---

Walter J. Saukin, Ph.D., associate professor of civil and
environmental engineering.
@MANHATTANEDU / INSTAGRAM

---

Sarah Rolka, Asst. Features Editor

The School of Engineering at Manhattan University (MU) has built and solidified its culture in NYC over the last 134 years, starting in 1892.

Just 39 years after the school’s founding in 1853, professors, students and alumni have since built a culture that upholds the legacy of the program. MU’s engineering students recall a community shaped by a rigorous curriculum, where shared experiences of hard work pay off.

Mario Ballard, senior mechanical engineering major, president of Tau Beta Pi and treasurer of Mini Baja, briefly recounts his time in the mechanical engineering program.

“It’s been difficult, but it’s been fulfilling,” Ballard said. “You know that it’s going to be hard, but you’re in for the long run. The further you get in classes, the more you connect with the people that are in [them]… there’s definitely more of a community the further along you go [on] and it helps you through the process.”

Paul Harrison, a senior electrical engineering major and president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) chapter, described how the students and faculty around him over the past four years have shaped his time in the electrical engineering program.

“My engineering experience in general has been very personal,” Harrison said. “Starting off freshman year… things might seem a little distant and you don’t know what your crowd is going to be for the next four years. But going right into your sophomore year, you feel like you have a personal connection with your professors and the student body that you’re surrounded with.”

Kathryn Jablokow, dean of the School of Engineering, commented that the academic culture has become increasingly focused on “degree and grades,” but she supports Ballard’s and Harrison’s emphasis on personal connection and hopes to nurture it as the program grows.

“[MU] went through a difficult period a few years ago,” Jablokow said. “When an organization goes through a challenging period like that, people become more cautious and careful. Sometimes [they] can become more focused on numbers… my job as the dean is to ensure that we remain true to our mission, that we remain true to that holistic, nurturing environment, which is what a Lasallian [university] is supposed to be.”

For many students, those bonds extend beyond the classroom into the engineering department’s societies and clubs. Groups such as the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AiChE), the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), IEEE, the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) and Mini Baja feed students’ “hunger” for hands-on work and bring them closer together.

Harrison described his time in IEEE and his rise into a leadership role as a chance to make a difference for the engineering student population. He explained that when he first arrived at the university, he wished he had found that kind of leadership, a program there for students at the very start of their journey.

“I wanted to try and make a difference when it came to the engineering student body and the involvement of everyone in terms of increasing skills they can learn for industry,” Harrison said. “I remember when I was a freshman and had no idea what jobs I could actually get as an electrical engineer or computer engineer, and I really wish I had mentors and a community that would be there for me.”

Gianni Coppeto, senior mechanical engineering major, president of Mini Baja and member of ASME discussed the hands-on, “tactile” experience Mini Baja offers that students may not always find in the classroom.

“The mechanical engineering labs… have that tactile experience with what’s in front of you to better understand the system to better write the report,” Coppeto said. “That yearning for more physical understanding and then translating it into [Mini] Baja where we are fabricating a car… from the ground up… It’s really allowed us to go deeper and bridge that gap between the technician and the engineer.”

In addition to that community of students’ experiences together, there has been the impact of faculty on the school community as a whole.

Alum Gregory Etienne ‘11, ‘12, graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering, and now works as a pre-construction manager at Urban Atelier Group. He spoke about his time at MU and touched on how faculty helped apply what they learned in the classroom to industry.

“There was a feeling that our teachers were well informed on practical engineering,” Etienne said. “They really helped us bridge the gap between theory and what happens in the real world.”

Salma Saadat-Robak ‘05, ‘10, a senior purchasing agent at Hunter Roberts Construction Group, recalled a professor whose influence has stayed with her from her time at MU through her career: Moujalli Hourani ‘81, Ph.D., an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering.

“He has a reputation; he was tough, but he’s very smart,” Saadat-Robak said. “He was like a role model to me. He was an immigrant coming to the United States, went to college, got his Ph.D., got a job. He was like a father figure. I think he treated every person like his own child, every individual.”

Hourani voiced some of his teaching ethos that he has carried throughout his career.

“My objective for you [students] is to be a great human being who happens to be studying engineering,” Hourani said. “We should go to that human being, to his soul, and work with them… You met them for four years, you worked with them for four years and we have in every class; the good, the bad and ugly… And this is why they are a part of your life, like it or not.”

Many other professors have carried on the School of Engineering’s reputation over its history. One of them, Walter Saukin, Ph.D., a professor of civil and environmental engineering, taught at MU for nearly five decades up until the fall 2026 semester, before his passing on Oct. 31, 2026. Students across campus have recalled his influence on the culture of the school and on them personally.

Marissa Mongon, senior civil engineering major with a minor in environmental engineering and president of ASCE, commented on her first experiences with Saukin even before committing to MU.

“It was good to see how much he cared,” Mongon said. “He’s walking on the street talking to random people. He didn’t even know that I originally had any interest in engineering or anything but he just came up and he was talking about how much he loves MU and all. I just feel like that’s a testament to show how much the engineering department as a whole cares about the students.”

Olivia Mansour, senior chemical engineering major and president of AiChE, added her thoughts on Saukin’s passion regarding what he did and his impact on culture at the school of engineering.

“The best thing that I can say about the culture is, it’s the people,” Mansour said. “It’s sad because Saukin just passed away, but he was like a big driver for the engineering school. You weren’t an engineering student here if you didn’t interact with him, and he made it seem so exciting, and something that you’d want to do and you got approached by him [and] that was it, you were coming here.”

Over the last century, the School of Engineering has left its mark on New York City and on the graduates who have come through MU since its founding in 1853. Yet students and alumni say it is the people and their shared experiences that have made the school what it is today.