Deborah E. Kenney, MS, OTR/L

kenney5 -at- comcast.net

Deborah Kenney has been an occupational therapist at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System for the last 17 years - working both in the clinic and at the VA Rehabilitation Research & Development (RR&D) Center where she has collaborated on numerous design and research projects with the engineers and graduate students. Her work has included testing and integrating technology into the rehabilitation setting in the areas of Parkinson's Disease, CVA (stroke), Spinal Cord Injury, hand therapy, and balance as related to aging. Ms. Kenney currently splits her time between her clinical work with post-stroke survivors (REACH) and the RR&D Center. She is also a frequent guest lecturer with the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Santa Clara.

Douglas F. Schwandt, MS

doug.schwandt -at- gmail.com

650/464-3578

Doug Schwandt began his career in Rehabilitation Engineering with a Stanford ME210 (now ME310) design project, on a student team creating the Handbike, the first arm-powered two-wheeled bicycle for lower-limb disabled. After graduation, he continued the Handbike development, and went on to design various other devices for the disabled with the Design Development team at the Palo Alto VA Rehab R&D Center, including finger-spelling hands, hyper/hypo gravity devices and specialty cycle ergometers. Over the years, Doug has also consulted on various exciting and challenging projects outside of the VA, including exercise concepts for long-term space travel, MRI compatible fixtures and mobility devices, and robots for physical therapy. No longer a VA employee, Doug continues to work as a consultant to universities and companies as a free-lance consulting design engineer, and part-time as a springboard diving coach.

Isaac Penny

ipenny -at- stanford.edu

Isaac Penny is a MS student in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University. Isaac holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech, is an NSF/NDSEG Fellow, as well as an Astronaut Scholar. His current research involves microfluidics, machine learning, and computer vision. Isaac took ENGR110/210 last year where he developed an iPhone application to help individuals with visual impairements access the phone's functionality. Isaac's hobbies include backpacking, amateur astronomy, and reading books on the interplay of science and faith.

Monroe H. Postman

monfred -at- pacbell.net

"I received my Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (BEE) from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn before schools were offering Computers as a Major. My long term interest in computers turned professional when I joined the UNIVAC 1 staff at New York University in the early 1950s, which led eventually to a career in designing digital computers. I also taught microprocessor equipment design in the 1970s under a National Science Foundation grant. I have worked at the Department of Veterans Affairs, using sensors, hydraulics, and computer control to build solutions that provide rehabilitation and assistance to stroke survivors, paraplegics, and quadriplegics."

Monroe's professional career had included the design of computer interfaces, "skunk works" management, and over five years as Science Advisor to the City of San Jose. He is presently an avid collector of everything from old clocks to quack medical devices and antique electronics and vintage computers. In addition, Monroe volunteers on the technical staff of the Museum of American Heritage in Palo Alto. He is a Life Member of the IEEE.

Updated 09/21/2010

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