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School Newsa w a r d sa w a r d sParkinson wins SAE TeetorEducational AwardThe Society of Automotive Engineers(SAE) International, a professionalorganization dedicated to advancingmobility engineering, has selectedMatthew Parkinson, assistant professorof engineering design and mechanicalengineering, as a recipient of the 2009SAE Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award.Established in 1953, the Teetor Awardrecognizes outstanding youngMatthew Parkinsonengineering educators and providesthem the opportunity to connect with practicing engineers intheir fields. Ralph R. Teetor, for whom the award is named, was aformer SAE president who believed that engineering educatorsare the most effective link between engineering students and theirfuture careers.A member of Penn State’s engineering faculty since 2005,Parkinson’s research expertise is in rigorous methods forthe design of artifacts for use by people, including areas likebiomechanics and biomedical design, ergonomics, rehabilitationengineering, motion modeling, and prediction and mechanicaldesign. Parkinson was recently granted a National ScienceFoundation CAREER Award for a project titled, “Foundations ofDesigning for Human Variability.” The project’s objective is toprovide a foundation to improve design for the accommodationfor diverse populations, such as the elderly and the disabled.In addition to teaching graduate and undergraduate-level coursesat Penn State, Parkinson is active in publishing and presentingat professional conferences. He also serves as director forboth the Center for Research in Design and Innovation andthe OPEN Design Lab. Parkinson holds a doctoral degree inbiomedical engineering and a master’s degree in industrial andoperations from the University of Michigan. Parkinson holds amaster’s degree in mechanical engineering from Brigham YoungUniversity.This is not the first award Parkinson has received from SAEInternational. In 2008, he received the Lloyd L. WithrowDistinguished Speaker Award and in 2007 received the Excellencein Oral Presentation Award at the SAE Digital Human Modelingfor Design and Engineering Conference and Exhibition. In 2005,SAE presented Parkinson with the Arch T. Colwell Merit Award foroutstanding paper in mobility engineering for 2003.Since its inception, the Teetor Program has provided more than800 engineering educators the opportunity to develop closerrelationships with practicing engineers.—Victoria CurrierParkinson receives 2009 PSEASOutstanding Teaching AwardMatthew Parkinson, assistant professor of engineering designand mechanical engineering, has been awarded the 2009 PennState Engineering Alumni Society (PSEAS) Outstanding TeachingAward.Each year, the PSEAS honors those nominated by colleaguesand students for their work, research, teaching, service, andadvising. The Outstanding Teaching Award recognizes and rewardsoutstanding engineering educators for excellence in teaching andfor contributions to the art of teaching—those faculty memberswho demonstrate a strong commitment and interest to theeducation of students.The PSEAS is an alumni advisory board that works closely withdeans, faculty, and students in the College of Engineering topromote and improve the program at Penn State.Mehta wins entrepreneurshipeducation awardKhanjan MehtaIdeablob.com contest.Khanjan Mehta, senior researchassociate and affiliate faculty, hasbeen recognized for his achievementswith the 2008 Innovation in TeachingEntrepreneurship Award.He is one of just two professionals inthe United States to win the Advantasponsoredaward.Mehta is the only instructor to havetwo students win $10,000 each in cashseed money for outstanding ideas in anIn 2006, he was one of two U.S. delegates chosen by UNESCOand Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW) to help establish aninternational ESW organization.Mehta’s other notable honors include being featured as a guestadviser on Ideablob.com and receiving a 2008 W. LaMarr KoppInternational Achievement Award.Kremer invited to inaugural symposium ofelite engineersGül Kremer, associate professor ofengineering design and industrialengineering, was selected toparticipate in the National Academy ofEngineering’s Frontiers of EngineeringEducation (FOEE) inauguralsymposium, held Nov. 15-18, 2009, inHerndon, VA.The event brought together engineering faculty members in thefirst half of their careers who are developing and implementinginnovative educational approaches in a variety of disciplines. Itencouraged participants to share ideas, learn from research andbest practice in education, and leave with a charter to bring aboutimprovement in their home institution.The 49 participants were nominated by fellow engineers or deansand chosen from a highly competitive pool of applicants.The program focused on effective ways to ensure that studentslearn the engineering fundamentals, the expanding knowledgebase of new technology, and the skills necessary to be an effectiveengineer or engineering researcher.“In our increasingly global and competitive world, the UnitedStates needs to marshal its resources to address the strategicshortfall of engineering leaders in the next decades,” said EdwardF. Crawley, Ford Professor of Engineering at MIT, and chairman ofthe first FOEE. “By holding this event, we have recognized someof the finest young engineering educators in the nation and willbetter equip them to transform the educational process at theiruniversities.”Bilén selected as associate fellow by AIAASven Bilén, associate professorof engineering design, aerospaceengineering, and electrical engineering,and Farhan Gandhi, professor ofaerospace engineering, have beenselected as associate fellows by theAssociate Fellows Upgrade Committeeof the American Institute of Aeronauticsand Astronautics (AIAA).Sven BilénTo be selected for the grade ofassociate fellow, an individual mustbe an AIAA senior member with at least 12 years of professionalexperience in their field and have been recommended by aminimum of three AIAA members who are already associatefellows.Bilén and Gandhi were honored at the AIAA Associate FellowsDinner on Jan. 4, 2010, at the Orlando World Center Marriottin Orlando, FL, as part of the 48th AIAA Aerospace SciencesMeeting. They were among the 195 AIAA members selected tobecome associate fellows in 2010.SEDTAPP faculty, students receive KoppInternational Achievement AwardRichard Schuhmann, Walter L. Robb Director of EngineeringLeadership Development, received the faculty W. LaMarr KoppInternational Achievement Award.Established in 1995, the award recognizes faculty and staffmembers who have contributed significantly to the advancementof the international mission of theUniversity. It is named for the latedeputy vice president for internationalprograms.Schuhmann shared the award asa co-recipient with Judith F. Kroll,distinguished professor of psychology,linguistics, and women’s studies in theCollege of the Liberal Arts.Richard SchuhmannSchuhmann’s teaching and researchactivities have formed sustainable relationships between studentsand faculty overseas and in the United States and have createdprograms that engage Penn State faculty and students withpeople in developing communities around the world.Along with Schuhmann's faculty award, Steven Marshall andEric Sauder, both undergraduate mechanical engineering majorsand Schreyer Honors College scholars, have been awarded thestudent W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Award.The award recognizes one graduate student and oneundergraduate annually who has contributed significantly tothe advancement of theinternational mission of theUniversity. Marshall andSauder are co-recipientsof the 2009 undergraduateachievement award.Marshall and Sauderdeveloped and helped Steven Marshall and Eric Sauderlead a long-terminitiative to provide an international, immersive, collaborative,multidisciplinary, active-learning experience in Jamaica forstudents from engineering, business, and the social sciences.Mustard Seed Communities, a faith-based nonprofit organizationbased in Jamaica that works with mentally and physicallydisabled young adults, approached Penn State in 2007 for helpin developing a residential community for their constituents. Theproposed site, called Jacob’s Ladder, is in a remote area of centralJamaica’s Blue Mountains. Penn State hopes to develop solutionsthat promote sustainability and increase the quality of life forthe residents and workers at Jacob’s Ladder. Associate ProfessorAndrew Lau and Assistant Professor Thomas Colledge wereadvisers of the project.Marshall and Sauder also participated in a three-week study tourof Jordan—where they took keen interest in learning the languageand being immersed in the culture—and also have visitedTanzania, Australia, and the Sovereign Nation of the Ojibwe Tribe.Gül Kremer54 | SEDTAPP News | Spring 2010 Spring 2010 | SEDTAPP News | 55