John M. Andrésen, a research associate with the Energy Institute, has been selected to receive the Brian Kelly Award 2000 from the British Carbon Group. He is receiving the award for his paper, "Correlation Between Pitch Structure and Fluidity for the Development of Superior Binders for Carbon Materials," co-authored with professors F.J. Rusinko Jr. and H.H. Shobert. Andrésen will travel to the First World Conference on Carbon in Berlin to present the Brian Kelley plenary lecture in July 2000. Andrésen also is associate director of the Applied Catalysis in Energy Laboratory. The Brian Kelly Award is given to outstanding young researchers in the field of carbon science. It was established to recognize the contributions of Brian Kelly, one of the most knowledgeable people in the study of the physics of graphite.
Stephen J. Benkovic, Even Pugh professor of chemistry and holder of the Eberly Family Chair in Chemistry, has received the Protein Society's Christian B. Anfinsen Award, which recognizes significant technical achievements in the field of protein science. Benkovic has been honored because his contributions to the interface area between chemistry and biology distinguish him as one of the world leaders in chemical biology. The award includes a monetary prize. In addition, Benkovic will present the award lecture during the Symposium of the Protein Society, scheduled for Aug. 5-9 in San Diego, Calif. An international organization, the Protein Society works to "promote interactions among investigators in order to explore all aspects of 'the building blocks of life.'"
Four Penn State Outreach and Cooperative Extension staff members have been elected to posts in the University Continuing Education Association (UCEA). The association is the principal U.S. organization for continuing higher education. Patricia A. Book, associate vice president for outreach and executive director of the Division of Continuing Education, has been elected to the UCEA board of directors, and she has been elected vice chair of the Commission on Leadership and Management. She also has been appointed chair of UCEA's 2001 national conference to be held in Philadelphia; James E. Fong, director of marketing research for the Outreach Office of Marketing Research, has been elected to the Commission on Futures and Markets, and has been elected chair of the Community of Practice on Marketing and Publications; Michael E. Ostroski, director of Conferences and Institutes, has been elected to the Commission on Learning and Instructional Technologies; and Janet Patterson, senior conference planner with Conferences and Institutes, is the new chair of the Community of Practice on Conferences and Professional Programs.
Recent paintings by John Bowman, assistant professor of art, were on display in a solo exhibition at Winston Wachter Mayer Fine Art in New York City. This collection deals with the ornate and often cathedral-like theaters that served as an escape from the inequity and social problems of the past. To see some of his paintings, go to http://www.winstonwachter.com/ on the Web.
James Brasfield, senior lecturer in English, and Ukrainian poet Oleh Lysheha have received a PEN American Center award for their joint, book-length translation of Lysheha's poetry, The Selected Poems of Oleh Lysheha, published by the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute. The center is a national association of literary writers with headquarters in New York. Lysheha, a Soviet dissident, was forbidden to publish in the Soviet Union from 1972 to 1988. The translation of his poetry was completed during Brasfield's two Fulbright lectureships in Ukraine in 1994 and 1999. For more information on the PEN Literary Awards, check the Web at http://www.pen.org/awards/../index.html.
Diane Brown, associate director of Penn State Outreach and Cooperative Extension, recently received the 2000 Distinguished Alumnus Award from Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, Va. She was honored "for her career achievements and for ... helping others reach their potential." Brown graduated from Bridgewater in 1966 with a degree in home economics education.
Laura Brown, senior undergraduate student adviser in the Division of Undergraduate Studies, has been honored by the National Academic Advising Association with an Outstanding Advising award. She will receive the award in a ceremony Oct. 7. The association has more than 5,000 members, including faculty, professional advisers, administrators, counselors and others serving the academic and vocational needs of students.
Cengiz Camci, associate professor of aerospace engineering, was named a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). ASME promotes the art, science and practice of mechanical engineering throughout the world. ASME Fellows are recognized for exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the engineering profession. In addition, a paper coauthored by Camci received a best paper award from ASME's International Gas Turbine Institute. Camci was honored for his paper, "A Student-Executed, Industrial Gas Turbine Design Project with an Industrial Deadline."
John A. Ciciarelli, assistant professor of environmental science at Penn State Beaver, recently presented "The Geology of the Battles for Monte Cassino, Italy 1944" at the international Terrain in Military History Conference in Chatham, Kent, England. His presentation dealt with the dramatic influence geology, geologic history and terrain had on the ebb and flow of the World War II battle that raged over the first four months of 1944.
Rob Crassweller, professor of horticulture, spoke at the Fifth International Symposium on Apples in Cuauhtemoc, Mexico.
Dennis Decoteau, professor and head of horticulture, was elected vice president of the education division for the American Society for Horticultural Sciences.
Ann Dodd, senior consultant with the Center for Quality and Planning, has been appointed by the director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to the 2000 Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The award, created by public law in 1987, is the highest level of national recognition for performance excellence that a U.S. organization can receive. The board is composed of about 400 leading experts selected from industry, professional and trade organizations, education and health care organizations and government. Information about the Baldrige National Quality Program is available on the Web at http://www.baldrige.org/
Stephanie Doores, associate professor of food science, was appointed to a two-year term as a member of the National Advisory Committee for the Microbiological Criteria for Foods. The NACMCF provides scientific information to the Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Defense and Food and Drug Administration. Doores also serves on the Meat and Poultry Subcommittee.
After more than 30 years of service to Pennsylvania's low-income populations, the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) in the College of Agricultural Sciences recently received a commendation from Gov. Tom Ridge. EFNEP aims to reach the state's most financially challenged residents and help them make the most of available resources. Since 1969, EFNEP has reached more than 198,959 homemakers and 426,543 youth.
Andrea Ellinger, assistant professor of adult education and coordinator of the doctoral program in adult education at Penn State Harrisburg, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Academy of Human Resource Development. The Academy of Human Resource Development is an international organization that encourages the study of human resource develpment theories, processes and practices. In addition, in June, Ellinger will be honored as the "Alumni of the Year" at her undergraduate alma mater, Northwestern Connecticut Community College.
Rodney A. Erickson, executive vice president and provost, has been named a member of the steering committee for the AAU Graduate Education Project. The project is intended to educate opinion leaders in the government, academe, industry and the news media on what graduate education is and why it is important to society and the role that stakeholders must play for graduate education to remain strong in the United States. A major component of the project will be to determine what opinion leaders know or believe about graduate education and which messages are or are not effective.
Gabriela Gonzalez, assistant professor of physics, has been elected to the Executive Committee of the American Physical Society Topical Group in Gravitation. The group, created in April 1995 to serve as a focus for research in all areas of gravitational physics, has more than 500 members.
Robert A. Gray, assistant professor of electrical engineering technology at Penn State Erie, received the "Edison Award to Inventors" bronze medallion and a cash award of $500 at the annual GE Transportation Systems Engineering Awards event. He received the award for his invention "Method for Data Transfer from a Mobile Asset Considering Communication Link Quality," which is now in use by GE and has been formally submitted to the U.S. Patent Office.
Inyong Ham, distinguished professor emeritus of industrial engineering, will receive the William T. Ennor Manufacturing Technology Award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers at the society's International Congress in November. The organization promotes the art, science and practice of mechanical engineering throughout the world. Ham was honored for his outstanding contributions to the development and application of the group technology concept, as well as his implementation of computer integrated manufacturing and computer-aided process planning.
Irving Hand, professor emeritus of urban and regional planning at Penn State Harrisburg, has been selected a Fellow of the American Institute of Certified Planners. Hand, well-known for his teaching and regional planning expertise, was recognized for his achievement in the field of urban and rural planning.
Mary Jo Haverbeck, former associate sports information director, has won the Arch Ward Award from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). The award is named in honor of the late sports editor and columnist of the Chicago Tribune and is presented to a member who has made an outstanding contribution to the field of college sports information or has brought dignity and prestige to the profession. Haverbeck is the 43rd recipient of the award and the first woman to receive the profession's highest honor. Haverbeck is credited with advancing sports in general, but particulary women's sports, and with opening the doors for other female journalists to promote collegiate sports. Haverbeck recently became the first woman inducted into the CoSIDA Hall of Fame. She retired from Penn State in December 1999.
Susan Irwin, staff assistant in the Department of Aerospace Studies, has received the national Outstanding Civilian of the Quarter Award from Air Force ROTC. Irwin was cited for her excellent job performance, accomplishments and community awareness. The award is given to recognize professionals who have impacted the overall productivity and visibility of Air Force ROTC and Air Force programs. Penn State's unit is the largest Air Force ROTC detachment of any Big Ten school.
Michael Jacobson, assistant professor of forest resources, presented the paper "Evolution of Extension Forestry to Community-Based Natural Resource Management" at the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations Extension Working Party Symposium in Slovenia.
Iam-Choon Khoo, professor of electrical engineering, presented an invited paper, "Progress in Liquid Crystal Photorefractivity -- Toward Supra Optical Nonlinearity," at the European Material Research Society Symposium, Strasbourg, France. He also gave a seminar at the Lille University, Lille, France.
Kay Kustanbauter, executive director of the Nittany Lion Club, has been selected as "Fund Raiser of the Year" for 2000 by the National Association of Athletic Development Directors (NAADD). Kustanbauter is the first person from Penn State to win the award, created to recognize fund raisers at NCAA Division 1 institutions "who have demonstrated significant achievement in athletic fund raising over their professional careers as well as the current year." The Nittany Lion Club has more than 18,500 members and underwrites grants-in-aid for more than 500 Penn State student-athletes. It also provides operational support for the University's 29 intercollegiate programs.
Robert Lima, professor of Spanish and comparative literature and fellow of the Institute for the Arts and Humanistic Studies, presented "Nosferatu: A play on the Vampire by Francisco Nieva" at the Second World Congress on Dracula held in Romania, in which he delineated the Spanish dramatist's version of the traditional theme against the background of modern European decadence.
Linda E. Meashey, coordinator of academic development at Penn State Harrisburg and licensed psychologist, gave an invited presentation at the 11th Annual Conference for Teaching Academic Survival Skills. Her topic was "Sigmund Freud? B.F. Skinner?"
Gary L. Messing, director of the Materials Research Laboratory and professor of ceramic science and engineering, was given the Robert B. Sosman Award and Lecture of the American Ceramic Society. The award is the highest recognition of scientific accomplishment given by the Basic Science Division of the society and is given in recognition of outstanding achievement in an area that results in a significant impact to the field of ceramics. Messing delivered a society lecture on "Tailoring Ceramic Microstructures and Properties via Templated Grain Growth" at the annual meeting of the American Ceramic Society.
E. Willard Miller, professor emeritus of geography and associate dean emeritus in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, received a Service Award from the Pennsylvania Academy of Sciences for his contributions to the group. For more than 22 years, Miller has written two to six articles per year on a wide range of topics in the physical and human sciences for the PAS Bulletin, that organization's newsletter.
Robert E. Newnham, professor emeritus of solid state science, delivered the 2000 Byron Short Lecture at the University of Texas on "Functional Composites for Sensors, Actuators and Transducers." The lecture, which was co-sponsored by the Mechanical Engineering Department and the Texas Materials Institute, honors the memory of Byron Short, former dean of the College of Engineering at UT.
The Nittany Lion Inn has been selected to receive the 2000 Employment Award from The Arc-Pennsylvania. The award is presented annually to a business or company that has hired workers with developmental disabilities or has regularly purchased products made by workers with developmental disabilities.
The American Dietetic Association is honoring Sara C. Parks for her distinguished career as a hospitality educator, researcher and industry educator. Parks was recently named director of the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Recreation Management in the College of Health and Human Development. The association's board of directors invited Parks to present the 39th Lenna Frances Cooper Memorial Lecture at its Food and Nutrition Conference in recognition of her distinguished career and contributions to the profession.
Jorge Pullin, associate professor of physics, presented two invited talks in Valdivia, Chile. One, titled "Colliding Black Holes," was presented at the First Valdivia Astrophysics Meeting. The other, titled "Kinematics and Dynamics of Quantum Gravity," was presented at the Center for Scientific Studies.
Jack R. Rayman, director of career services, has been inducted into the National Association of Colleges and Employers' Academy of Fellows. The academy recognizes career services and human resources/ staffing professionals for their advancement of knowledge, leadership and excellence in professional practice. Rayman oversees a department serving more than 38,000 students in nearly 200 majors. He also is affiliate professor of counseling psychology and education.
Stephen J. Reighard, multimedia and computer support specialist for the College of Communications' James Audio Laboratory, has been awarded the 2000 Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters Faculty Fellowship. The four-week fellowship provides a university faculty or staff member the opportunity to visit a radio or television station in Pennsylvania to become familiar with current equipment, techniques and developments in the field and bring the knowledge gained back to his or her university. Reighard will spend his time at the University's student radio station, WKPS. He plans to focus on educating students by serving as a full-time adviser to the station.
A. Catharine Ross, holder of the Dorothy Foehr Huck Chair in Nutrition in the College of Health and Human Development, presented an invited lecture at the British Society for Immunology and British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology joint congress, held in Harrogate, England, on "Regulation of antibody production and cytokine gene expression in vitamin A deficiency and by retinoids."
C. Frederick Sears, director of the Radiation Science & Engineering Center at the Breazeale Nuclear Reactor, was elected secretary/treasurer of the Nuclear Installations Safety Division of the American Nuclear Society (ANS). The ANS is an international scientific and educational organization that seeks to unify professional activities within the diverse fields of nuclear science and technology. The Nuclear Installations Safety Division promotes a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear reactor facilities.
Bill Sharpe, professor of forest hydrology, received the Pennsylvania Conservation Award for his research on acid deposition.
Willa Z. Silverman, associate professor of French, has been elected to a three-year term as president of the Association for French Cultural Studies. Founded in 1980, the association promotes the study of French civilization and culture in American colleges and universities through the organization of colloquia, the awarding of a book prize in French studies and the encouragement of research and teaching in this field.
Spiro Stefanou, professor of agricultural economics, presented the paper "Decomposing Productivity Gains Allowing Efficiency Gains and Technical Progress" at the Sixth European Workshop on Efficiency and Productivity in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Gerhard F. Strasser, professor of German and comparative literature, and 11 undergraduate and graduate students from his early modern studies seminar were invited to hold a "Guest Seminar" at the Herzog August Bibliothek, a research library in Wolfenbüttel, Germany. Strasser also presented a paper on "Natural Magic in 16th and 17th-Century Cryptography" at the triennial international Baroque Conference at the same location.
Fay Strickler, family and consumer science agent in Berks County, was recently elected second vice president of the National Board of Epsilon Sigma Phi (cooperative extension's professional organization).
"Better Kid Care," a monthly satellite training series for child care providers, was recognized by the American Distance Education Consortium as an "Outstanding Educational Program." The award was presented to James Van Horn, professor of rural sociology, the program's creator, executive producer and host.
Donald Waddington and John Harper, professors emeriti in the Department of Agronomy in the College of Agricultural Sciences, have been recognized by the Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization for their pioneering work to improve the construction and maintenance of athletic fields. The two have had educational scholarships named in their honor.