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Technician of the Year
Like a lot of students graduating high school,
Paul Petersen didn’t know which direction to take. The 1995 Arkansas
City High School graduate tinkered with cars a bit, and he enjoyed
music. He was good enough, in fact, to earn an instrumental music scholarship
to Cowley. He played the trumpet in Concert Band and Jazz Band. But
it was a chance meeting with Nondestructive Testing Instructor Bruce
Crouse that steered Petersen toward a career as an NDT inspector.
Now, eight years after graduating from Cowley with an associate of applied science
degree in NDT, Petersen has earned the Lou Di Valerio Technician of the Year
Award presented by The American Society for Nondestructive Testing. He will officially
receive the citation at ASNT’s fall conference in Columbus, Ohio, in October. “They
look for someone who is not in management, who does inspections,” said
Petersen, a lead inspector at Metal Finishing Co., Inc., in Wichita. “There’s
never a dull moment in this job. There’s always something new. I’ve
inspected everything from Corvette parts to space shuttle parts to oil derricks
and amusement park rides.”
The award gives recognition to ASNT members who are deserving technicians, encouraging
their continued participation in the Society. The award is presented to individuals
who have distinguished themselves by showing exceptional merit, either as an
NDT technician or through service to the Society. Petersen’s meeting with
Crouse in 1995 was coincidental. “I came here (to the Walker Industrial
Technology Building) and I started asking questions,” Petersen said. After
more discussion with Crouse, Petersen enrolled in Cowley’s NDT program.
His mornings were spent in NDT classes, and his afternoons in Concert Band and
Jazz Band. Petersen praised Crouse as an instructor. “He knows a lot about
it, and he’s patient,” Petersen said.
