Down Memory Lane

Leroy Spearman was the winner of the March 2006 Engineering Story drawing. If you have an interesting story about your time at Auburn engineering, we'd like to hear it. The names of those who submit stories will be entered into a drawing for a Samuel Ginn College of Engineering sweatshirt. You can read the stories at www.eng.auburn.edu/eng-memories/

Leroy Spearman
Leroy Spearman

One of the stories that I would like to share with you relates to the influence that Auburn engineering has had on my professional life.

By the time I was 8-9 years old I was fascinated by airplanes and knew that I wanted to be an aeronautical engineer. My high school education was slanted toward engineering courses and upon graduation in 1939 I planned to attend Auburn (API) since my father and older brother were Auburn grads. My interest was in aeronautical engineering and Auburn had just become one of the few schools in the country that offered a degree in AE (just in time for me). I was well trained in aeronautics and upon graduation in 1943 was ready to enter the work force.

However, World War II was underway. I had not looked for a job because as a graduate in advanced ROTC I was expected to become an officer in the U.S. Army Air Service.  Unfortunately, I was rejected as physically unfit because of a knee injury and returned to Auburn without work. Hearing of my predicament, Robert G. Pitts, head of the Department of Aerospace Engineering, hired me to teach an aerodynamics course. This sustained me for a year, furthered my education and gave me an interest in teaching.

Early in 1944, a recruiter came to Auburn looking for anyone interested in helping to run the wind-tunnels for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) at Langley Field, Va. I was well qualified by my training at Auburn and decided to take the job. My thought was that I would spend a few years with the government to gain experience and then go to industry where the 'big' money was.

So I came to Virginia and began gaining experience in aeronautical research in the wind tunnels. I was able to be a part of the growth in aeronautics over the years. At the end of December 2004, I was still gaining experience but decided to retire from government service (now NASA) after 61.7 years all at Langley Field. During that time I have prepared over 300 papers and presentations. I have given scores of talks at meetings and conferences where I am always introduced as a graduate of Auburn. My teaching interest has also led me to visit schools and/or mentor students from grades K to 12.

Although officially retired, I am still associated with NASA/Langley on my own time as a Distinguished Research Associate. I am still writing papers, still giving talks, and still mentoring students. And through it all, Auburn engineering has played an important part in my training and in my career path.
 
Maybe not short but that's my story and I am glad that I was not in charge of it,
 
Best wishes,
Leroy Spearman

Spearman has been a member of the Auburn Alumni Engineering Council since 1978 and currently lives in Newport News, Virginia.