MICHAEL J. SEARS
[MJS image]
E-Mail: sears@evansville.net

EMPLOYMENT OBJECTIVE

An engineering position in a consulting firm or government agency that will provide rewarding and challenging responsibilities. Interests include engineering, agriculture, hydrology, water quality, soil erosion control, implementation of GIS, water quality modeling, computer applications, and field studies.

EDUCATION & LICENSING

[ ]

Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907.

M.S. Agricultural EngineeringAugust, 1996GPA: 3.59 / 4.00
B.S. Agricultural EngineeringDecember, 1993GPA: 3.06 / 4.00
[ ]

Licensed Engineer in Training.

SIGNIFICANT COURSES

AGEN 526  Watershed Systems Design                                
CE   540  Open Channel Hydraulics                                 
CE   544  Subsurface Hydrology                                    
AGEN 590  River Hydraulics with HEC-2 (An Independent Study Course)
CE   350  Environmental Engineering                               
AGEN 591G Vector Based GIS                                        
AGEC 596P Environmental Policy Analysis                           
AGRY 560  Physical Properties of Soils                            
AGRY 561  Topics in Soil Physics                                  
AGEN 325  Soil and Water Resources Engineering                    
CE   597D Digital Mapping for GIS                                 
STAT 511  Statistical Methods                                     
STAT 512  Applied Regression Analysis                             
AGEN 215  Surveying                                               
AGEN 450  Finite Element Analysis

[ ] Listing of all courses completed as an undergraduate.
[ ] Listing of all courses completed as a graduate student.

COMPUTER SKILLS

[ ] Eight years of PC experience and seven years of UNIX experience.
[ ] Utilizing the Internet to locate information, TCP/IP, and HTML coding.
[ ] Operating system proficiencies include UNIX, DOS, Microsoft Windows 3.x, Windows95, and OS/2.
[ ] UNIX experience includes SunOS & Solaris, OpenWindows, X11, basic shell scripting, etc.
[ ] Familiar with geographic information systems (GIS) concepts and techniques (GRASS 4.1).
[ ] Word Processing - Microsoft Word for Windows and Frame Maker.
[ ] Spreadsheets - Quattro Pro for Windows and Microsoft Excel for Windows.
[ ] Microsoft Powerpoint for Windows.
[ ] Various drawing, painting, graphics, and image manipulation software.
[ ] PC troubleshooting & maintenance and hardware & software installation.

I also created a seventy-five page beginner’s guide on the use of Sun Microsystems workstations, in addition to the development of a hypertext spreadsheet tutorial using IBM Story Board Live! These projects were initiated for the benefit of new students in the Department while I was an undergraduate. Both projects were completed under the direction of Prof. Bernard Y. Tao.

EMPLOYMENT BACKGROUND

Graduate Research Assistant
Department of Agricultural Engineering, Purdue University
January, 1994 to August, 1996.

[ ] Applied an integrated AGNPS/GRASS hydrologic model & GIS interface to investigate impacts upon surface water quality when agricultural land uses are altered to include energy crop production.
[ ] Sensitivity analyses of AGNPS to scales of input data were also performed.
[ ] Activities: experiment design & execution, time management, data analysis, and technical writing.
[ ] Served as a guest lecturer in a graduate level watershed systems and introductory GIS course.

GIS Intern
Department of Agricultural Engineering, Purdue University
May, 1993 to September, 1993

[ ] Responsible for testing and developing data inputs within the GRASS GIS for the SWAT/GRASS hydrologic model and GIS interface in a model validation study involving the White River Basin in central Indiana.

Programmer
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Purdue University Contract)
May, 1992 to June, 1993.

[ ] Developed hypertext educational software that discussed Class 5 shallow injection well use, classification, disposal alternatives, and best management practices for well operators that USEPA distributed worldwide (others titles in this series are available from Purdue University).
[ ] Responsibilities included programming, research, graphics development, and time management.

ACTIVITIES & HONORS

Organizations
[ ] Member of American Society of Agricultural Engineers (ASAE).
[ ] Purdue UniversityAlpha Epsilon Honorary.
[ ] Member of Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS).
[ ] Member of the American Water Resources Association (AWRA).
[ ] Member of the Indiana Water Resources Association (IWRA).
[ ] Member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
[ ] Member of the Order of the Engineer.
[ ] Member of the Agricultural History Society.
Offices Held
[ ] ASAE National Council of Student Engineering Branches Second Vice President.
[ ] Purdue University ASAE Student Branch President.
Awards and Scholarships
[ ] Recipient of Purdue University ASAE Student Branch Service Award.
[ ] Recipient of "Outstanding Sophomore in Agricultural Engineering" Award.
[ ] Purdue University School of Agriculture Award of Excellence Scholarship.
[ ] Hoosier Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society Scholarship.
[ ] Purdue Engineering Student Council Industrial Round Table Leadership Scholarship.
[ ] National FFA Scholarship.
[ ] Indiana 4-H Fee Remission Scholarship.
[ ] Elks Lodge "Most Valuable Student" Scholarship.

PUBLICATIONS

Sears, Michael J. M.S.Ag.E. Purdue University, August, 1996. Analysis of Surface Water Quality Impacts of Biomass Plantation Establishment in the Midwest. Major Professor: Dr. Bernard A. Engel.


Engel, B.A., M.J. Sears, D.D. Jones, and R.M. Strickland. 1994. Class 5 Injection Wells Environmental Education Software. In Computers in Agriculture, 1994: Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Computers in Agriculture, Dennis G. Watson, Fedro S. Zazueta, Tony V. Harrison, editors, 882-887. Orlando, Florida: American Society of Agricultural Engineers, 6-9 February.


REFERENCES

[BAE image]
Dr. Bernard A. Engel
Professor and Graduate Advisor
Purdue University
Department of Agricultural Engineering
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907-1146
Phone: (317) 494 - 1198
E-Mail: engelb@ecn.purdue.edu

[LFH image]
Dr. Larry F. Huggins
Associate Dean and Professor
Purdue University
Schools of Engineering
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907
Phone: (317) 494-5349
E-Mail: huggins@ecn.purdue.edu

[BYT image]
Dr. Bernard Y. Tao
Associate Professor
Purdue University
Department of Agricultural Engineering
West Lafayette, Indiana 47907-1146
Phone: (317) 494 - 1183
E-Mail: tao@ecn.purdue.edu

Dr. Carolyn T. Hunsaker
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Environmental Sciences Division
P.O. Box 2008
Building 1505 MS 6038 Room 378
Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831-6038
Phone: (423) 574-7365
E-Mail: cth@ornl.gov
Michael J. Sears (sears@evansville.net)
Last modified: 26 November, 1996.