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MentorSession

Nick A. Andes
Mechanical Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Friday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:We Want You!
Description:This small group seminar is made for those who love Pitt and want to get to know Oakland a little better. Engineering is a work-intensive major that will have you spending most of your time in Benedum Engineering Hall. My goal is to get you outside, get you to meet some of your classmates, show you Oakland, and hopefully give you the opportunity to RELAX one hour out of your week. So, if relaxing on the cathedral lawn playing sports, or checking out some of Oakland on a Friday afternoon sounds good, this is the place for you.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Friday2:00 pm - 4:00 pmBenedum 669

Zachary M. Cerini
Bioengineering
Sophomore
Day:Tuesday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Let's Play Cards
Description:This is for all those who enjoy playing card games of any type. We can play hold’em, stud, razz, draw, blackjack, or just suggest a game and teach us all. We may not be playing for money but we will enjoy ourselves anyway.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday10:00 am - 11:00 amBenedum 669

Robert F. Christian
Chemical and Petroleum Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Friday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Sports & Recreation
Description:Hey, I’m Rob Christian from Kane Pennsylvania. I’m a Sophomore Chemical Engineer that enjoys playing sports and being outside.

This seminar is all about having a good time while meeting some of your new classmates. Sticking to the theme of sports and recreation, I like to let you guys decide on the activity for the week. If you like it, we’ll try to do it.

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Wednesday
Thursday
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Benedum 669
Benedum 669

Jennie K. Eckholt
Materials Science Engineering
Junior
Day:Wednesday
Time:4:00 PM
Title:Strcitly Speaking
Description:Is the unabomber a martyr or murderer? Will humans be replaced by machines? If you want answers to either of these questions, this is your seminar. Each week we will spend an hour shooting the breeze, talking politics, and finding the ultimate question of the answer "42."
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Monday10:00 am - 11:00 amBenedum 669

Anthony D. Finoli
Materials Science Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Friday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Riding the Bus: A Guide to Commuting
Description:Not living on campus? Wondering what you will do with that long space in between classes. This is the seminar for you. This will be structured for commuting freshman to deal with traveling back and forth, balancing home life with on-campus life and exploring the grand university you are currently enrolled at. We will visit the various services the university offers, some good cheap food and most importantly have fun in the university’s sports/recreational facilities or just hanging out. This will give you a plethora of ideas of things to do in between and after classes so you can worry more about your homework and not what you’re going to do until class starts.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Monday4:00 pm - 5:00 pmBenedum B-80

James D. Fisher
Chemical and Petroleum Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Monday
Time:4:00 PM
Title:Root-Beer Pong
Description:Hello everyone that is reading my page, my name is Jimmy and in the beginning of the semester the focus of my seminar will be getting to know each other through the great game of root-beer pong. The beverages used will be some flavor of pop (pop=soda if your not local) ranging from root beer to mountain dew. So sign up for my seminar, and practice your weekend skills during the school week with the best-looking freshman mentor at Pitt.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Thursday4:00 pm - 5:00 pmBenedum B-80

Nick A. Globig
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Tuesday
Time:11:00 AM
Title:OH YEAH!!
Description:Hey everybody, my name is Nick Globig. I’m currently a sophomore Civil Engineer here at Pitt. Away from school I live in Plum Borough which isn’t far from Pitt. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy your freshman here at Pitt. It goes quick so don’t let it slip by you!

Alright, so one thing I really enjoy is sports. I love playing them & watching them. So guess what, that’s what this seminar is going to be about. Sports, sports, sports. We’ll play everything from Ultimate and football to kickball and dodgeball, including everything in between. So if you enjoy playing in those types of sports this is the seminar for you.

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday2:30 pm - 3:30 pmBenedum B-80

Renee M. Green
Materials Science Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Tuesday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Movies That Rock!
Description:You most likely wouldn’t know my high school, seeing as I’m from Los Angeles. And yes, I did leave Los Angeles for Pittsburgh! I swear, I am not as crazy as I seem. Throughout this semester, I will be here to help you transition into college and make your first year as a college student a good one.

Now about this mentor session business, you know those movies that people always talk about but you’ve never seen? Now is your chance! Every engineer needs some downtime and this is the perfect place to get it. We’ll decide as a group a couple of movies to watch over the semester and then we’ll uh...watch them!

I hope you’ll enjoy this session and have fun!

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday9:00 am - 10:00 amBenedum 669

Jamie L. Haney
Bioengineering
Sophomore
Day:Tuesday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Artsy Fartsy
Description:Who says that engineers can’t have an artistic side? Take time out of your coursework to meet once a week and see some of the culture and art that Pittsburgh has to offer. Explore the museums of Carnegie Mellon, see plays, symphonies, and dance ensembles at the Benedum Theatre located in downtown Pittsburgh, you can even take studio art lessons at Carnegie Art Museum! Get all the information at this seminar and take your friends to enjoy the art!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday2:00 pm - 4:00 pmBenedum 669

Chris S. Janosco
Industrial Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Tuesday
Time:7:00 PM
Title:Movie Time
Description:This Seminar is as named in the title. We will be taking a look at movies from different genres. I will pick some of the movies we watch, but most of them will be picked by you guys. It will give everyone a chance to watch some stuff they may never seen and it will also be a good way to honor a classic. Watching movies is a perfect way to relax from relentless engineering classes
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday
Friday
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Benedum B-80
Benedum B-80

Rhagav A. Khanna
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Tuesday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Quiz Bowl
Description:Question: Who was the first President to live in the white house? Sorry, not George Washington. If you like these kinds of questions and more, this seminar is for you! Here in the school of engineering we receive very little time to show off our knowledge outside math and science. Quiz Bowl is the name of the game; types of questions include Mathematics, Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, US and World History, US and World Geography, Literature, Sports, General Category—including, but not limited to—Arts, Music, Psychology, Politics, Sociology, Theology, and Current events. So if you’re interested in trivia and meeting new people, plus having the best looking mentor not to mention boy in the world, I’ll see you this year!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Thursday2:00 pm - 4:00 pmBenedum 669

Matt S. Kopacko
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Wednesday
Time:12:00 PM
Title:Wide World of Sports
Description:Hi, my name is Matt Kopacko. I am a sophomore electrical engineer. I am from Irwin, PA and attended Penn Trafford High School. It is located about 45 minutes east of Pitt’s campus.

This seminar is for the active sport fanatics out there. If you like to be outside running around and playing games, this is the seminar for you. We will be playing a wide variety of different games. We will play games outside while the weather is nice, such as football and Frisbee. We will move to some indoor games, like basketball and pool when the weather turns. No matter what we do, this will be a good way to relieve some stress and just relax for a bit.

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Thursday11:00 am - 12:00 pmBenedum 669

Joshua L. Laskey
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Friday
Time:12:00 PM
Title:All-In!
Description:Play a lot of poker? Win some? Lose some? Know when to hole ‘em, or just can’t force yourself to fold ‘em? I know how you feel. You’ll have the opportunity to play No Limit Texas Hold ‘Em, Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, 7-Card Stud, and Razz. Don’t know what those are? No problem! Suggest your own game. Either way, get ready for an exciting round of betting!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Thursday9:00 am - 10:00 amBenedum 669

Craig A. Lehocky
Bioengineering
Sophomore
Day:Friday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:So... Whatcha wanna do?
Description:This seminar is for anyone who, like myself, has a 2 minute attention span and becomes bored with things quite easily. To remain as far from monotony as possible, we will choose a different activity to do each week. Whether it be rock climbing at Trees Hall, board games, museum visits, adventures through Oakland, pie eating contests, nature hikes, or intellectual discussions in search of truth within the pop/soda debate, if you want to do it, we’ll do it

Pre-requisites: An open mind, creativity

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday10:00 am - 11:00 amBenedum 669

Ashley M. Leonzio
Industrial Engineering
Junior
Day:Monday
Time:4:00 PM
Title:Sports N'Nat
Description:If yinz guys like sports and games, dis seminar is fer you. We’ll play football, soccer, baseball n’ any other games ya want. We’ll also get yinz guys familiar with da Burgh. Maybe a trip to da Carnegie Science Center or to see the Buco’s would do the trick. So if you like to have fun, play sports n’nat, then dis seminar is exactly whatcha lookin fer. Even if yur from da Burgh, this seminar will be tons of fun, so sign up today!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Monday2:00 pm - 4:00 pmBenedum 669

Amy L. McCarty
Bioengineering
Sophomore
Day:Monday
Time:12:00 PM
Title:Game Time
Description:As a freshman engineering student, you’re going to find that you don’t have much time to relax. Once a week we’ll get together and do just that. We’ll play games- inside or outside dependent on the weather. We can play soccer, frisbee (though I’m not very good), or whatever you guys decide. If it rains, as is typical of Pittsburgh, we’ll stay inside and play board games (think Pictionary or Boggle).
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Monday4:00 pm - 6:00 pmBenedum B-80

Amy  M. McNeal
Bioengineering
Senior
Day:Tuesday
Time:4:00 PM
Title:I am on my Own
Description:“Concern for mankind himself and his fate must always form the chief interest of all technical endeavors…never forget that in the midst of your diagrams and equations.”
-Albert Einstein

“Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true.”
-Homer Simpson

Imagine: You walk into your dorm and your parents help you move everything in and perhaps mom even insists on helping to unpack. You finally get them out the door and there you stand, finally on your own. Then it hits you, "I'm on my own!" Do you know how to cook a healthy meal with only a microwave, can you successfully do your laundry? These things may seem trivial, but there is often more to it than most freshmen bargain for. In this seminar you will learn the secrets to gourmet microwave cooking, how to make your dorm room feel a little more "homey" and basic tips for those everyday chores... like laundry.

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Thursday9:00 am - 10:00 amBenedum B-80

Melissa M. Neely
Mechanical Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Monday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Puzzled!
Description:Do you enjoy puzzles? Logic puzzles, jigsaw puzzles, or games that can throw you for a loop? This is the seminar for you! Here we will put together jigsaw puzzles, do logic puzzles, and play games like Mindtrap and Clue. If you like to use your imagination and figure out puzzles, this the place for you!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday2:00 pm - 3:00 pmBenedum 669

Chris D. Nguyen
Industrial Engineering
Junior
Day:Tuesday
Time:3:00 PM
Title:Sports and Other Sweet Activities
Description:IF you choose my seminar, I will “make all your wildest dreams come true!” Maybe not, but we will sure have a lot of fun. My objective is to show you newbies some fun, energetic activities that we can do around campus, such as frisbee on the Cathedral Lawn, basketball in Bellefield, working out at the Pete and swimming at Trees. I will also provide personal guidance through the madness that is Freshman Year. So if you want someone to help you get off your ass, pick this seminar!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Wednesday12:00 pm - 1:00 pmBenedum 669

Julia M. O'Rourke
Mechanical Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Thursday
Time:3:00 PM
Title:Julia O's Variety Show
Description:If you want to explore Oakland, become better accustomed to Pittsburghian culture, and pick up some ideas for fun rainy-day activities, you will really enjoy this variety show/ seminar. Every week we’ll meet for an hour to explore a new facet of college life in Pittsburgh. What we will do is dependent on the weather and student interest, but could include: learning how to bake a birthday cake in a microwave, finding the hidden playground in Schenly park, getting library cards at the Carnegie, make a rainy-day activities kit for your dorm room, watching Wonder Boys which was filmed in Pittsburgh, doing some Andy Warhol-inspired art, going sledding on dining hall trays, and visiting restaurants in Oakland.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Monday10:00 am - 11:00 amBenedum B-80

Brad D. Pferdehirt
Chemical and Petroleum Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Wednesday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:In Over Your Head Yet?
Description:As you know or will soon find out, engineering students are busy. Our first semester is spent running around constantly. This seminar section is dedicated to taking some time off. It will be a chance for the group to relax and hanging out, while getting work done. We will eat, listen to music, and discuss any problems that have come up. During the sessions we will focus on getting work done without getting burnt out. Suggestions for activities are also welcome.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Wednesday2:00 pm - 3:00 pmBenedum 669

Kevin M. Shaffer
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Monday
Time:1:00 PM
Title:Teenage Mutant Ninja Engineers
Description:Hey everybody! Welcome to college! I’m sure you are looking in here to find a totally radical seminar small group. If ya wanna hang out and watch the ORIGINAL TMNT Episodes for about an hour every week, you know what seminar to sign up for.

Yeah, sure, we’ll talk about college stuff, too (like how to deal with the first round of exams yuck!). But mostly, we are gonna kick back and have a great time. Hope to see ya next fall!

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Wednesday6:00 pm - 8:00 pmBenedum 669

Jobin A. Swedler
Industrial Engineering
Senior
Day:Monday
Time:8:00 PM
Title:Are You Ready For Some Football?
Description:My name is Jobin Swedler and I’m a Senior Industrial Engineer. I’m from Warren, PA and am a huge football fan.

If you’re a huge football fan like me then you’ll love this idea. Every Monday night I’m going to run a seminar where we just all get together and sit around to watch football, sound like a good deal to you? Well if it does then sign up and I’ll be seeing you every Monday night in the fall for some football.

Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Tuesday2:00 pm - 3:00 pmBenedum 669

Peter J. Tipton
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Monday
Time:6:00 PM
Title:Relax!
Description:Thrilled about going to college, but still have a few butterflies over completely new surroundings, starting a new social life, making new friends, or being an engineer? Don’t worry! This seminar is for you. Once a week we will meet in a friendly, laid-back environment and do a variety of activities such as exploring Oakland, playing sports, going to a restaurant, watching a movie, playing poker, visiting a museum, etc. The direction of the group is quite flexible and will attempt to accommodate everyone’s interests. So if you want to relax and do random activities, sign up!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Wednesday3:00 pm - 4:00 pmBenedum 669

Keith S. Turner
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Junior
Day:Thursday
Time:11:00 AM
Title:Ultimate Frisbee
Description:If you feel like getting outside and playing a rousing game of Ultimate Frisbee, then this seminar has your name written all over it. With all of that time spent doing boring Engineering work and being stuck behind your computer, this is an awesome opportunity to get outside for a little bit each week. It will also help keep off those freshman 15, that you’ll earn from those other extracurricular activities. You’ll meet a bunch of other freshman that have the same interest as you, and let’s face it, if you’re not in this group, you’re not cool. So sign up for Ultimate Frisbee if you want to have fun, and be cool.
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Wednesday12:00 pm - 1:00 pmBenedum 669

Greg A. Wunderley
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Junior
Day:Tuesday
Time:3:00 PM
Title:Fun and Games
Description:Who doesn't like playing games? If you don't, then this is not the seminar for you. But if you like playing games and hanging out, then join this seminar for fun and relaxation. Join mentor Greg Wunderley as we will play a variety of games and activities and try to take our minds off of classes and relieve stress. Also Greg will teach you about college life and try to help you adjust to your first semester. So join this seminar to have fun (and maybe learn something new) in your first semester of college!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Thursday2:30 pm - 4:00 pmBenedum B-80

Jessica A. Yeager
Materials Science Engineering
Sophomore
Day:Thursday
Time:4:00 PM
Title:Culture Shock!!!
Description:So I'm sure you all know a lot about the great sports in Pittsburgh, but what you might not know is that not only are we a very athletic town, we are also a very cultural one! In this seminar we're going to discover some of those attractions, so if you're into the arts this seminar is for you!
Office Hours
DayTimeRoom
Monday10:00 am - 11:00 amBenedum 669

Benedum Hall

Dedicated in 1971, Benedum Hall is home to exploration and discovery.

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