EMS recognizes
seven faculty members

Seven College of Earth and Mineral Sciences faculty members have been recognized for their contributions with the Wilson Awards for Outstanding Teaching, Excellence in Research and Outstanding Service.

The 2000 Wilson Award recipients are:

n Donald A. Koss, professor of materials science and engineering, and Susan Trolier-McKinstry, associate professor of ceramic science, for teaching;

n Michael A. Arthur, professor of geosciences; Long-Qing Chen, associate professor of materials science and engineering; and Chunshan Song, associate professor of fuel science; all for research;

n C. Gregory Knight, professor of geography, and Peter T. Luckie, associate dean for research and professor of mineral engineering, for service.

Koss was recognized for outstanding instruction in metallurgy. He consistently receives high marks on teaching evaluations and students praise him for his ability to facilitate learning by coupling theory with real-world examples. Koss is particularly acclaimed for a course he developed, "The Practicing Materials Engineer," in which students are brought into contact with professionals at all levels of the materials industry.

Trolier-McKinstry was honored for her dedication to teaching and example as a role model. Her students appreciate her vigilance in presenting comprehensible course materials. Trolier-McKinstry also is the associate director of the Materials Research Laboratory. She is seen as a role model outside the classroom -- especially for women in the sciences and engineering -- and was recently awarded the 2000 Robert L. Coble Award for Young Scholars in recognition of her research on ferroelectrics.

Arthur was cited for pioneering work using carbon isotopes to determine atmospheric CO2 concentrations through geologic time. His studies have shown that CO2 levels from 25 to 5 million years ago did not fluctuate much despite dramatic climactic changes during the period. His research has significant implications for understanding Earth's carbon cycle and the limitations of its influence on the planet's climate.

Chen was acknowledged for his work developing successful computational models to study complex microstructural evolution in multiphase systems, grain growth and domain evolution in ferroelectric and ferroelastic materials. His work provides a new way to realistically model the microstructural evolution of technologically important materials.

Song was honored for original and important contributions to selective zeolite catalysis research. His findings have led to methods for converting hydrocarbon resources into high-value organic chemicals and monomers, environmentally cleaner transportation fuels and industrial materials. Song, who is also the director of the Energy Institute's Applied Catalysis in Energy Lab, holds six patents or disclosures for his work.

Knight was recognized for his work "behind the scenes" as a facilitator, builder and leader. He has played a vital role in developing college research centers, promoting the careers of young scholars and building informal networks that advance college goals and establish a sense of community.

Luckie was honored for 14 years of noteworthy service directing the research enterprise of the college as associate dean for research. During his tenure the annual research funded in the college doubled and national research agendas turned to the environment, materials and geographic information science. Luckie will step down from his position as associate dean for research at the end of June.

Instructor earns faculty prize
for outstanding work

Doris "Tiz" Griffith, instructor in kinesiology at Penn State Delaware County, has been awarded the Madlyn L. Hanes Faculty Prize for outstanding contributions to the campus. She was cited for her exceptional achievement in teaching, research, scholarship and service.

The Hanes prize was established and funded by the faculty at Penn State Delaware County in 1998 as a tribute to Madlyn L. Hanes, former director of academic affairs at the campus and now executive officer and associate dean of the graduate school at Penn State Great Valley School of Graduate Professional Studies.

Griffith, who has served as campus athletic director since 1988, earned her B.S. in health and physical education at Temple University, and her M.S. in health and physical education at West Chester University. She was named the Commonwealth Campus Athletic Conference Tennis Coach of the Year in 1990, and has served on many campus boards. She joined the campus faculty in 1981.

Professor elected to
National Academy of Sciences

Moses Chan, Evan Pugh professor of physics, has been elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences, considered one of the highest honors that can be accorded a United States scientist or engineer. Sixty new members were recently elected, bringing the total number of active members to 1,843.

Chan's research is aimed at answering, or raising, fundamental questions about matter in its various phases or states such as liquid, solid and gas. The principles he and his research group have helped to establish have proven to be useful in understanding a wide variety of problems in condensed-matter systems undergoing phase transitions.

A major achievement of Chan's research group in 1984 was the confirmation of one of the most important theories in modern statistical mechanics, known as the two-dimensional Ising Model, which until the work of Chan and his group had not been tested experimentally since it was first proposed 40 years earlier.

Chan earned a bachelor's degree in physics, magna cum laude, at Bridgewater College in Virginia in 1967, then enrolled in the physics department at Cornell University, where he earned a master's degree in 1969 and a doctoral degree in 1974. He joined Penn State as assistant professor of physics in 1979. He was promoted to associate professor in 1984 and to professor in 1986, then was honored as distinguished professor of physics in 1990 and Evan Pugh professor of physics in 1994.

Chan has trained nearly 20 graduate students in his laboratory and has sponsored nine postdoctoral scholars at Penn State.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private organization of scientists and engineers dedicated to the promotion of science and its use for the general welfare.

McKeesport lauds three employees

James Adams, instructor in English at Penn State McKeesport, is the recipient of the Academic Excellence Award from that campus' Advisory Board. The award is presented in recognition of faculty whose teaching, scholarship, research, publication, service or mentoring have contributed significantly to the academic excellence of the campus. Adams was cited as an outstanding teacher, campus leader, mentor and community-minded professional.

The Service Award at McKeesport was given to Carol Meek, assistant to the director of academic affairs, in recognition of her exemplary contributions to the University. Meek coordinates many campus programs, including the Women In Science, Engineering and Technology and SummerSET programs, the Women's Commission and commencement at the campus.

J. Patrick Boyle, director of student affairs, received the Leadership Award in recognition of distinguished accomplishments that have contributed to campus progress. The award recognized Boyle's leadership qualities as well as his willingness to commit time and effort above and beyond his regular duties.

Associate professor of chemistry
named a Guggenheim Fellow

Xumu Zhang, associate professor of chemistry, has been selected as a Guggenheim Fellow by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.

According to the foundation, Guggenheim Fellows are selected on the basis of their unusually distinguished achievements and their exceptional promise for future accomplishments. Zhang was among 182 scientists, scholars and artists selected from a pool of 2,927 applicants to receive the award this year.

The award will provide support for Zhang's work with asymmetric catalysts designed to facilitate the development of efficient, high-yield processes for the manufacture of pharmaceutical compounds known as chiral drugs -- a broad category of medications whose therapeutic effectiveness is dependent on the shape and configuration of a drug molecule in addition to its chemical composition.

Zhang's research goals include understanding the factors that control the formation of these molecules and to develop catalytic techniques for producing them in quantities sufficient for industrial applications in the agrochemical, electronics, food-additive, fragrance and pharmaceutical industries. Techniques for producing useful molecular configurations have the ability to increase the efficiency and lower the cost of the manufacturing process.

Mont Alto honors
two faculty members

Two Mont Alto faculty members have been honored for their outstanding contributions. Robert Maurer, assistant professor of mathematics, received the Martha A. Fisher Award for Excellence in Teaching, and James Donovan, associate professor of history, earned the Student Government Association Advising Award.

Maurer started his tenure at Penn State in the fall of 1963 and has taught in seven departments for programs in four colleges. He also was campus registrar for 27 years. Maurer will retire this summer.

To be eligible for the Martha Fisher Award, an instructor must teach at least four classes per year and be nominated by a Penn State Mont Alto student.

Donovan began teaching at Mont Alto in 1983. He teaches history at Penn State and advises in the College of the Liberal Arts. The Student Government Association Advising Award is based on excellence in academic counseling and advising.

Associate professor
wins Humboldt fellowship

Stephen M. Wheeler, associate professor of classics, has been awarded a research fellowship for 2000-2001 from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Bonn, Germany.

The fellowships are awarded to scholars of all disciplines in a worldwide competition. The award includes a monetary grant and support for research at a German university of the recipient's choice for a period of one year. Wheeler was selected to receive the honor in recognition of his research achievements in the field of Latin literature and especially for his literary critical contributions to the study of Ovid's poetry.

Wheeler will conduct his research at the Free University Berlin and write his third book, Ovid's Ancient Readers: Reception, Interpretation, Dialogue, which will examine the evidence for Ovid's readership in classical antiquity from the age of Augustus to the fall of Rome. He has been at Penn State since 1992.

Systems engineer earns
Caldwell Service Award

Mike Kauffman, systems engineer in the Office of Administrative Systems (OAS) at University Park, has been awarded the 2000 Thomas R. Caldwell Service Award for Excellence.

Kauffman, a Penn State employee since 1976, was recognized in particular for his leadership role on the Y2K project, which made sure the University's computer systems would run without problems after Dec. 31, 1999, and educated employees to ensure that the more than 30,000 desktop computers in use at the University also would function properly.

All employees of OAS are eligible for the award, which is named for former employee Tom Caldwell, a senior systems analyst in OAS for more than 15 years, who died in a house fire in 1991.

Nominees are judged on their dedication to their job, interpersonal relations and outstanding job knowledge. A permanent plaque listing the previous honorees is on display in 2 Shields Building on the University Park campus.