Tamerate Tadesse is a SCADA automation engineer but started his career as an airport taxi driver.
“I like to talk to people, I like to ask questions,” says Tadesse, a 2015 electrical engineering graduate. One day, Tadesse gave Peter Desloge, chairman and CEO of Watlow Electric Manufacturing Co., a ride to his home.
After seeing Tadesse’s adapted laptop charger, Desloge inquired about Tadesse’s hobbies and plans for the future. Tadesse told Desloge he has always enjoyed fixing things, especially electronics. Desloge encouraged Tadesse to pursue engineering, and even shared some of his own experience with his cab driver.
“Something clicked in my mind,” he says. “It was kind of a miracle for me.” The chance experience encouraged Tadesse to further his education and study engineering at S&T. He still keeps Desloge’s business card in his wallet for good luck.
Share This Story
Spark a Memory?
Share your story! Fill out the form below to share your fondest memory or anecdote of S&T. If you'd prefer not typing, you can also share by phone at 833-646-3715 (833-Miner150).
Year after year, the ‘Best Ever’
Since George Menefee first donned a bishop’s hat and robe and rode a rail handcar into Rolla on March 17,…
John and Kristie (Capps) Gibson
After a basketball game in February 1973, John Gibson and a friend went to a party at TJ Hall where…
Chase Barnes and Auburn Meister
Chase Barnes met Auburn Meister during Opening Week in August 2015 at his fraternity, Sigma Phi Epsilon. “We kept hanging…
Sudha Sneha Devarakonda and Karthik Kumar
After Sudha Sneha Devarakonda and Karthik Kumar met through a mutual friend, they kept running into each other on the…
Leslie Bixler and Matt Bubenheim
Leslie Bixler and Matt Bubenheim met in a physics demonstration on the first day of Opening Week in August 2014….
‘Who is Ilene Morgan?’
If “third time’s a charm” were a category on the quiz show Jeopardy!, then “Who is Dr. Ilene Morgan?” might…