Catching up with Newcomerstown grad Mitch Wolff
Meet: Mitch Wolff
Education: Graduated from Newcomerstown High School, Class of 1979
College:Purdue University, BSME ’83, MSME ’89, PhD ‘95
Current Occupation: Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Wright State University since 1995.
Mitch, you have been a part of the Wright State University Staff for over 27 years. Please tell us of your role, and what you enjoy about being a professor?
“Currently as Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Wright State University my position includes teaching, research, and service both (university and professional). I enjoy instructing undergraduate (sophomore, junior and senior level classes), as well as graduate level classes. I advise both undergraduate student design projects and graduate M.S. and Ph.D. thesis projects. The students are the best part of my job. I love collaborating with them. My contentment comes from seeing each one move on to accomplish remarkable things and know I contributed a small part in their achievements.
"Also, realizing my professional service activities compliment the research and teaching parts of my job has been very gratifying for me. For instance, this past March, I accompanied 13 undergraduate and graduate students to the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Regional Student Conference (Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin). Two Wright State University graduate students finished first and second in the graduate student competition. Both students were my MS thesis students and the research they presented was part of their MSME thesis projects on hypersonic flight. The first place student advances to the national AIAA competition in January for the chance to win $1,500. I am really looking forward to seeing how my student does!
"Another great part of my experience at Wright State University has included the opportunity to travel to Bucharest, Romania; Stockholm, Sweden; and Rotterdam, in the Netherlands. I have visited some beautiful places because of my profession.”
Please tell us a little bit about your family and what hobbies you enjoy.
“I am married to Lori (George) Wolff, and we have a 21-year-old daughter, Trinity. She is attending Wright State University studying Musical Theatre. We reside in Huber Heights, Ohio.
"Lori and I met in the third grade as students in Mrs. Adkin’s class at Newcomerstown West Elementary School. We continued in the same fourth and fifth grade classes and on thru middle and high school too. We did not start dating until 1988, then married in August 1989 at the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Newcomerstown.
"Without Lori, I would have never realized my chosen field of study. After a major setback in research for my Ph.D., I nearly called it quits, but she really encouraged me to keep pushing forward and to finish my project. In addition, our family in Newcomerstown has been incredibly supportive of us which has made an enormous difference in our lives.
"When I have extra time; I enjoy playing basketball, golf, running, walking, reading, and volunteering with the Gideons, a local Crisis Pregnancy Center and our Church.
"Traveling with Lori and Trinity over the years has taken us to many neat locations. Family vacations include upstate Michigan; Los Angeles, the San Diego area; Washington, New York City, and upstate New York. Additionally, we have visited Hawaii and have taken several beach trips over the years. I think a trip with our daughter as a young child to Disney World was definitely a highlight for all three of us. Personally, one of my favorite places to visit is the Grand Canyon. Sadly, I have not been there since 1988, but prior to that; I was there seven times between 1983 to 1988.
"In 2004 as part of my first sabbatical, I was able to take Lori and Trinity with me to Lausanne, Switzerland (mid-April thru the end of July). Lausanne is home of EPFL (a technical university, and while there I served as a visiting professor). Lausanne is considered a resort city in Switzerland. We toured Zurich, Paris, Vienna, Florence, Genoa, and Brussels. Experiencing Europe was both challenging and exciting for our family.
What do you miss about the Newcomerstown Community, and is there anything you would like to highlight for us?
“I miss the slower pace of life in Newcomerstown. I loved riding my bike all over town as a youngster. Another thing I miss is the friendly nature of the people in the village.
"However, I have been very blessed since graduating from Newcomerstown High School in 1979, attending college at Purdue University, and beginning my career at Wright State University. I pinch myself on a regular basis to make sure it is not a dream. I know any success I have celebrated came from God blessing me. I have a beautiful wife and daughter who love me, as I do them. Sometimes I look back and think I was such a nuisance to so many of my teachers at NHS, and I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to them. However, I would never trade the wonderful memories from my days in Newcomerstown for anything in the world. Finally, I have told many people for a long time that if I were given the choice of where I could be a professor, I would pick Wright State. It is the perfect fit for me as I am from Ohio, most of the students are from Ohio and are working their way thru college. A bonus is Wright State University is just two miles from Wright Patterson Air Force base and is where I perform most of my research (AFRL is a world class research facility).”
What advice would you give to a student choosing the same profession as you?
“Ask lots of questions in your math and science classes to make sure that you completely understand the material. Take every opportunity to work with your hands on anything mechanical to understand how it works and why. Finally, you will be required to graduate from an accredited mechanical engineering program. It takes lots of dedication, but it is a very rewarding profession. We need lots of talented mechanical engineers in our country.”
This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Catching up with Newcomerstown grad Mitch Wolff
