News and Events - Alums Richard and Jean Higgins Enable
Engineering Students to Gain Hands-On Experience
|
Interim Chair and Professor of Civil
Engineering Eric Landis; Jean Higgins;
Richard Higgins; College of
Engineering Dean Dana Humphrey |
For Richard Higgins,
graduating from the University of Maine’s College of Engineering
proved a double blessing. Not only did his UMaine diploma help the 1979 alumnus
land a great job with the prestigious Boeing Company, but it
also allowed him to feel comfortable working with top-notch
professionals at the world’s premier manufacturer of commercial
jetliners and military aircraft.
“The training I received at UMaine was
so spot-on that within six months at Boeing I had been accepted
as a member of the engineering team and was being recognized as
a promising engineer,” Richard says. “There I was, working on
the most advanced projects at the greatest aviation company in
the world. UMaine helped me land this dream job.”
Recently retired from Boeing after a
successful career that spanned nearly three decades and included
three vice-presidential assignments, Richard has moved from
Seattle to Santa Fe where he lives with his wife, Jean, who
graduated from UMaine in 1976. She retired after 12 years at
Costco Wholesale, first as the executive assistant for chairman
of the company, and then for the executive vice president who
headed up both Costco’s International Division and the ancillary
businesses.
Neither Richard nor Jean has forgotten
their Black Bear roots. Grateful for the outstanding engineering
background Richard received at UMaine thanks to caring,
knowledgeable professors, the couple provided a generous
endowment gift so civil engineering students could get hands-on
learning opportunities.
At the Richard and Jean Higgins
Materials Testing Laboratory, undergrads test materials like
shear plates, concrete cylinders and wooden trusses to determine
their strength.
“That’s how you learn about the
properties of different materials and why they’re well suited
for certain types of engineering design,” says Richard,
recalling the many hours he spent at the Boardman Hall facility
when he was a student.
“We loved breaking things to test the
materials and see how strong they were. It was fun stuff. At the
same time it provided dramatic hands-on learning to reinforce
the classroom learning.”
Knowing they are helping to ensure that
the highest level of standards is maintained in the lab is
gratifying to both him and Jean, says Richard. The decision to
support the facility had been a family affair, with daughter,
Colleen, also an engineer, weighing in as well.
“We wanted to give back to the
University in a way that was measurable – to do something
visible and effective. This was a place where we knew we could
have a serious impact on the education students receive,”
Richard says.
A native of New Jersey, Richard had a
political science degree and a stint in the U.S. Coast Guard
under his belt when he enrolled at UMaine and found “the
greatest teachers I ever met.
“My professors were extraordinary,” he
says. “Jean remembers me coming home from school and talking
about these guys whom I respected so much. They were great
engineers who took me under their wing and got me out of there
in three years. Every time they saw me they stopped what they
were doing and asked if I was sticking to my academic plan, how
I was doing in class and if they could do anything to help.”
Under his professors’ tutelage, Richard
earned stellar grades which became a constant source of pride.
“Every time I succeeded at UMaine, I thought, ‘wow, I’m
measuring up to what these professors see as good.’ It gave me
confidence.”
That self assurance would prove to be a
boon at Boeing where employees are hired based on their college
performance. The company also places great importance on the
ability to stand up for one’s beliefs.
“We’d have discussions with senior
engineering experts with whom you’d have to argue your points
about design,” says Richard, who had learned from his UMaine
professors “not to be shy and not to hang back, but to push
forward new ideas.’’ These discussions could be both animated
and demanding of highly sophisticated engineering judgment.
Safety is always first at Boeing. UMaine gave me both the
technical skills and self-confidence to be a full participant in
these discussions.”
Jean says her UMaine degree in
psychology helped her launch a successful career as the
Controller of a real estate development company, and then as an
executive assistant at Costco where she performed a host of
duties including organizing schedules and trips, planning
meetings and developing presentations, doing financial analysis
and working with the senior management teams and employees from
all over the globe.
“The people skills that were required
were pretty sophisticated. And the knowledge I gained at UMaine
made all the difference.”
A firm believer in lifelong learning,
Richard subsequently earned an MBA from Seattle University and
now is working on a master’s degree in military history from
Norwich University in Vermont through a rigorous, on-line
program.
Passionate about military history –
especially the Civil War -- since he was a child, Richard says
that, for him, the battlefield represents “the other side of the
coin.” Aviation brings people together to solve problems while
war drives them apart.
“It’s very important to understand why
humans resort to conflict to solve problems,” he says.
His love of military history became “an
important part of my career” when, as an executive, he would
travel the globe, discussing with world aviation leaders how
Boeing could facilitate aviation in their particular country.
“But we couldn’t talk about airlines
all day and so this would give us common ground,” he recalls.
“I’d ask, ‘didn’t such and such a battle happen close by here?’
It would open up a whole new discussion. They’d take me on tours
of battlefields and everybody would go away feeling honored that
I’d taken time to learn about their country. For myself, I
gained great insight into their history and culture.”
Nowadays, in addition to working on his
master’s degree and serving on a number of organizations,
Richard keeps busy as a member of the Dean’s External Advisory
Committee for the College of Engineering which meets several
times a year to determine the overall direction for the College;
provide input from the perspective of major employers; identify
trends in the engineering industry; and advocate for the College
and the University.
Richard says he is particularly proud
of the group’s work helping to develop a new minor in
Engineering Leadership and Management. The curriculum, which
includes courses on professional communication, environmental
and business ethics, critical thinking and decision making, aims
to provide undergraduate engineering and engineering technology
majors with an understanding of how to inspire others to want to
achieve the vision and goals of an organization.
“Today, you need engineers who are more
than engineers,” he says. “The most critical need in the
industry is to be not just a good engineer, but someone who has
the capabilities to lead a team of people from around the world
to achieve a solution to a challenging problem.”
The new curriculum can help Maine
engineering graduates be at the top of their game and enjoy a
career as rich as his was, he says.
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