Drive for decades

Of the 38 years of stories collected by Dr. Richard Cohen, retiring associate professor of mechanical engineering, one stands out as an example of engineering problem solving with students. It may have included the Temple Formula Racing team and a fiery mechanical failure.

Though the team now competes in Formula SAE competitions, their first few cars were built for Baja SAE, a competition for small off-road cars. In their very first year, the team designed and built their car in a student’s auto body shop.

As they were leaving for competition—Dr. Cohen was already on his way—a team member attempted to start the car. What followed was a mechanical failure in which the intake and exhaust cam drive system blew apart as if it was an explosion.

The team piled the remnants of the car into a truck and headed to find Dr. Cohen at the competition. From 9 am to midnight, they rebuilt the entire car, even manufacturing some parts on-site. Their work paid off, as they ended up with “one of the best cars there,” according to Dr. Cohen.

The next year, they secured fourth place in the competition.

“It was like figuring out how you're going to run this marathon and running the marathon all in one day,” Cohen reminisced.

Now, as Dr. Cohen eyes retirement, he is establishing a scholarship to support mechanical engineering students who are part of Temple Formula Racing.

The Cohen Scholarship in Mechanical Engineering will be awarded yearly to one student who works hard to dedicate their time to TFR but struggles to balance it with financial demands because committing to such a big project makes it more difficult for students to maintain a job.

As Dr. Cohen recalls, he’s seen too many students drop out of the team because they had to pick up more work to support themselves. He hopes his scholarship provides enough money so that students no longer need to worry about dropping the team for a job anymore, as the team provides invaluable hands-on experience.

“Having these kinds of big projects for students to work on is an outstanding way to get them to become the engineers that we want them to be,” he said. “The camaraderie and the relationships that the students have built over the years have just been so unbelievable along with the knowledge they gained from doing this.”

As he moves on from his role as team advisor, Dr. Alex Pillapakkam is stepping in. For the past few years, Dr. Cohen has been showing him the ropes, and now he is looking forward to staying connected with and mentoring students during his retirement, as well as watching his “very smart” grandson hopefully become a robotics engineer, too.

His scholarship is more than a way to give back. “I’m hoping that what I’m doing is setting the stage for more alumni and faculty to pledge support, as well, so that more students can participate in the club,” Cohen said.