Viterbi School Celebrates New Klein Institute for Undergraduate Engineering Life
Holding up a very “cool” black T-shirt, with the definition of KIUEL in white lettering — that’s Viterbi School nomenclature for the Klein Institute for Undergraduate Engineering Life (KIUEL) — alumnus Ken Klein rejoiced with a crowd of engineering students, faculty and administrators in a jubilant courtyard celebration on March 30 that inaugurated his new $8-million institute.
“Thanks to Ken’s support, we have created new and much needed resources, a facility so special that it will set us apart from all other engineering schools,” said Viterbi School Dean Yannis Yortsos, who was the master of ceremonies.
Joining the celebration were some of KIUEL’s key supporters: USC Provost and former Viterbi School Dean C. L. “Max” Nikias; USC’s Vice President for Student Affairs Michael Jackson; Viterbi School Associate Dean of Admission and Student Affairs Louise Yates; members of the Viterbi School Board of councilors, including chairman Jim Baum; and the Klein family.
“Today USC salutes a couple who truly epitomize the concept of KIUEL, Ken and Natalie Klein,” said Nikias. “The Klein Institute is more than an act of generosity; it is an act of vision.
Groundbreaking Program
Jackson praised the school for having the vision and perseverance to design such a groundbreaking program for undergraduate life.
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Dean Yannis Yortsos, left, presents Ken Klein and his wife, Natalie,
with original KIUEL artwork.
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“Great ideas sometimes take a collective effort to mature and develop and be realized, so I want to congratulate you all on the vision that you have for developing this center,” he said.
Before the celebration got under way, Klein, his wife, Natalie, and son, Sean, were escorted to Louise Yates’s office on the first floor of Tutor Hall, where Dean Yortsos unveiled an elegant glass sign bearing the Klein Institute name.
The Trojan Marching Band shadowed the events, stepping out onto the second floor balcony of Tutor Hall at the appropriate moment to salute Klein and the crowd of students.
Speakers underscored the importance of the institute to help facilitate greater community building between students and faculty within the School and throughout campus.
“There is a difference between information and education,” Nikias said. “There is a difference between data and wisdom. Technology can help us educate a student in many ways, but here at USC, President Sample has challenged us to create the best human environment within this technological revolution.”
Defining Experiences
Kellyanne McLachlan, a senior in the Mork Family Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, said her many extracurricular activities, including serving as a trustee scholar and chairwoman of the Viterbi School Student Council, defined her undergraduate experience at USC.
“I’ve gained leadership experience through my participation in student organizations, and I’ve also had the opportunity to give back to our community through servicing these projects with my friends and classmates,” she said. "This gift from Ken Klein will have an incredible impact on our lives as USC engineers.
“As I reflect on nearly two decades and a half since I left this place, I assert to you that I would not be the person that I am today without a USC engineering degree, nor without the experience I garnered here at the school,” Klein said.
“They say that a mark of a good life is to leave the world a little better off than when we arrived,” Klein said. “If KIUEL enables one student to stay in school and graduate as a Trojan engineer, then I will take great pride in knowing that we were successful, that I did a good deed, that I made a
difference.”
Amid cheers and a standing ovation, the Trojan Band emerged to play USC’s victory song while the speakers raised their hands in the victory sign to the beat. Engineering students rushed to the stage to shake Klein’s hand and ask him more about the institute.
