Gary Fields, E.I.T., Staff Engineer
Gary Fields has been with Whitman since 2014. He actually joined on the environmental side of the business, making use of his bachelor’s degree in geology from the University of Maryland. However, Gary had already committed to shifting gears to mechanical engineering to satisfy his desire to work on more hands-on engineering projects, and was already taking classes at NJIT to enable him to pursue his masters.
“I had to fulfill lots of prerequisite courses, which added 2-3 years to the timeline to get my masters.”
What was it like earning a masters while working? A typical week for Gary had him working at Whitman from about 8-4, heading home for a quick dinner, and then an hour drive to Newark to attend classes. Night classes were typically 3-hour lectures, so 6-9pm three days a week; and then doing homework and studying the other two and all weekend. As long as he’s been at Whitman, Gary has been studying.
Well, Gary finally earned his master’s, fortunately before COVID-19 hit. And we are pleased to announce that he passed his Engineer in Training (EIT) certification exam on February 19th! He will now start studying to obtain his Professional Engineer (PE) certification. We applaud Gary’s tenacity in his pursuit of knowledge!
Now for fun facts, so you can learn a little something about Gary. First, he is an avid chess player! He played regularly as a member of the chess club in high school, and now only gets to occasionally play with his niece and nephew who are learning the game. He also joined a poker league after college.
Also, when he wasn’t studying, Gary spent time pursing another goal. He purchased some home gym equipment early on in the pandemic when gyms were closed, and he has been lifting heavy things since. He has a lifetime goal of squatting 500 lbs., without hurting himself. Since his 5’ 9”, 175 lb. frame is already squatting 420 lbs., we have a feeling he is going to crush that goal, as well.
Posted on March 2, 2021
