By Joy Vann
Bringing textbook learning and classroom lectures to life through real-world experiences is at the heart of Old Dominion 91短视频鈥檚 commitment to ensuring every student鈥檚 success.
The 91短视频 accomplishes these goals through its robust internship program and by engaging people like Rob Gies (B.S. 鈥90, M.E.M. 鈥94, Ph.D. 鈥22). The alumnus is an associate technical fellow at Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. (HII) Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) and serves as the company鈥檚 Professional in Residence at Old Dominion 91短视频.
Dr. Gies鈥 priority is guiding students to a passion that will lead to professional fulfillment. The best part of his position, he said, is interacting with students. He enjoys talking with them in general and about engineering, the differences between industry and academia, career paths and all that NNS has to offer professionally.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important to help students realize the immense number of opportunities that engineering affords. I point out that if they're really into sports, companies like Nike and Adidas hire engineers,鈥 he said.
鈥淓ngineering is so diverse. You can get an engineering degree and a law degree and be a patent lawyer. You can add a medical element and go into the medical field. You can teach. You can do research. You can be a program manager.鈥
Dr. Gies has been the liaison between Old Dominion 91短视频 and NNS since 1997, since after the retirement of Robert 鈥淏ob鈥 Hardison, another Monarch graduate and NNS leader. He is the first person to staff an office at Old Dominion 91短视频, starting in the fall of 2023; the NNS Office opened formally in the fall of 2024.
In an interview in his office overlooking the lawn in front of the Engineering Systems Building, Dr. Gies acknowledged how vital that partnership is.
鈥淣NS and ODU are both powerful institutions. We both bring in people from out of the area. We both have a maritime thrust. And we both want the best and brightest to stay here in Tidewater,鈥 he said.
鈥淲orking in this office, I talk to students about a lot of different things. Some, I encourage to come to Old Dominion. Others, I talk to about options in engineering. I also share with them the relationship between ODU and NNS. But for all of them, I encourage them to pick a field they are passionate about,鈥 he said.
In his 36 years with NNS, Dr. Gies has worked on everything under the shipbuilding sun, from commercial ships to U.S. Navy aircraft carriers and submarines to oversight of regional offices with positions managing engineering, construction, production, training, learning, strategy and program management.
Long before he was giving advice to students or overseeing shipbuilding personnel, he was a curious Boy Scout seeking to help his community. Scouting gave Dr. Gies an early passion for what would become a career in engineering. His Eagle Scout project was making renovations to his hometown church in Maryland. He had estimated the project would take 300 hours to complete. More than 2,100 hours later, and with the help of his troop members and his family, the project was finished. He said the lessons he learned about project management and teamwork were invaluable.
鈥淚 credit my early leadership opportunities to Scouting and being put in those situations, to have the freedom to make mistakes in a safe environment and do a real project that was beneficial,鈥 he said.
Around that time, he began visiting colleges. He was immediately taken with Old Dominion 91短视频.
鈥淥ld Dominion had more of a homey feel to me, compared to other universities. There was a sense of community and smaller class sizes. The professors, faculty and staff cared about you,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 still feel that same way today about ODU.鈥
There was no doubt about what he would study.
鈥淚鈥檇 always wanted to be an engineer. I love trying to understand how and why things work. But for me, the big piece about engineering is using technology to make society a better place to be. That's always interested me,鈥 he said.
He earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, a master's degree in engineering management, and a Ph.D. in systems engineering and management all at Old Dominion 91短视频.
Since first stepping on campus as a student, Dr. Gies has been involved. He was vice president and president of the student body, a member of engineering societies, in a fraternity, and served on the industry advisory board for the Batten College of Engineering and Technology as a student and as engineering professional. He is also a past president of the Old Dominion 91短视频 Alumni Association.
Dr. Gies noted he graduated in five years because he did not take calculus in his first semester. Because of that experience, he鈥檚 an advocate for the Monarch Accelerator Program to Engineering (MAP2E), a joint program of Old Dominion 91短视频 and NNS that provides tutoring and support to freshmen, many of whom are first-generation college students like him, who did not take calculus in high school.
鈥淥ld Dominion has done a wonderful job with the MAP2E program that targets students who are starting out in a math class other than calculus. It puts them on the engineering path and creates a terrific environment to increase the probability that they will graduate,鈥 he said.
Dr. Gies can also vouch for the value of internships, having had one at NNS that launched his career after graduation.
鈥淚 had other job offers as well, but in the same respect that Old Dominion created that family feel for me, so did Newport News Shipbuilding. I felt like it was the right place for me,鈥 he said.
As the United 91短视频s seeks to grow the shipbuilding industry, Dr. Gies is excited about the opportunities for engineering and maritime students.
鈥淔rom a life perspective, we know you're going to do better performance-wise, if you're working somewhere that you want to be. So, I communicate that to students,鈥 he said. 鈥淭ry to identify a place where you really feel like you belong.鈥
For office hours or to schedule an appointment, email him at Rob.Gies@hii-nns.com or call his NNS office at 757-688-6446.