Lyle Mangen Honored as Outstanding Alumnus

BROOKINGS, S.D. – Lyle Mangen, a 1986 graduate of South Dakota State University from Willmar, Minn., was honored as the Outstanding Alumnus of the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department at the department’s Banquet of Excellence on Oct. 10.

“Lyle has been a great supporter of our students for many years. He has sponsored numerous senior design projects, mentored student interns and provided excellent advice as a member of our department advisory council. After our most recent advisory council meeting, based on input from Lyle, we changed the way we were teaching engineering design graphics to better prepare students for their first positions as they begin an engineering career,” said Van Kelley, head of the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department.

Mangen graduated from SDSU with a degree in agricultural engineering (now agricultural and biosystems engineering). After graduating, he started working for CNH Industrial, where he has now worked for 29 years. CNH Industrial is a global leader in the capital goods sector. Through its 12 brands, which include Case IH and New Holland, the company designs, produces and sells tractors and agricultural machinery, construction equipment, commercial vehicles, buses and specialty vehicles, trucks and powertrain applications.

Currently, Mangen is a global products specialist for CNH Industrial facilities in the United States and Brazil. Throughout his career with CNH Industrial, he has worked in both product design and product management, working with harvest equipment, sprayers and fertilizer applicators, and construction equipment.

Partway through his career, Mangen went back to school and gained a Master of Business Administration degree from Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee, Wis., and earned his Professional Engineering license.

“The education I gained at SDSU set me up for a successful career,” Mangen said. “The classes I took challenged me and taught me how to be a real-world problem solver.”

While at SDSU, he was involved in the Dean’s Advisory Council, in which he worked with the dean of the Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering to help student voices be heard. He was also a part of the Agricultural Engineering Club.

“My favorite memory at SDSU was driving my old car to Springfield, Mass., to watch SDSU play in the college basketball national finals. There were four of us squished into my old car and we were amazed we made it there and back,” Mangen said.

Mangen has continued his involvement at SDSU by serving on the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department Advisory Council. By serving on the council, he hopes to help the department stay on track with where the industry is going so that students can be successful when they graduate.

He also sponsors a student scholarship and has sponsored several senior design projects in the department.

“I paid my own way through college so I understand it can be a challenge to pay for a college education, however a college education is the best investment I made and I want to help other students have the same opportunity,” Mangen said.

–SDSU Extension