University of New BrunswickGeodesy and Geomatics Engineering

GGE Home

Alumni/ae News

Celebrating the Class of 1969

GGE Grad Alumnus Authors Book on GIS

Michael Sutherland and Y.C. Kok Meet Up in Kuala Lumpur

Some New Alberta Land Surveyors

Jill Cheverie Makes News in Saskatchewan

The Big Green Bus

UNB Alumni/ae Meet in Athens

Dr. Y. C. Lee Memorial Scholarship

UNB Alumnus and Former Professor, Authors Book on GPS

Costas Armenakis President of ISPRS Commission IV

GGE (SE) 40th Anniversary Reunion

ION Meeting Becomes Reunion Time

Rocky Mountain High

Former Students at Retirement Dinner

Retirement Revisited

Komjathy Awarded Governor General's Gold Medal

Adam Chrzanowski and David Wells Retire

Who Hires Our Graduates?

John McLaughlin - Fifty Years Young

CIG Fredericton Branch December 1996 Paper Competition

Retirement Party for Theresa Pearce


Celebrating the Class of 1969

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Surveying Engineering's Class of 1969, the three Canadians in the class attended a dinner at John McLaughlin's home to mark the occasion, together with spouses and other guests.

Click on the thumbnail image to look at photos taken during the celebration.

Back to the top of the page


GGE Grad Alumnus Authors Book on GIS

"Rj" Zimmer, who obtained his M.Eng. degree in UNB's Department of Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering, has published GIS for Surveyors: A Land Surveyor's Introduction to Geographic Information Systems.

The book, written by a surveyor for surveyors, explains how surveyors use geographic information systems (GIS) technologies to support land surveying activities and how GIS helps surveyors work more effectively and efficiently. Additionally, the book covers how surveyors support GIS data development, integrity, and spatial accuracy. GIS concepts, overviews, and specific examples are presented on a variety of topics relevant to land surveying.

Mr. Zimmer is a registered professional land surveyor and geomatics consultant located in Helena, Montana. He has written for The American Surveyor magazine, the Surveying and Land Information Systems journal, and Professional Surveyor magazine.

The book can be obtained from Amazon.ca in Canada and Amazon.com in the U.S.

Back to the top of the page


Michael Sutherland and Y.C. Kok Meet Up in Kuala Lumpur

Two GGE alumni, Michael Sutherland (M.Sc.E. 1995; Ph.D. 2005) and Y.C. Kok (B.Sc.E. 2001), met up at the combined 11th South-east Asian Survey Congress and the 13th International Surveyors' Congress, held at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, between 22 and 24 June 2011.

Click on the thumbnail image to get a better look.

Back to the top of the page


Some New Alberta Land Surveyors

On April 23, 2009, John Broderick (B.Sc.E. 2005), Rosalind (Bobbitt) Broderick (B.Sc.E. 2004), Andrew Hall (B.Sc.E. 2005), and LeMont Edwards (B.Sc.E. 2005) were officially wecomed as new Alberta Land Surveyors at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel during the Alberta Land Surveyors 100th AGM.

Click on the thumbnail image to get a better look.

Back to the top of the page


Jill Cheverie Makes News in Saskatchewan

Cheverie Jill Cheverie graduated from Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering in the spring of 2004. Since then, she has been working with Midwest Surveys Inc. in Maple Creek Saskatchewan. Jill made headlines recently when, on August 13, she became the first woman to hold the commission of Saskatchewan Land Surveyor.

"It is a great honour for me to receive this commission and I truly appreciate all the support and encouragement that I have received through both the academic phase of my learning at the University of New Brunswick, as well as the hands-on practical phase with Midwest Surveys in Maple Creek" said Ms. Cheverie.

See the Regina Leader-Post article for more.

Congratulations Jill.

Back to the top of the page


The Big Green Bus
by LeMont Edwards

In 2001 I applied to UNB's Geodesy and Geomatics program. One day I received a call from Dr. Secord: "School starts in 10 days, can you be here?" So being the economical person I am, I compared the price of a U-Haul© to buying a bus. The bus won out.

More ...

Back to the top of the page


UNB Alumni/ae Meet in Athens

Emeritus Prof. David Wells met with a number of former UNB graduate students in April 2005 during a trip to Athens, Greece.

Click on the thumbnail image to see photos taken during the event.

Back to the top of the page


Dr. Y. C. Lee Memorial Scholarship

Value: $1,000.00. Number: 1. Duration: 1 year.

Conditions: Awarded to a Fredericton campus student enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Engineering (Geomatics Engineering) degree program, who has shown special interest and promise in the study of geographic information systems.

Awarding Agency: The University on the recommendation of the Department of Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering.

Donor: Family and friends of the late Dr. Y. C. Lee, Ph.D., P.Eng., who was a faculty member of the Department of Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering.

Anyone wishing to contribute to this scholarship can contact Dominic Blakely with the Office of Development and Donor Relations at 506-458-7368, or 506-471-0735, or 506-453-5053. You can also e-mail the development office or Dominic Blakely directly.

Click on the thumbnail image to get a better look, 31 KB.

Back to the top of the page


UNB Alumnus and Former Professor, Authors Book on GPS

Dr. Ahmed El-Rabbany, an honorary research associate and alumnus (Ph.D. 1994) of UNB, has published a new book on GPS, Introduction to GPS: The Global Positioning System. As stated by Mobile Communications Series (2002)*:
This one-of-a-kind resource delivers an up-to-date, easy-to-understand treatment of the Global Positioning System (GPS), without the use of advanced mathematics. It addresses all aspects of GPS, emphasizes GPS applications, examines the GPS signal structure, and covers the key types of measurement being utilized in the field today.

Introduction to GPS: The Global Positioning System includes an in-depth discussion on the errors and biases that affect GPS measurements, along with guidance on how to overcome them. Moreover, the book shows how GPS can be used for a number of different accuracy levels. Datums, coordinate systems, and map projections are discussed in a simple manner, offering a clear understanding of this widely misunderstood area. This unique reference also examines the integration of GPS with other systems, and looks at future GPS modernization. Over 75 illustrations help clarify major topics throughout the book.

Dr El-Rabbany is an assistant professor at Ryerson University in Toronto, Ontario.

*Mobile Communications Series (2002). Introduction to GPS: The Global Positioning System. Artech House Publishers, Boston, 196 pages.

Back to the top of the page


Costas Armenakis President of ISPRS Commission IV

A news item appeared recently on Costas Armenakis (M.Sc.E. 1983; Ph.D. 1988) in the Geomatics Canada annual review publication. As stated under "International Activities" [Natural Resources Canada, 2000, p. 23]:
Dr. Costas Armenakis of Mapping Services Branch (MSB) became the new President of Commission IV: Spatial Information Systems and Digital Mapping of the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) in July 2000 for the period from 2000 to 2004.

ISPRS is a well-known non-governmental organization, devoted to fostering global co-operation for the advancement of photogrammetry, remote sensing and spatial information sciences, and to contributing to environmental sustainability.

Natural Resources Canada (2000). "Canadian geomatics expertise recognized." Geomatics Canada 2000-2001, Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 32 pp.

Click on the thumbnail image to go to the ISPRS Commission IV Web page.

Back to the top of the page


ION Meeting Becomes Reunion Time

During the recent Institute of Navigation National Technical Meeting, held in Long Beach, California, between 22 and 24 January 2001, a number of current UNB faculty and staff met with former students. (Attila Komjathy photo, January 2001)

Click on the thumbnail image to get a better look, 29 KB.

Back to the top of the page


Rocky Mountain High

Between 17 and 20 October 2000, Sue Nichols was in Boulder, Colorado, to meet with Katie Komjathy, one of her M.Sc.E. students. The photo shows Attila (Ph.D. 1997), Katie, and David Komjathy. Attila is a research associate with the Colorado Center for Astrodynamics Research at the University of Colorado. He is working on the potential of surface-reflected GPS signals for various applications such as wind speed and soil moisture information retrieval. Katie is completing her land studies degree part-time with Sue Nichols, and they are currently working on developing guidelines for improving women's rights to land. David was born in December 1999 and promises to be a great geomatician. (Sue Nichols photo, October 2000)

Click on the thumbnail image to get a better look, 27 KB.

Back to the top of the page


Former Students at Retirement Dinner

Gathered in Kaduna, Nigeria, are eight former students, celebrating the retirement of Wasiu Salisu.

Click on the thumbnail image to get a better look, 31 KB.

Back to the top of the page


Retirement Revisited

Why are we still talking about the retirements of Adam Chrzanowski, David Wells, and Noreen Bonnell? Because retirement events just keep going, and going, and going (similar to that very obnoxious bunny). This should be, however, the end of the business.

Click on the thumbnail image to look at some pictures taken during the festivities, 276 KB.

Back to the top of the page


Komjathy Awarded Governor General's Gold Medal

Former graduate student, Attila Komjathy, has won UNB's 1998 Governor General's Gold Medal for academic excellence in graduate studies. Attila returned to Fredericton to pick up the award, and to give a special lecture on "Application of GPS as a New Remote Sensing Tool: Retrieval of Ocean Surface Wind Speed." The subject of his Ph.D. thesis is "Global Ionospheric Total Electron Content Mapping Using the Global Positioning System." This thesis has been made into departmental technical report No. 188.

Click on the thumbnail image to look at some pictures taken during Attila's visit, 128 KB.

Back to the top of the page


retire (ri tïr') v. -tired, -tiring. 1 give up an office, occupation, etc. 2 remove from an office, occupation, etc. 3 go away, especially to be quiet. 4 withdraw; draw back; send back. 5 go back; retreat.*

Retire is what Adam Chrzanowski and David Wells were supposed to have done as of 30 June 1998: Adam after 34 years of service (he became a part-time lecturer at UNB in 1964), and David after 18 years (having arrived in 1980).

Although Adam has given up the teaching end of his career, he is still deeply involved in research and is supervising a tidy parcel of graduate students. David, however, will still be teaching his usual load of hydrography courses and supervising his graduate students. Wells took definition number 3 above literally and 2 days after retiring left for the United States, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, and Australia. Now that's retirement!!

We wish them both well in this new phase of their lives, and are gratified to know that they will still be familiar faces in the corridors of the department.

Click on the thumbnail image to look at a couple of photos taken during a get-together to mark the occasion, 37 KB.

*Avis, W.S., P. D. Drysdale, R. J. Gregg, V. E. Neufeldt, and M. H. Scargill (1983). Gage Canadian Dictionary. Gage Educational Publishing Company, Toronto, p. 962.

Back to the top of the page


Who Hires Our Graduates?

Want to know what UNB's GGE BScE(GGE), MScE, MEng, and PhD graduates do? Where they work? Where they travel? We've compiled a list of links that will take you to the Web pages of organizations in Canada and around the world where our alumni/ae now work or have worked in the past.

UNB GGE Graduates:
If you don't find your organization's name here, send us a note, let us know where you're working right now, and send along the URL of your organization's WWW page for us to add to the list.

Back to the top of the page


John McLaughlin - Fifty Years Young

John McLaughlin was warmly welcomed to the Half Century Club in March 1997 with a surprise birthday party.

Click on the thumbnail image to go to the party page, 77 KB.

Back to the top of the page


CIG Fredericton Branch December 1996 Paper Competition

Eight senior surveying engineering undergraduates presented their technical reports in a paper competition on 3 December 1996, sponsored by the Fredericton Branch of the Canadian Institude of Geomatics. The branch chair, Wayne Walsh [BScE(SE), 1986], officiated with judging by several branch members, including Norman Coté and Stephen Hartley [both BScE(SE), 1981].

Click on the thumbnail image for details, 31 KB.

Back to the top of the page


Retirement Party for Theresa Pearce

On 19 October 1996, Theresa's family, friends, and colleagues gathered at the Alumni Memorial Building to wish Theresa a happy retirement. Although Theresa had officially retired on 30 June, many of her well-wishers were then off on their travels, and October was the only time a majority of faculty and staff could be in town.

Click on the thumbnail image to go to the party page.

Back to the top of the page