Jan double-majored in mathematics and computer science.  She worked a few years as a programmer, and then raised their four children. She later earned a teaching credential and taught math in a Catholic grade school for a number of years. Bob majored in electrical engineering at UD, later earning a master’s degree from USC, and a Ph.D. from Stanford. He has owned his own business for over 35 years and has worked as an expert witness in patent litigations. 

According to Bob, "we are both retired but Jan stays busy with exercising, talking to her grandchildren by FaceTime and working with middle schoolers in an after-school math club. I am involved in Boy Scouts and love to camp with my scouts and help them earn their catholic religious emblems. We also love to travel and camp with our little camper. We returned from a memorable pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

What we really love about Ethos is that it combines two great opportunities for UD students. First, it gives students the opportunity to help people in different environments or cultures so it provides a way for students to understand the needs of other people and serve them. Second, it gives students practical experience in their field of study which will be very helpful when they apply for their first job after graduation.  Employers see many students who are 'book smart' but who have never applied their education to a real-world situation.  Ethos helps to provide this experience and helps the student stand out to a potential employer. We have seen students who have been transformed by their Ethos experience. By serving others, they put other people before themselves while applying their education to help solve real-world problems.  We think Ethos is an outstanding program and we are happy to support it.”

“I graduated with a bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering in 2019. My 1st Ethos immersion was in Bangalore, India with the SELCO Foundation. My 2nd immersion was to Cochabamba, Bolivia with Energética.

Ethos is close to my heart because it puts students in educational positions they likely would have never found themselves in. Ethos is not just about teaching how to do engineering work or how to function in a different society. To me, Ethos is about making meaningful connections with others and learning how the world can work in ways other than how one learns in the United States. Quite literally, my everyday life is affected by Ethos. I met someone working at SELCO Foundation who recommended that I look into taking a master's degree in a particular program in Sweden. I followed his advice, did that program, and I've been living in Europe ever since. Ethos has taught me to be resilient and accepting in working with other cultures, which has been particularly beneficial in working in Europe.

Ethos is what you make of it. No two Ethos students have the same experience, and that is a beautiful thing. I do think that it is important to realize that Ethos principles do not end when you return from an immersion; it is often most important to bring humanitarian principles back home. From what I've been told, the local Ethos immersions are some of the best because they teach that you don't need to be far from home to get the authentic Ethos experience.”

~ Ryan Kronk

For Tom Tappel ’18, ’21, the best way to learn, lead and serve within the Dayton community was to look to the future — of energy. Tappel graduated from the University of Dayton in 2018, then spent some time working as an engineer. But it wasn’t until a graduate assistantship with The Ethos Center a few years later that Tappel dove into learning everything he could about the household energy burdens disproportionately impacting low-income families around America. He found many of those families live in buildings that were not at all energy-efficient.

“I recognized the need for more investment in this area of sustainability and housing justice,” said Tappel.

His research led to his involvement with the group that is now Dayton Energy Collaborative. As its executive director, Tappel works to find energy retrofit solutions that meet the needs of the Dayton community.

“It hasn't always been clear what the next steps were, and I've definitely taken the long way around a few times, but I'm grateful to have found this work and this life here,” said Tappel.

Tappel also found a unique way to stay connected to his Dayton roots. He’s now the assistant coach of the UD Club women’s ultimate Frisbee team.

“I'm thrilled to be back on Stuart Field in a new capacity, even with 10:30 p.m. practices on Wednesdays,” said Tappel.

The Ethos Center has been working to connect with alumni through different international service opportunities. Since launching the initiative in August of 2017, School of Engineering alumni, mainly alumni of Ethos Center international immersions, have successfully completed two breakout trips — one to Antigua, Guatemala, and another to Quito, Ecuador.

In January 2018, a group of 15 participated in the first Ethos Alumni breakout to Antigua, Guatemala. The group connected with Commission to Every Nation, an existing Ethos partner, to work on the design and construction of an aquaponics system for use in a nearby, rural community. The Aquaponics system simultaneously raises fish while growing and maintaining crops. These systems are useful in agricultural communities and provide a sustainable method for raising crops. While in Guatemala, the group also improved an existing activated carbon water filtration system used in the greater Antigua area.

In August 2018, a group of 8 participated in the second Ethos Alumni breakout to Quito, Ecuador. The Ethos Center connected the group to Fundacion Ingenieros en Accion (FIEA), a beneficiary of the American run organization Engineers in Action (EIA). The intent of this partnership is to work over time to develop and implement projects within the same community and create lasting relationships between alumni and community members. During this first trip, participants spent the majority of their time collecting information about the existing water collection, treatment and distribution system that provides water to 55 homes within Ambuela, Ecuador (about 2 hours outside Quito). The group conducted home surveys and examined the system in order to make recommendations for system improvements.

This travel group is finalizing their recommendations report and developing next steps for project implementation — the first of which is likely improving current water treatment mechanisms to be able to provide clean water to the community at their source. Because the water in the community is not drinkable, they have to purchase water from Quito at this time. In the meantime, the Ethos Center is looking to engage alumni in the project development process as well as fundraising efforts for project implementation. If you are interested in being a part of the Ethos Alumni team, please reach out to the Ethos Center at Ethos@udayton.edu.