always gave his partner full credit. dignitaries, such as
As for Dalaya, he relished his Prince Charles of the
United Kingdom.
behind-the-scenes position.
SPARTAN MAGAZINE 33You can also read
