FACULTY AWARDS AND APPOINTMENTS

 

Kaye Husbands Fealing is an expert in the measurement of science innovation.

Kaye Husbands Fealing Named AAAS Fellow

Kaye Husbands Fealing, chair of the School of Public Policy in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Election as a Fellow is an honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers. Fealing was nominated by the Section on Societal Impacts of Science and Engineering for “distinguished contributions to the field of science, technology, and public policy, particularly for leadership in the area of the science of science policy.”

During the course of her career, Fealing has developed models to measure science innovation and to measure the impacts of market forces and policy on the access of women and minorities to employment and careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) areas. She has held named professorships at two institutions and served as president of the National Economic Association.

Laura Cadonati Named to Key LIGO Post

Now that scientists have observed and confirmed the existence of gravitational waves, the community is preparing for what it calls a “new dawn” of exploration. This next step will enable a better understanding of the universe and create the directions for the development of future generations of instruments.

To help guide them into this new chapter of discovery, members of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) have appointed Georgia Tech Professor of Physics Laura Cadonati as their first-ever deputy spokesperson of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration (LSC). Together with the spokesperson, Cadonati will speak on behalf of LIGO when new detections are announced and oversee the management of a number of divisions, including data analysis and astrophysics.

Cadonati is collaborating closely with MIT’s David Shoemaker, LIGO’s newly elected spokesperson, as they restructure the 1,000-member organization.

Alenka Zajic Receives NSF CAREER Award

Alenka Zajic, an assistant professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), received an NSF CAREER Award to support her research project, “Propagation Modeling and Measurements for THz Wireless Chip-to-Chip Communications.”

New applications such as self-driving cars, smart homes, and/or industrial automation will all require cloud computing that relies on many fast computers in data centers. However, even today, cable management in data centers is a serious challenge, and limitation of the number of pins on the processor is becoming a bottleneck in designing faster computers.

Zajic is exploring ways to design wireless links at terahertz frequencies that can provide data rates of hundreds of gigabytes per second that would address “cable management” and “pin-count” problems. Insights and results from this project will develop fundamental understanding of wireless propagation at terahertz frequencies and also stimulate further related research in wireless communications and computer engineering.

 

Renowned for his longtime commitment to excellence in teaching, Professor David Collard serves as associate dean for academic programs in the College of Sciences.

David Collard Receives USG Faculty Award

The University System of Georgia (USG) honored David Collard with the 2017 Felton Jenkins Jr. Hall of Fame Faculty Award for USG’s research and comprehensive universities sector. The award, which invites nominations from across USG, recognizes a faculty member for strong commitment to teaching and student success.

Collard is a professor in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and associate dean for academic programs in the College of Sciences. The award review committee cited Collard as “an exemplar for combining the best of teaching and research” at a research institution.

“Our programs today would be unrecognizable if you removed David’s contributions,” said M.G. Finn, chair of the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry. “What we teach, how we teach it, what facilities we use to do so, and what advanced opportunities are available to our students all bear the Collard stamp.”

Engineering Faculty, GTRI Researchers Advise U.S. Military

Georgia Tech faculty, administrators, and researchers have a long and distinguished history of providing counsel to the nation’s military leadership. The following Georgia Tech community members are now serving in key military advisory posts:

Army Science Board

Two Tech faculty members have been appointed to initial three-year terms on the Army Science Board:

• Giselle Bennett, a professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, director of the Georgia Tech Research Institute’s Electro-Optical Systems Lab, and the Glenn Robinson Chair in Electro-Optics.
• Wendy Newstetter, assistant dean of Educational Research and Innovation in the College of Engineering.

Air Force Scientific Advisory Board

Three Tech faculty members are currently serving on the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board:

• Samuel Graham Jr., Rae and Frank H. Neely Professor, Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering.
• Dimitri Mavris, Regents Professor, Boeing Professor of Advanced Aerospace Systems Analysis, and Langley Distinguished Professor of Advanced Aerospace Systems Architecture, Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering.
• William Melvin, Regents Researcher, Georgia Tech Research Institute.

STAFF ACHIEVEMENTS

Bryant/ECN Earn USG service awards

Two individuals and one group from Georgia Tech were honored by the University System of Georgia (USG) with Chancellor’s Service Excellence Awards.

The awards honor USG employees who go above and beyond their expected job duties in service to their greater community.

Lindsay Bryant

Lindsay Bryant, director of the Student Center, earned a silver award for Outstanding Leader (Administrator Level).

The silver award in the Team of the Year category went to the leadership team for Tech’s Event Coordinators’ Network (ECN). The team — which includes Renée Brown, Barb Dockweiler, LaJauna Ellis, Julie Hawkins, Nicole Little, Laura Pusateri, Catherine Shaw, Stephanie Sigler, Felicia Turner, and Serena Wallace — was recognized for its effort to improve both the skill set and standards of service for those who plan and execute events on behalf of Georgia Tech.

Michael Edwards, senior director of Campus Recreation, earned an honorable mention in the Outstanding Leader category.

Georgia Tech Chef Honored at National Culinary Competition

Jonathan Elwell, executive chef for Georgia Tech Dining Services and the Southern Regional National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS) Champion, won the silver medal at the National NACUFS Culinary Competition.

Elwell competed against five regional winners from across the U.S. who were collectively judged on food preparation and culinary skills in front of a live audience. Each contestant had 60 minutes to prepare a dish featuring the following mandatory ingredients: red rice, edamame, black kale, and two classical cuts. Elwell’s winning dish included duck breast with citrus scallion sauce, red rice cake, sauteed kale, and edamame puree.

“It was an honor to represent the Southern Region at the National NACUFS Culinary Competition,” said Elwell. “The competition was extremely strong with all competitors receiving medals, and I look forward to the opportunity to compete again.”

NACUFS Culinary Challenge is sanctioned by the American Culinary Federation.

ISSUES AND RESOURCES

Committee Announces Progress on Gender Equity Initiatives

The implementation committee of faculty and staff from the Office of the President, Institute Diversity, Faculty Affairs, and Human Resources announced updates on its progress to implement the 11 Gender Equity Initiatives.

As part of a two-year process, implementation began in August 2016. The initiatives emerged from President G.P. “Bud” Peterson’s listening sessions on inclusiveness and gender equity in 2015 following feedback from faculty and staff that some of the Institute’s collective actions, practices, and policies fell short of fully recognizing women’s contributions.

The Gender Equity Initiatives are grouped into four impact areas: hiring, promotion, and tenure; professional and leadership development; leadership appointments; and recognition and increased visibility of the Institute’s commitment to gender equity.

These implementation updates (not ranked by priority) encompass the following:

Center for Teaching and Learning Enters New Era

Georgia Tech’s Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), formerly the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, has begun a new chapter of its long history with a name change and additional programming.

“We wanted our emphasis to be on teaching and learning,” explained CTL Director Joyce Weinsheimer. “When newcomers read ‘the enhancement of’ in our name, they thought our focus was on fixing poor teaching. We sent out a survey to faculty and administrators, and 90 percent thought the change to Center for Teaching and Learning was a good idea.”

Weinsheimer said she also wants to lead CTL into a new era of collaboration among administrators, instructional staff, and support units to maximize student learning. This will be accomplished largely through two new partnerships:

• Provost Teaching and Learning Fellows: Two to five fellows from each college will work on college-specific initiatives in a way that connects the expertise of CTL professionals with the expertise of disciplinary faculty.
• CIRTL Network: CTL has joined the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL) Network, partnering with 46 research universities to prepare future faculty in all disciplines (with a particular emphasis on STEM fields).

GT Professional Education Receives Prestigious Honors

The University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA) has recognized Georgia Tech Professional Education (GTPE) for excellence in both credit and non-credit education as well as teaching quality.

Georgia Tech’s Online Master of Science in Computer Science (OMS CS) degree program received the UPCEA Outstanding Program award in the credit category. The award recognizes Georgia Tech for excellence in achieving educational objectives.

Offered by the College of Computing, OMS CS is one of several online master’s programs that GTPE facilitates for the Institute.

In addition, University Learning Store (ULS) received the UPCEA Outstanding Program award in the non-credit category. The program was launched in 2016 in collaboration with some of the nation’s top universities, including GTPE, and founded by University of Wisconsin-Extension Division of Continuing Education, Outreach, and E-Learning. The award recognizes outstanding professional and continuing education programs that do not offer degree credit.

Nicole de Vries, application support analyst at GTPE, received the Adelle F. Robertson Continuing Professional Educator Award, which recognizes the scholarship, leadership, and contributions to the profession of a person who has entered the field within the past five to 10 years.

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