Mike Franck was born in Port au Prince, Haiti, in 1983. He emigrated to West Palm Beach, Florida at the age of 10 alongside his mother and two siblings. After graduating from A.W. Dreyfoos High School of the Arts in West Palm Beach, Mike worked several years before enrolling in the Florida A&M-Florida State University College of Engineering to study mechanical engineering. Upon graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Mike began work as a manufacturing engineer for TECT Power, developing processes to construct complex aerospace parts. In his diligent work ethic and dedication to his family, Mike personified the irrepressible spirit of immigrant and minority communities to build prosperous lives despite all obstacles.

Mike’s love and skill for mechanics began at a young age and continued throughout his life. As a child, he amazed his family in successfully taking apart and putting back together all kinds of devices, from remote control cars to computers.  In his adult life, beyond his complex work in aerospace mechanical engineering, Mike took pride in his work at a local tool shop and relished working on personal engineering projects such as homemade robotics and motorcycle repair. His professional work at TECT in complex aerospace engineering culminated a life passion for engineering.

Mike was known amongst family and co-workers for his intense work ethic to move his family forward and perfect his craft. He delayed matriculating at FAMU-FSU College of Engineering several years, working at Florida Power and Light Company to help support his mother and siblings, and frequently worked sixty to seventy hour workweeks as an engineer. Beyond advancing himself and his family, Mike’s diligence was rooted in a special sense of pride and responsibility in advancing the place of blacks in the field of engineering.

A man of quiet determination and principle, Mike often let his actions speak more than his words. He gave his own life at the age of 34 to save others, heroically jumping to shield multiple strangers from a senseless shooting. Hard-working but fun loving, he enjoyed cooking and comic books. Mike’s family and friends hope that his example will continue to pave the way of opportunity for immigrant and minority students in life and the field of engineering.