Physics Major Karl Bohnenberger Selected as Undergraduate Speaker for Winter Commencement Ceremony

Karl Bohnenberger

Posted by: Elizabeth Richardson on December 3, 2018, No Comments

Karl O. Bohnenberger, a graduating senior majoring in physics from East Stroudsburg, Pa., was selected from a pool of student speaker candidates to serve as East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania’s undergraduate student speaker for the winter commencement ceremony on Saturday, December 15, at 9:45 a.m. in Koehler Fieldhouse. Undergraduate student speaker candidates must have a minimum 3.0 grade point average entering the fall semester; a demonstrated record of service to the university community and a record of citizenship and cooperation; demonstrated evidence of meaningful extra/co-curricular involvement and must be in good academic standing.

Bohnenberger created the first turbo-jet engine in the PASSHE system, which has been celebrated and demonstrated both on campus and at the Millersville STEM conference. The Jet operates by taking in cool ambient air into the compressor, where it is then compressed up to a pressure of about two times that of the inlet air. This high-pressure air is then introduced into the combustion chamber where it is mixed with propane, through a custom-built fuel nozzle, and ignited where it burns throughout the combustion chamber. “This process is highly technical and very dangerous,” said Jerry Ross, Ph.D. associate professor of physics. “In my seven years of university instruction, I have never met another undergraduate student who held my trust enough to even undertake such an experiment.”

Bohnenberger has been vital in recruitment of students as he volunteered his weekends to attend open houses and speak with prospective physics students. Because of his willingness to guide and support his classmates, he has been hired as a student instructor. Beyond the campus community, Bohnenberger volunteers at the United Methodist Church soup kitchen in East Stroudsburg and helps facilitate meetings at the Aktion Club, a Kiwanis affiliated program for adults with disabilities.