“We don’t need engineers to plug numbers into formulas,” Dr. Thomas Cavicchi said, professor of electrical engineering. “We need engineers to develop formulas in creative ways.”

Perhaps it is Cavicchi’s demand for creative thinking that makes his control systems and communication systems classes challenging for senior electrical engineers. He drives his students toward excellence, encouraging them to apply their knowledge instead of memorizing information for an exam.

Accordingly, Cavicchi’s office wall bears a handwritten slogan: “Analyze, don’t memorize.”

Cavicchi asks his students, “Does this formula really apply in this situation? Try to really understand whatever it is you’re doing.”

Cavicchi has been a proponent of this practical sort of education from an early age. Growing up in a suburb near Cleveland, Ohio, he forayed into the mechanical realm by dissecting the family’s electronics and appliances.

“I enjoyed taking things apart: the TVs, the tape recorders and the toasters,” Cavicchi said.

Along with his brother, Cavicchi conducted electronic experiments with a Knight kit and later a Lafayette 150-in-one. The kits enabled the boys to explore the world of AM radios: relay circuits; alarms and conductivity testing; and more.

The experiments evidently helped cultivate a family passion for science: Cavicchi’s brother currently works as a physicist and his sister works as an artist as well as a researcher in physics and the history of science.

Cavicchi spent his first semester of college at Cornell University, then transferred to Massachusetts Institute of Technology to complete his undergraduate degree. He went to the University of Illinois in Champagne for his master’s and doctoral degrees and grew through his exposure to different cultures. After receiving his doctorate, Cavicchi taught graduate students at the University of Akron. He learned about an opening in Grove City College’s engineering department and chose to apply.

Though Cavicchi could take pride in his 15 years of teaching experience, he approaches his discipline with humility.

“One thing that I learned at MIT was how little I know in relation to the experts in my field, which is humbling,” he said. Likewise, Cavicchi pushes his students to learn more, building up their base of knowledge.

“I try to help them in the development of their discipline: perseverance, work ethic, knowledge, academic integrity,” he said. If his students experience downsizing in the workplace, such skills might preserve their jobs.

However, his deepest love lies outside the classroom.

“I am very fortunate to live with the love of my life, Stephanie,” he said. “We have our unique personalities … coupled with our humor and Christian faith, [which] brings us a lot of joy.”

One of the couple’s shared passions is for the outdoors. The week of their marriage, they hiked Mt. Washington in New Hampshire. In Western Pennsylvania, the couple enjoys exploring Ohiopyle (located far south of Pittsburgh), Cook’s Forest and McConnell’s Mill.

Cavicchi said, “When you have a chance to go into nature, you get … a little peace from the hectic world.”

In addition to hiking, he savors outdoor adventures like whitewater rafting in Maine, camping and distance running. When time permits, he pursues additional interests at home, including art, history and reading.

Though he no longer disassembles toasters, Cavicchi still enjoys learning how devices work. But he said, “These days it’s becoming harder because a lot more things are integrated now…information [is] stored on a chip. It’s a different world there now on those terms.”

Cavicchi’s life exemplifies his creative approach to engineering. He challenges the social stereotypes that would put engineers–or anyone–in a box.

“I don’t like the stereotypes too much,” Cavicchi said. “Each person is unique. I think that we should try to enjoy the person…whatever eccentricities, whatever they have to offer.”