College of Engineering » Civil Engineering

Tau Beta Pi Awards Banquet Recap

Kel Hahn — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 15:16:02 +0000

The annual Tau Beta Pi Awards Banquet was held April 16 in the Student Center Ballroom on the University of Kentucky campus. The keynote speaker was alumnus Steve Polston, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and enjoyed a diverse career in the nuclear energy, manufacturing and computing systems industries. Tau Beta Pi vice president Sean Karlage served as master of ceremonies and special remarks were made by Associate Provost for Faculty Advancement G.T. Lineberry, College of Engineering Alumni Professor Bruce Walcott and Gill Professor of Chemical Engineering Kimberly Ward Anderson.

The following winners were announced during the presentation of awards that followed Mr. Polston’s keynote address:

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering

Frank Woeste Award: Kaitlyn Braun

Outstanding BAE Junior: Matt Fogle

Outstanding BAE Senior: Zeb Vance

Outstanding BAE Teacher: Czarena Crofcheck

Chemical Engineering

AIChE Outstanding Senior Member: Nick Winquist

AIChE Outstanding Junior Member: Lindsay Gray

Omega Chi Epsilon Outstanding Senior Member: David Spencer

Outstanding Junior: Brianna Smith

Outstanding Senior: David Spencer

Outstanding Teacher: Doug Kalika

Civil Engineering

Outstanding Junior: Admin Husic

Outstanding Senior: Allie Perkins

Outstanding University Scholar: Davis Huston

Outstanding Graduate Student: Gabe Dadi

Outstanding Faculty: Brad Davis

College of Engineering Awards

Lou Takacs Engineering Cooperative Education Award: Paul Varnado

College of Engineering Alumni Association Awards

Engineering Alumni Association Leadership Scholarship: Alex Wade

Engineering Alumni Association Senior Leadership Award: Kathryn Gardner

Computer Science

Outstanding Academic Performance: Bradley Elliot/Alex Williams

ACM Outstanding Teacher: Judy Goldsmith

ACM Outstanding Teaching Assistant: R. Paul Mihail/Ismail Abumuhfouz

Thaddeus B. Curtz Memorial Scholarship: Ting Gu

Graduate Center for Biomedical Engineering

Outstanding Teacher: David Puleo

Outstanding Graduate Student: Ran Cheng

Electrical and Computer Engineering

H. Alex Romanowitz Memorial Award: Chris Garnick

Outstanding ECE Senior: Matt Davis

Outstanding ECE Teacher: Stephen Gedney

Robert L. Cosgriff Award: Jason Rexroat

Eta Kappa Nu Outstanding ECE Junior: Charlie Miles

Eta Kappa Nu Outstanding ECE Graduate Student Award: Sean Hamlet

Materials Engineering

ASM International Bluegrass Chapter Scholarships: Wilson Rice, Amber Gay

Outstanding Junior: Cory Parker

Outstanding Senior: William Martin

Outstanding Teacher: Fuqian Yang

Mechanical Engineering

ASME Bluegrass Section Outstanding Scholar: Robert Burgess

Pi Tau Sigma Outstanding Mechanical Engineering Sophomore: Andrew Casciato

Outstanding Junior: Andrew Wilder

Outstanding Senior: Tyler Flynn

Outstanding Graduate Student: Xin Hua

ASME Outstanding Faculty Award: Jesse Hoagg

Outstanding Teaching Award – Lecturer Series: Christine Goble

Mining Engineering

Outstanding Junior: Austin Brock

Outstanding Senior: David Norton

Outstanding Teacher: G.T. Lineberry

Henry Mason Lutes Award for Excellence in Engineering Education: Judy Goldsmith

Tau Beta Pi Awards

Most Outstanding Senior: Adrianne Shearer

Most Outstanding Graduate Student: Stacy Schal

Most Outstanding Staff: Robyn Morefield

Most Outstanding Professor: Jimmy Fox

Outstanding Teacher in Paducah: Jeff Seay

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Meet the 2013 Hall of Distinction Inductees!

Kel Hahn — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 18:01:49 +0000

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New Chair in Civil Engineering Dedicated to Promoting Kentucky

Kel Hahn — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 14:27:20 +0000

This fall, the UK College of Engineering and Department of Civil Engineering welcomed Dr. Reginald Souleyrette as the first-ever Commonwealth Chair Professor in Transportation Engineering. Dr. Souleyrette arrived after an 18 year tenured residency at Iowa State University, where he served as a professor of civil engineering and associate director of the Institute for Transportation.

So why leave a distinguished career in Ames for UK? “I was born in Lexington,” Dr. Souleyrette grins. “I’ve always kept an eye on UK, hoping to get back here. This is my dream job, and the only one that could have taken me away from Iowa State.”

Dr. Souleyrette is energetic, and his enthusiasm for his role as a professor is infectious. He is dedicated to motivating students with a positive, optimistic vision of the future. “We are bombarded by negative visions of the present and the future and, while I don’t want to minimize unemployment or other national and global issues, we certainly aren’t doomed! I like to make the argument that there are plenty of reasons to be excited about the present and the future. It’s definitely different from what most students hear, whether on the news or in the community,” he claims.

One reason for optimism is the ongoing need for civil engineers in today’s workforce, in addition to surprising job satisfaction statistics in favor of transportation engineers. “According to a recent CNN Money article, transportation engineers have the second least-stressful job in America. Sixty-nine% of transportation engineers say their job stress is low because they get to work with real people who utilize what they create and because their fear of job loss is small due to cities often putting transportation projects in their budget” he explains (to see the article, visit http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2010/pf/jobs/1010/gallery.best_jobs_least_stress.moneymag/2.html).

Dr. Souleyrette’s passion and appreciation for civil engineering has its roots in summers spent operating a jackhammer bigger than he under a merciless Texas sun. “My friend’s father was an estimator for construction projects and he got us summer work,” he recalls, “I got to see what it takes to put something together and, in the end, I got into civil engineering because I wanted to build something I could see and not just work with conceptual issues.”

After deciding to focus on transportation engineering rather than structural engineering in graduate school at the University of Texas, Dr. Souleyrette continued his study of transportation by earning his Ph.D. at Cal-Berkeley. “Transportation is extremely interdisciplinary,” he says. “There are two things that underlie most of my studies in transportation: human factors and information. So I’m not just thinking about highways, waterways, airports and railroads, but also about psychology, economics, politics, statistics and information technology. They’re all related.”

Thus, Dr. Souleyrette brings a well-rounded perspective to his position as Commonwealth Chair Professor of Transportation Engineering; but what does it mean to be the Commonwealth Chair? The professor explains that because the position is supported by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, he is dedicated to doing something for the state. “My work in this position shouldn’t be primarily academic, but show practical application. I am interested in all modes of transportation and maximizing Kentucky’s advantages for better economic growth and quality of life.”

Dr. George Blandford, Chair of the Department of Civil Engineering, regards his newest hire as a strong addition to the faculty. “Dr. Souleyrette brings a ‘big picture’ view of the transportation profession to UK. He has numerous national contacts that will be very important in securing additional research funding for UK as well as the recruitment of additional graduate students.”

Grateful to have returned to Kentucky, Dr. Souleyrette has hit the ground running with classes underway and graduate students studying under his tutelage; both are key components to the people-oriented field he enjoys. “I like working with students on what I see as detective work—looking for relationships, solving problems and helping students grow in their ability to do it themselves. The students often come up with better ideas than I do” he smiles. “We benefit from working with the students as much or more than they benefit from us.”

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The American Society of Civil Engineers Student Chapter Toy Drive is Underway

Kel Hahn — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 19:27:30 +0000

The American Society of Civil Engineers Student Chapter Toy Drive is underway, and students are encouraging toy donations from anyone desiring to help. The toy drive will benefit the UK Children’s Hospital this coming holiday season and gifts may be brought to the Department of Civil Engineering’s main office—Oliver H. Raymond Building (OHR) 161. The Children’s Hospital is most in need of toys for teenagers and infants; their complete wish list is displayed on the second floor of OHR in the ASCE display case.

Many of the gifts on the Children’s Hospital wish list are under $5, with some even under $1. Listed items at low prices include princess/superhero stickers, stress balls, packs of markers and crayons, or pencil sharpeners. ASCE also suggests donors consider purchasing iTunes or Wii gift cards, which are available at most major grocery places.

For more information, contact Ann-Marie Harik, President of UK’s ASCE chapter.

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