RBC Alumna One of a Select Group of Women in TCNJ Electrical Engineering Program

As one of only five women in the Electrical Engineering program at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), Red Bank Catholic 2014 graduate Karley Hildin is deeply involved in her studies and excited to be at TCNJ. Karley states that “the engineering program at TCNJ is both challenging and rewarding and I am genuinely grateful for the opportunity to be a part of it.”

Karley recalls how she discovered her interest in engineering while she was a student at RBC, primarily because of what she learned from one her teachers. “One of my favorite teachers was Mr. Lutz. He played a very important role in my decision to study engineering.” As she looks back, Karley realizes that the most important decision she made during high school was “to take the engineering class offered by RBC. I knew from early on that I really enjoyed math, but it was not until I took that class that I became interested in applying math to real-life situations. Mrs. Walas and Mr. Lutz did an excellent job of introducing us to the fundamentals of engineering, which ultimately led me to choose it as my major.”

The Introduction to Engineering class at Red Bank Catholic is team taught by Mr. Timothy Lutz and Mrs. Angela Walas. The two teachers developed the college level course curriculum, dedicating the first semester to mechanical engineering taught by Mrs. Walas, and the second semester to electrical engineering taught by Mr. Lutz. In the state-of-the-art engineering classroom, students learn how the apply principles of physics and math to design, build and operate their experiments. As RBC Vice-Principal Mrs. Karen Falco points out: “in the process of this learning, students see the possibilities there are for them if they decide to pursue a career in engineering. They gain practical experience as to what they would be learning as engineering students in college.”

So far, Karley is enjoying the challenges presented by the TCNJ program. “It allows us, as students, to learn through hands-on experiments, and to work with professors who are truly passionate about the field. I find myself becoming more and more interested in my classes every day.”