Supporting Future Generations of Chemical Engineers
Deb and Bill Koppes (right) with son Ryan (far left) and daughter-in-law Abigail, both of whom are ChE associate professors.
After their own accomplished engineering careers and having raised two children who are now making their mark in the chemical engineering and chemistry fields, Bill and Deb Koppes decided it was time to help future students experience similar success.
Bill and Deb Koppes instilled a love of learning in their children, particularly for science and engineering. It clearly had an impact. Their son Ryan Koppes is currently an associate professor of chemical engineering at the College of Engineering and their daughter is a chemist, who earned a master’s degree at Northeastern.
To account for this outcome, Deb Koppes jokes that when she tucked her children into bed at night, she would softly whisper in their ears, “Engineering. Science. Engineering. Science.”
While they enjoy telling amusing stories, the couple also strongly believes that a science or engineering education can transform lives and put people on a path to meaningful careers that make positive impacts on society. To underscore this belief, they have made a generous donation to the Department of Chemical Engineering.
The Koppes Family Fund was established through planned giving as an endowed scholarship fund. Scholarship recipients will be selected by the dean of the College of Engineering and must be either graduate or post-graduate students in chemical engineering who are in their thesis or dissertation year.
Deb says they were motivated to support future students because “we felt like there had been so many opportunities for us.”
Both Bill and Deb had long and rewarding careers in engineering 
and they are particularly focused on providing financial support to students who cannot afford a graduate education. Bill was a scholarship recipient when completing a master’s program in electrical engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. “Having experienced it, I understand the benefits of being able to leverage a scholarship,” Bill notes.
He says an engineering education can lead to a vast amount of career choices because many of the core skills that are developed, particularly problem solving and critical thinking, are so widely applicable. “It is great for so many fields,” he says. “You can decide where you want to go.”
Bill and Deb met in the Boston area and lived in various locations, including Pennsylvania, while raising their family. Bill spent the bulk of his career in product development in the medical devices industry, including more than 20 years at Hewlett-Packard. He was also a vice president of research and development at Siemens Healthcare and held leadership roles at two technology startups focused on neurological issues. “I was always most intrigued by the interplay between engineering and biology,” he says.
Deb initially earned an undergraduate degree in elementary education but as she entered the workforce in the 1970s, the job market for teachers had run dry. She returned to school to earn an electrical engineering degree.
“My electrical engineering degree opened up many doors for me,” she says, “but I found out pretty quickly that being strictly an engineer wasn’t for me.”
Instead, Deb blended her education and engineering degrees to craft a successful career in technical training, primarily at computer companies. Along the way, she also found time to volunteer in foster-care programs.
Both retired now, they spend time caring for their first grandchild and are fascinated by the toddler’s wonder of everything around him. They are committed to finding future volunteer opportunities so they may continue to give back.
“What makes people the happiest is not what they get for themselves, but what they give to others,” Bill says. “I feel that’s been my experience.”