UB Professor Remembered Through Family Gift for Engineering Scholarships

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- John Zahorjan, a Fisher-Price industrial engineering executive who "retired" to his first love of teaching at the University at Buffalo, has been remembered by his family through a $260,000 pledge to UB's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

His son, John Zahorjan, has established the Dr. John Zahorjan Student Scholarship Fund to support students in the Department of Industrial Engineering pursuing a master's degree in engineering management with a concentration in production management.

"My father's enjoyment of life came from helping others," a feeling reciprocated by "the scores of former students, fellow faculty, professional associates and friends who offered condolences and contributions" following his father's death, Zahorjan said.

Zahorjan, touched by those warm feelings toward his father, added: "That I have the great and unusual fortune to possess the means and the desire to create this lasting shadow of my father is due entirely to the man he was, and so in a very real sense it is he himself reaching out."

Proud of her son and his desire to create a lasting memory of his father through the scholarship, Madeline Zahorjan noted, "My husband loved teaching and helping the students discover their own worth. John always felt that education was the best inheritance anyone could give to a young person."

The Department of Industrial Engineering expects to name the first Zahorjan scholarship recipient this year. The endowment will provide $12,000 per year to help with tuition and fees for the master's program, enough to fund more than one scholarship winner annually.

Mark H. Karwan, dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, praised Zahorjan, adding: "This is a wonderful way to honor a much-beloved teacher.

"While a gift like this certainly can't replace the leadership, faculty and student mentorship, and humor of our colleague, it can help us carry on his legacy of excellence and his patient pursuit of making engineering a practical and daily part of manufacturing management."

Zahorjan, an adjunct professor of industrial engineering at the time of his death in 1999, received the Dean's Award for Engineering Achievement that same year, in recognition of his career, teaching and dedication to advising students in the practice of engineering.

Zahorjan began his career in 1950 at RCA, and subsequently moved on to Magnavox, to F.W. Sickles Co., to Phillips Control Corp. and to the John Oster Co., part of Sunbeam Corp. In 1964, he joined Fisher-Price Toys as the company's first licensed professional engineer and was responsible for modernizing quality control. Rising through the executive ranks to oversee major expansions in plant operations, Zahorjan still found time to earn his doctorate from UB in 1979.

In 1983, he retired as vice president of operations at Fisher-Price, and began an extensive career as a consultant and a faculty member at UB.

In addition to teaching, Zahorjan ran the internship program for undergraduates in industrial engineering, soliciting projects, matching projects to student needs and mentoring the progress of the students.

He also used his management and consulting expertise to help create The Center for Industrial Effectiveness (TCIE) at UB. Under his guidance, TCIE received "Project of the Year" awards in 1989 and 1991 from the National Association of Management and Technical Assistance Centers.

Madeline Zahorjan lives in Orchard Park and her son is a professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington.

The family gift is part of UB's $250 million campaign, the largest ever conducted by a public university in New York and New England. Although it is the fifth major fund-raising campaign conducted by UB, it is the first national/international campaign, the first university-wide campaign and the first to be alumni-driven with campaign volunteer leaders from all over the country. Funds raised will be used to enrich academic programs, support students ranging from undergraduates to post-doctoral students and to enhance university life.

Friends and former students of John Zahorjan who wish to contribute to the scholarship fund may contact the SEAS Development Office at 716-645-2133 ext. 1122 or Jim Seng at seng@buffalo.edu.

For information on how you can support the University at Buffalo, go to http://www.buffalo.edu/giving.