Carnegie Mellon's Silicon Valley Campus Celebrates Seventh Annual Graduation Ceremonies Aug. 8

August 6, 2009

Contact: Chriss Swaney
Carnegie Mellon University
412.268.5776

PITTSBURGH-Carnegie Mellon University's Silicon Valley campus will host Hitachi Ltd.'s Elizabeth (Liz) King at its seventh annual graduation ceremony Aug. 8 at Moffett Field, Calif.

           
King, vice president and general manager of Hitachi Ltd., will encourage the 50 new software engineering and software management graduates to be open and entrepreneurial.

           
"People need to realize that anything is possible in Silicon Valley where the drive for innovation is ubiquitous," said King, an executive with mechanical engineering and MBA degrees. "It's all about attitude, focus and relevance in today's competitive marketplace."

           
She also said Silicon Valley is the perfect venue to launch, and in some cases, re-launch careers because of the valley's world-class portfolio of experts in technology startups and product development.

           
Alok Rishi, who will receive a master's degree in software management, plans to start his own company this fall.

           
"I was overwhelmed by the expertise and helpfulness of my instructors who hooked me up with venture capitalists and business contacts," said Rishi, who spent 20 years at Sun Microsystems before heading back to school. "I want to innovate as an entrepreneur, and my two years at the Silicon Valley campus has given me just the right toolkit for success," he said.

           
And that drive for success by the class of 2009 is in step with the latest news that the economy is improving. The U.S. economy came out of its tailspin in the second quarter and may be poised to resume growing as business investment cutbacks moderate, according to the U.S. Commerce Department.

           
"We're going to see continued growth in mobile systems, including notebook computers, mobile phones, higher-performance networks, wireless sensors and specialized devices, and we will need innovative leaders like our recent graduates to continue pushing the research envelop for both consumers and industry," said Martin Griss, director of Carnegie Mellon's Silicon Valley campus. 

           
This year's class includes 22 students majoring in software management and 28 in software engineering from the United States, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, India, China, Russia, Mexico and Canada. 

           
Carnegie Mellon Silicon Valley, established in 2002 at Moffett Field, offers full-time and part-time master's degree programs in software engineering, software management, networking, security and mobility, and engineering and technology innovation management.

           
Last fall, the campus launched an associated bi-coastal electrical and computer engineering Ph.D. program focused on mobility, security and networking.