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Recognitions, September 16

The middle of September brings; the inaugural cohort of Diversity and Engagement Fellows; the Head of the Department of Nuclear Engineering receives the Robert L. Long Training Excellence Award; an assistant professor in MABE receives NIH-based funding for prosthetics research; a MABE professor is elected to the inaugural class of the ASPE College of Fellows; a TCE graduate student is honored by the Society of Women Engineers.

UT Announces First Cohort of Diversity and Engagement FellowsDiversity and Equity Fellows 2020

Six faculty and staff members have been selected inaugural fellows of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Division of Diversity and Engagement for the 2020–21 academic year.

Fellows embody the Volunteer spirit of inclusive excellence, service, and content expertise. This cohort will support and enhance the division by focusing on unit administration; advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion; and deepening university-community partnerships that enhance town-gown relationships and help solve real world issues.

Hines Receives 2020 Robert L. Long Award

UT's Wes HinesWes Hines is the 2020 recipient of the Robert L. Long Training Excellence Award given by the American Nuclear Society’s Education and Training and Workforce Development Division’s (ETWDD) Honors and Awards Committee. The award was established in 1993 and renamed in 2010 to honor Robert L. Long, PhD, who served as ANS President from 1991–1992 and is intended to recognize an individual or group who has demonstrated sustained excellence in nuclear training.

In addition to serving as the head of UT’s Department of Nuclear Engineering, Hines also serves as both Postelle Professor and Chancellor’s Professor in the department.

NIH-Based Institute Funds Prosthetics Research

UT's Dustin CrouchThe National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Disease (NIAMS), an Institute at the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—the nation’s premier biomedical research agency—has awarded Assistant Professor Dustin Crouch funding for the next two years for his research in prosthetics. The project will be co-funded by the NIH National Center for Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR).

Crouch, who runs the Upper Limb Assist Lab in MABE, has been collaborating with the UT College of Veterinary Medicine and UT Medical Center to develop technologies and treatments with the hope of revolutionizing how prostheses are worn and interact with the body.

Schmitz Elected to ASPE Inaugural Class of College of Fellows

UT's Tony SchmitzThe American Society for Precision Engineering (ASPE) has elected Professor Tony Schmitz as a member of their inaugural class of College of Fellows. This prestigious honor recognizes exceptional members of the society who have made outstanding contributions to the art and practice of precision engineering through original research, innovations, education and outreach, or service to the profession.

Schmitz, who served as the 2019 ASPE president, will officially be inducted into the College of Fellows during the virtual ASPE Annual Meeting in October.

SWE Honors MSE Graduate Student Grace Pakeltis with Outstanding Collegiate Member Award

UT's Grace PakeltisThe Society of Women Engineers (SWE) honored MSE graduate student Grace Pakeltis with a 2020 SWE Outstanding Collegiate Member award. The award recognizes her impact on the society as well as the engineering community and the UT campus.

Pakeltis serves as the graduate member coordinator for society-level GradSWE, the society’s community for graduate-student focus. She fosters this community around the world while providing resources and support to both GradSWE group leaders and individual graduate students. Her passion for SWE and assisting graduate students inspired her to start a GradSWE group for UT‘s SWE section.