In 1950 Jerome “Jerry” Shaw and his brother William pooled their resources and came up with $13 to start a technical writing business—all they could afford were paper and pencils.

Today, Jerome Shaw is executive vice president and chief operations officer of Volt Information Sciences, Inc., a global staffing supplier with annual sales of approximately $2 billion. Shaw directs the day-to-day operations of Volt, which has more than 300 offices worldwide. Shaw has been instrumental in Volt’s growth from a startup entrepreneurial venture, to a Fortune 1000 corporation that is on the Fortune “Most Admired Companies” list.

Shaw also built a second successful business in real estate. In January 1959, he moved to California from New York. From 1959 to 1973, he bought 650 acres of land and proceeded through city and county government to obtain approvals for “Tentative Maps.” In addition, he created an award-winning residential housing development in northern San Diego County, Shaw-Lopez Park. Shaw’s real estate business was developed through work he conducted only on weekends, as he continues to devote his work week to Volt.

Shaw received his bachelor’s in electrical engineering from New Mexico State University. In 1995 he was named Distinguished Alumnus by the College of Engineering, and in 2001 he received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws. He is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council, the Klipsch School of Electrical and Computer Engineering Academy as well as Sigma Tau.

Shaw and his wife Joyce Cutler-Shaw have a long history of philanthropy to NMSU, among many other institutions. In 1999 they established a scholarship to benefit minority students. In recognition of the Shaws’ numerous contributions to the College of Engineering, the Jerome and Joyce Cutler-Shaw Conference Room in Goddard Hall was dedicated in their honor in 2001.

On October 20, 2006, Shaw was inducted into the NMSU College of Engineering Circle of Honor.