Department of Chemistry & Physics
Physics
Announcements
DR KENNETH DUERKSEN TO SPEAK AT THE 2011 PHYSICS SPRING ALUMNI BANQUET
The SWOSU Division of Physics will host its annual Physics Spring Alumni Banquet on Saturday, April 16, 2011, at 7:00 P.M. in the SWOSU Student Center Ballroom. Dr. Kenneth Duerksen, a 1966 SWOSU graduate, will share some of his experiences and hard-earned knowledge in a talk titled “From Farmboy to Venus and Computer Chips—Through SWOSU.”
Kenneth Duerksen grew up near Corn, OK, where he helped his father farm. He graduated from Corn High School in 1962 and began his physics study at Southwestern State College (now SWOSU) that fall. Following graduation in 1966 with his B.S. in physics, he participated in a summer internship at Oak Ridge National Laboratory working in the Health Physics Division. After some graduate study at the University of Arkansas, Ken taught two years at Westark Community College in Fort Smith, Arkansas, developing the school’s physics curriculum. In the following years Ken pursued a graduate degree in physics at Oklahoma State University. He was granted a M.S. degree for work begun at Southwestern and eventually earned a Ph.D. in physics in 1974.
Following graduate studies, Ken utilized his SWOSU and OSU experience on the NASA Pioneer Venus program, a project in the physics department at the University of Texas at Dallas. In 1979, he entered the semiconductor industry at Honeywell Optoelectronics in Dallas, Texas. There he was a Lead Engineer on a FLIR Calibration system for the U.S. Navy and then became the Front End Engineering Manager. In 1981, Ken joined the Varian Associates Semiconductor Equipment Division as an account manager. In 1988, he started his own company, ETATEC SALES, representing various semiconductor equipment companies and high vacuum equipment. In 1994, Ken joined TOKYO ELECTRON LIMITED (TEL) where he developed semiconductor processes. In 2007, he was granted a U.S. Patent for this work. Forty-three years after graduation from SWOSU both Ken and his wife Nikki retired from their respective careers. They live on their ranchette near Buda, Texas, south of Austin.
Ken’s address will culminate an evening of dinner and honors and awards. Tickets are $15 each and may be paid for at the door, but we need a head count by Wednesday, April 13, so we ask that you make reservations by email (physics@swosu.edu), phone (580/774-3109), FAX (580/774-3115), snail mail (100 Campus Dr, Weatherford, OK 73096), or in person. We look forward to seeing you there!
YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THE PHYSICS SHISH-KEBAB!
The Physics Shish-kebab is always a crowd pleaser. Delicious food (and plenty of it) served up in an idyllic setting just can’t be beat. Of course, there’s more than food and scenery. Friends for visiting, trails for hiking, and fish for catching will all be at the ready. And then there’s volleyball, a physics tradition. Join us at Crowder Lake on Saturday, April 30, 2011. You don’t want to miss this!
