Two College of Engineering alumni have been honored by the Corridor Business Journal as member of its "40 Under 40" class of 2016. They join Fatima Toor, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, who earlier was recognized for the honor.
They are John Lee (BSE 2008 biomedical engineering, MS 2014 environmental/environmental health engineering), project engineer at McClure Engineering Company, and Kyle Faille (BSE 2012 electrical engineering), mechanical/electrical group leader, electrical engineer at Shive-Hattery Architecture & Engineering, both of Cedar Rapids, IA.
Forty Under 40 honorees consist of men and women who have made a significant impact in their businesses and communities early in their careers. Each year, a panel of the previous year’s winners chooses the honorees. This year, nominees had to be less than 40 years old as of October 19 to qualify.
While in school, Lee was president of the Korean Undergraduate Student Association and a member of the UI Engineers for a Sustainable World. Lee is globally experienced in multiple stages of operating a business, including research, manufacturing, sales, and management. He has successfully managed operators and shift leaders in a start-up amino acid manufacturing plant. He also established, certified, and operated a South Korean UV disinfection company in California. His mentors include Jerry Schnoor, Allen S. Henry Chair in Engineering, professor of civil and environmental engineering, and co-director of the UI Center for Global and Regional Environmental Research, and Engineering alumnus Louis Licht, president of Ecolotree, Inc.
Besides his professional duties, Faille is a board member of ImpactCR, a program under the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, is devoted to engaging the NOW and NEXT generation talent in Iowa's Creative Corridor with leadership, service and social engagement opportunities. He also is a mentor for middle school students in the areas of engineering and technology as they prepare for the annual Future City Competition and a member of the Round to Round Planning Committee for the Alzheimer's Association. In addition, he graduated in 2016 from the Leadership for Five Seasons (LFS) Adult Program, a premier leadership program that empowers and inspires diverse individuals to actively lead in shaping and enhancing the quality of life in the community and region. Faille also is a member of IEEE Young Professionals and the Iowa Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).
Toor conceived the idea of a silicon-nanowire-array optoelectronic cartridge for cancer biomarker detection, and assembled a small group of principals to form a company called Advanced Silicon Group in hopes of someday manufacturing and marketing the product. Earlier this year, the company was named a semi-finalist in the SPIE Startup Challenge, a prestigious tech startup contest, at the 2016 Photonics West Conference. In November, Toor was a finalist for a Technology Association of Iowa Rising Star Award. Nominated by Jennifer Ott, John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center training and outreach liaison, she noted "Dr. Toor encourages diversity of all kinds in her research group as a critical component of achieving excellence and creativity in research."
The Corridor Media Group Inc. (CMG) is a media company based in North Liberty, IA, and the publisher of the Corridor Business Journal (CBJ), a weekly source of comprehensive business coverage for Iowa’s Creative Corridor. CMG also provides custom publishing, digital news, business data, and hosts the region’s most popular corporate and awards-based events. For more information or to subscribe, visit www.corridorbusiness.com.