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IFMA Foundation Awards $23,000 in Scholarships

Houston, November 5, 2003 - The IFMA Foundation awarded $23,000 in scholarships to 15 graduate and undergraduate students of facility management this year, bringing the Foundation’s total to 91 scholarships worth $175,000 since 1991. The scholarships were awarded during a special presentation Oct. 19 at World Workplace in Dallas, Texas, USA.

The recipient of a $5,000 Utilities Council/Doug Underwood Scholarship was Alexis DiFerdinando, an undergraduate at Cornell University working toward a bachelor of science degree in design and environmental analysis with a concentration in facility planning and management. She is a volunteer leader at the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority and a staff writer for the Cornell Daily Sun.

Deborah Anne Behl was awarded a $3,000 scholarship from the Philadelphia Chapter of IFMA. Behl is an undergraduate student at Cornell working toward a bachelor of science degree in design and environmental analysis. She is also past president of the Cornell University Student Chapter of IFMA. In Jan. 2003, she organized the first annual IFMA Student/DEA Alumni Networking dinner in New York City to provide student members an opportunity to network with working alumni.

Ji Yeon Baik, a graduate student at Cornell pursuing an master’s degree in facilities planning and design, received a $1,000 Doug Underwood Scholarship. She also holds a bachelor of science degree from Yonsei University in interior design. Baik has been a teaching assistant at Cornell, and she also served as an intern at Joong Ang Design and at Junglim Architecture in Seoul, Korea. She has been an active member of the Cornell Student Chapter of IFMA and also of the Korean Facilities Management Association.

Matthew Thomason was awarded a $1,000 scholarship from the Lehigh Valley Chapter of IFMA. Thomason is an undergraduate at Colorado State University-Pueblo (CSU-P) working toward a bachelor of science degree in facility management and technology studies. He has previously worked as an intern for Walt Disney Co. as well as USC. Thomason was involved in performing an adaptive reuse study for the St. Scholastica Academy in Canon City, Colo. where he studied current grounds and ADA issues to propose modes of reuse for the property.

The recipient of a $1000 scholarship from the Tuohy Furniture Corporation is Seth A. McNaghten, an undergraduate at CSU-P working toward a bachelor of arts degree in facility management. He has gained experience in the construction field by working for McNaghten Construction since 1996. McNaghten is also actively involved in fundraising for the student chapter of IFMA at CSU-P.

A $1,000 Bob Lipira Scholarship went to Chris Barrett, an undergraduate at CSU-P majoring in facility management with a minor in business administration. He was the student chapter president for 2002-2003 and has been involved with various fundraising and community service projects with the chapter.

Drew Allen, an undergraduate at CSU-P majoring in facility management, received a $1,000 scholarship from the Kansas City Chapter of IFMA. Allen was named Outstanding Member of the CSU-P Student Chapter of IFMA for 2001-2002. Previously, he served as the student chapter’s president and vice president, and also serves as the chapter’s Webmaster. Allen is a Cadet 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army ROTC program.
The George Graves Scholarship of $1,000 was awarded to Ranjeet Mohandas, a graduate student working toward a master’s degree in construction management at Texas A&M. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Madras in India. Mohandas also has worked as an architect at Anil Menon and Associates, Architects and Project Consultants and as an architect trainee at ENARC Constructions Ltd., both in India. He has served as vice president of the Construction Management Association’s student chapter at Texas A&M, as well as treasurer of the university’s student chapter of IFMA.

Eberhard Laepple received a $3,000 scholarship from the Philadelphia Chapter of IFMA. Laepple is working toward his doctorate in architecture with a facility management certificate at Texas A&M. His previous studies in architecture were at the University Stuttgart in Germany and at the University of Adelaide in Austria. He has been employed as a research assistant and teaching assistant at Texas A&M and an intern with Conoco Inc. of Houston. Laepple has served as both secretary and Webmaster for the student chapter of IFMA at Texas A&M. From 1998 to 2000, he was the lead coordinator for 500 design student studio spaces at the University of Stuttgart.

Ekkatak Liang-Ampai is a graduate student at Michigan State University (MSU) working toward a master’s degree in facility management, which will be supported with a $1,000 Barbara Pryor Scholarship. He has worked as an architect for Thai Obayashi Corp. Ltd. as well as an architect trainee at the Office of Bangkok Architects Co. Ltd. After completing his masters, he hopes to obtain an internship at a U.S. consulting firm and would also like to be a visiting professor teaching facility management in his native Thailand. Liang-Ampai is also the communications officer of the IFMA Student Chapter at MSU.

The recipient of a $1,000 scholarship from the East Bay Chapter of IFMA was Nijsiree Waeochan, a graduate student at MSU working toward a doctorate degree in human environment design and management. She has a master’s degree in facility management from Pratt Institute in New York and a bachelor’s degree in interior architecture from King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang in Thailand. She also has experience as a project manager and interior designer. In 1992, she won the MTV Art Director of the Year Award for work on an Asian-release music video for Christina Aguilera.

So Young Lee is a graduate student at MSU working toward a doctorate degree in facility design and management. To facilitate that goal, she received a $1,000 scholarship from Flavia Beverage Systems. Lee holds a master’s degree and a bachelor of science degree in housing and interior design from Yonsei University in Korea. She has been a teaching assistant at Michigan State, a research associate at Yonsei University, and has experience as an interior designer at Dawoo International Inc. Lee also has been the president of the MSU Student Chapter of IFMA and was vice president of the Department of Housing and Interior Design at Yonsei University.

Jun Ha Kim is a graduate student at Georgia Institute of Technology pursuing a master of science degree in integrated facility management who received a $1,000 DuPont Scholarship. He earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Minnesota and has worked as an assistant construction field director for the Competitive Service Inc. in Minneapolis, Minn. He has also worked as a utility data analyst for Georgia Tech’s facilities department. A native of Seoul, Korea, Kim hopes to return to Korea to educate other aspiring FM students there and to do facility management research.

Wong Yat Lung Philip is a graduate student at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University working toward a doctorate in facility management. He also has obtained a master’s degree in system engineering and engineering management from The Chinese University of Hong Kong and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of London. He has been a teaching assistant at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, an engineer for Building Diagnostic Consultants Ltd. and an assistant engineer for Ho Wang SPB Ltd. Philip has published three papers on facility management and has participated in benchmarking studies for a real estate developer in Hong Kong. He is an active member of the IFMA Hong Kong Chapter.

Anne Moser is an undergraduate at Brigham Young University majoring in facility management and received a $1,000 DuPont Scholarship. Moser is the secretary/treasurer of the BYU student chapter of APPA and serves on the executive board of the BYU student chapter of IFMA. Her work experience includes an internship as a facilities services dispatcher (internship) for the Salt Lake Organizing Committee of the 2002 Winter Olympics.

IFMA is the Houston, Texas-based professional association for facility management with approximately 17,300 members in 126 chapters and 55 countries. The organization offers networking opportunities through its regional chapters and councils structure, provides certification and educational programs, conducts research, spots trends and assists facility managers in developing skills and strategies to manage the human, structural and real estate assets of an organization.

The IFMA Foundation was established in 1990 as a non-profit, 501©(3) corporation and is supported by the generosity of individual IFMA members, chapters, councils, corporate sponsors and private contributions. Its Vision is to ensure a quality built environment in a changing world, through fundraising, research, scholarships and education, and its Mission is to promote priority research and educational opportunities for the advancement of facility management worldwide through fundraising.

For more information about IFMA and the IFMA Foundation, visit the Association’s Web site at www.ifma.org.