Houston, we don’t want Keenan to leave.

Taking some time off of studying? Blast off into another installment of Senior Wisdoms featuring the stellar Keenan Albee!

Name, School, Major, Hometown: Keenan Albee, SEAS, Mechanical Engineering, Boring, MD (Yes, it exists.)

Claim to fame: I was one of the founders and served as Co-President for the Columbia Space Initiative (shout-out to Julia and the space bois). We like to launch rockets, test tools at NASA, and send Roaree to altitudes where no sensible lion should go. I also helped set up Columbia’s Makerspace in its early days, though there are loads of talented people that have contributed more to the space since then. I even used to write for Bwog for a bit. Otherwise I’ve been burrowed in the depths of Mudd doing engineering things.

Where are you going? Heading to California for a bit, then starting my SM/PhD in Course 16 at MIT, then Mars?

What are 3 things you learned at Columbia and would like to share with the Class of 2021?:
1) Institutional memory at Columbia is short. A lot has happened in my four years here that will be quickly forgotten as 2017 leaves and the clean slate of 2021 enters. It’s the responsibility of clubs, campus media, and even individual people to pass on the information that keeps Columbia moving and prevents old missteps and retreads from reoccurring. One way to do that is WikiCU, which has been woefully neglected recently. Here’s just one example of student requests from a decade ago.

2) Use Columbia’s resources for all they’re worth. Sometimes exactly what you’re looking for can be hard to find, but there’s likely a nook or cranny somewhere at Columbia that will help you out. For example, you have access to Borrow Direct, which will let you get your hands on virtually any book you could possibly imagine. If the resource you’re looking for doesn’t exist (it likely does), you can be the one to help create it. For me, this was the Columbia Space Initiative which was hard to get off the ground (pun intended) but is now one of the largest engineering clubs on campus. Bureaucracies can be slow, Columbia included, but they generally work; knowing the system helps immensely. If not, Columbia’s resources come in many forms, most importantly its people. A group of passionate, committed people here can do almost anything.

3) Find something you really care about. Commit to it. You’ve probably heard this a million times before but I think it’s true. Columbia is a 4-year shot to show what you can do when you’re given an incredible amount of responsibility and opportunity, and you’ll make the most of it if you truly enjoy what you’re doing. If you’re an engineer, this might mean finding a project that you don’t mind sleeping in the shop consecutive nights for. Maybe it’ll mean digging up some obscure sources for your history class on a late night because you can’t sleep without exploring more. Find something, and it’ll make your time at Columbia all the better.

“Back in my day…” Carleton Commons (that lounge thing on the 4th floor of Mudd) was less glass-y and way more column-y.

Justify your existence in 30 words or fewer: I’m an aerospace guy that flew on his first airplane junior year en route to Boeing. It was an Airbus.

What was your favorite class at Columbia? U.S. in the Era of Civil War and Reconstruction, taught by Professor Eric Foner. I was lucky enough to register as a freshman during his last time teaching the course. Professor Foner’s analysis and depth of knowledge were phenomenal, but this was also one of the rare times that I felt the discussion section actually added value to the class. The “branching off of that” was kept to a minimum. Fortunately, this course is now online for free!

Would you rather give up oral sex or cheese? Did you know that NASA’s normal response on intimacy in space is to deflect the question? On a related note, straight-up cheese isn’t often on the space station’s provisions list.

One thing to do before graduating: Walk from 116th to Lower Manhattan. Really, walk around anywhere in the city for a decent stretch of time. Heck, even Morningside Heights is filled with cool stuff (check out this website, now archived).

Any regrets? Probably a common one, but I wish I’d carved out more room to get to know the city and just spend time doing nothing with friends. You may never be in NYC again (especially if you’re into aerospace), and by the time you look away from your last problem set/essay you’ll already have your cap and gown on.

Ignition sequence start via Keenan