"I did dream about it"
1988 Ross Award winner Howard Halderman thought he had no shot at the
award, either.
"Knowing how many great and talented students Purdue graduates
every year, I just said to myself, 'well, you might as well forget about
that award.' I really didn't think I was a leading candidate, although,
I must admit, I did dream about it."
The winner receives a medal, a citation, his name inscribed on the
award marker on the Engineering Mall, and, most important to Hasse,
a check for $500.
"That money came just in time to pay my taxes," remembers
Hasse, who now is a Peace Corps volunteer in El Salvador.
Winning the 1982 Ross Award made Turner a hero in his daughter's eye,
18 years after the fact.
When the outcome of the 2000 Purdue-Kent State football game was no
longer in doubt (the Boilers won 45-10), the Turner family left Ross-Ade
Stadium and walked to the Engineering Mall to see the plaque that honors
Ross Award winners.
"I held my daughter, Carly, up so she could touch the letters
of my name," says Turner. "She said, 'Gee, dad, I didn't know
you were so important.'"
Eric Steiner headed for the same monolith as soon as he heard the news
he had won the 2002 Ross Award.
"I looked at all the previous winners," says Steiner, "and
wow, I was stunned. These were people I have looked up to my whole life."
Certainly, winning the Ross Award bathes the winner in a bright light
of recognition. The award not only honors students for what they have
already accomplished, but alerts others to keep an eye on this guy in
the future.
"I feel like I am walking in the shadows of greatness when I tell
people I am a Purdue graduate and a Ross Award winner," Jackson
says. "There are scores of people who have set a standard of excellence
I hope to achieve in my career. Sure, winning the Ross Award puts some
pressure on you, but it is a pressure that motivates you to achieve
great things in your career."
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