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News

U.S. News Releases 2016 Best Engineering Schools Rankings

The Whitacre College of Engineering overall graduate engineering program and six individual degree programs were recently ranked in the 2016 U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings.

  • The overall graduate engineering program is tied for 94th among 215 programs nationwide.
  • The Department of Chemical Engineering ranked 72nd in the Chemical Engineering category.
  • The Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering ranked 91st in the Civil Engineering category and 70th in the Environmental / Environmental Health Engineering category.
  • The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering ranked 83rd in the Electrical / Electronic / Communications Engineering category.
  • The Department of Industrial Engineering ranked 45th in the Industrial / Manufacturing / Systems Engineering category.
  • The Department of Mechanical Engineering ranked 100th in the Mechanical Engineering category.
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Student News
Atore
Atore
Rodriguez
Rodriguez
Simmons
Simmons

Engineering Students Named University Innovation Fellows

Three Texas Tech engineering students are among 123 students from 52 U.S. higher education institutions that have been named University Innovation Fellows by the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter). Francis Atore, a senior chemical engineering major, Valente Rodriguez, a senior mechanical engineering major, and Benjamin Simmons, a junior mechanical engineering major, join two other Texas Tech students in this distinct honor.

The National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter) is funded by the National Science Foundation and directed by Stanford University and VentureWell (formerly NCIIA).

The University Innovation Fellows program empowers students to become agents of change at their schools. The fellows are a national community of students in engineering and related fields who work to ensure that their peers gain the knowledge, skills, and attitudes required to compete in the economy of the future. To accomplish this, the fellows advocate for lasting institutional change and create opportunities for students to engage with entrepreneurship, innovation, creativity, design thinking, and venture creation at their schools. Individual fellows as well as teams of fellows are sponsored by faculty and administrators at their schools and selected through an application process twice annually. Following acceptance into the program, schools fund the students to go through six weeks of online training and travel to the University Innovation Fellows Annual Meetup in Silicon Valley. Throughout the year, they take part in events and conferences across the country and have opportunities to learn from one another, Epicenter mentors, and leaders in academia and industry.

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Bratton
Bratton

Bratton Recognized with Student Academic – Citizenship Award

Ryan Bratton, a senior petroleum engineering student, is the recipient of a 2014-2015 Student Academic – Citizenship Award from the Texas Tech Parents Association.

Each spring, the Texas Tech Parents Association honors a student in each of the academic colleges at Texas Tech for superior achievement in both academics and service to the community. This service includes recognizing a public need, voluntarily identifying with it, and demonstrating superior leadership and/or a high quality of performance in fulfilling that public need. Winners of these awards maintain high academic standards while simultaneously being involved in student activities and in their community.

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Cloutier
Cloutier

Cloutier Receives NORA Young/New Investigators Symposium Travel Award

Aimee Cloutier, a mechanical engineering graduate student under the supervision of Dr. James Yang, has been selected to receive a travel award for the 13th Annual Regional National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) Young/New Investigators Symposium to present her research.

The National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) is a partnership program to stimulate innovative research and improved workplace practices. Unveiled in 1996, NORA has become a research framework for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the nation. Diverse parties collaborate to identify the most critical issues in workplace safety and health. Partners then work together to develop goals and objectives for addressing these needs.

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Wei
Wei

Wei Receives Horn Professors Graduate Achievement Award

Dali Wei, a doctoral student in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Construction Engineering, has been awarded the Horn Professors Graduate Achievement Award. This award, given by the Paul Whitfield Horn Professors at Texas Tech University, recognizes two students from within the university each year.

The Horn Professors Graduate Achievement Award was been established by the Horn Professors to recognize and reward outstanding research or creative activity performed by graduate students while at Texas Tech University.

Students may not apply directly for this award, but must be nominated by a graduate faculty member at Texas Tech.

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Faculty News
Jankowski
Jankowski

Jankowski Named Fellow of ASM International

Dr. Alan Jankowski, a professor of mechanical engineering, has been named a fellow of ASM International. ASM established the Fellow of the Society honor to provide recognition to members for their distinguished contributions to materials science and engineering and to develop a broadly based forum of technical and professional leaders to serve as advisors to the society.

Jankowski was elected "for pioneering the use and application of deposition technology to synthesize engineered nanostructures such as nanolaminates and metallic glasses in order to investigate physical properties, phase transformations and energy conversion."

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Karp
Karp

Karp Receives President's Excellence in Teaching Award

Dr. Tanja Karp, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, is one of the 2014-2015 recipients of the Texas Tech University President's Excellence in Teaching Award.

The award is given to faculty members that demonstrate excellence in teaching, as observed by students, peers, and university administration.

McKenna
McKenna

McKenna Receives Rushing Faculty Distinguished Research Award

Dr. Gregory B. McKenna, Horn Professor and John R. Bradford Chair in Engineering, has been named a recipient of the 2014-2015 Barnie E. Rushing Jr. Faculty Distinguished Research Award from the Texas Tech Parents Association.

Each year, the Texas Tech Parents Association presents the award to recognize outstanding research by a member of the Texas Tech faculty and to recognize excellence in scholarship and creative activity by the faculty of the university. McKenna will be recognized and presented an honorarium at the Texas Tech Parents Association spring scholarship breakfast.

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Neuber
Neuber

Neuber Designated Horn Professor

Dr. Andreas Neuber, AT&T Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, was recently designated as a Horn Professor by the Texas Tech University System Board of Regents

Established in 1966, the designation is named after Paul Horn, the first president of Texas Tech. The professorship recognizes scholarly achievement and outstanding service to Texas Tech. Of the 86 members recognized as Horn Professors, 32 are still on the faculty.

Neuber joined Texas Tech in 1996. He is the co-director of the Center for Pulsed Power and Power Electronics. He earned his master’s degree in physics and doctorate in engineering from the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany. His research expertise is pulsed power technology and high power microwaves.

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Pantoya
Pantoya

Pantoya Named YWCA Woman of Excellence

Dr. Michelle Pantoya, J. W. Wright Regents Chair in Mechanical Engineering and professor, has been named to the YWCA of Lubbock's Women of Excellence academy, a program that recognizes and honors women in our community who excel in their careers. Dr. Al Sacco Jr., dean of the Whitacre College of Engineering, nominated her for the award.

Since 1989, the YWCA has honored 185 Women of Excellence who have been inspiring others in Lubbock not only with their professional achievements, but also with the work they do for the community. They serve as role models for current and future generations.

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Sacco
Sacco

Sacco Recognized with AIChE F&PD Division Award

Dr. Al Sacco Jr., dean of the Whitacre College of Engineering, has been named the recipient of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Fuels and Petrochemicals Division (F&PD) Award for 2015.

The F&PD Division Award recognizes individuals who have made substantial technological contributions to the advancement of the fuels and petrochemicals industries as shown by a long and recognized record in the recipient’s areas of achievement. The award is based on a combination of technical achievement, management skills, business acumen, academic leadership and general service to the profession.

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Weeks
Weeks

Weeks Receives Wells Award for Creativity in Teaching

Dr. Brandon Weeks, a professor of chemical engineering, has been named a recipient of the 2014-2015 Spencer A. Wells Award for Creativity in Teaching from the Texas Tech Parents Association.

Since 1966, the award has been presented annually to a professor who demonstrates exceptional creativity in his or her approach to excellence in teaching as attested to by students, faculty and administrators, by making more effective use of the university as an educational force in the lives and training of his or her students.

Alumni News
Gary
Gary

Gary Named Vice President of Texas Instruments

Mark Gary, a 1998 graduate with dual bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering and computer science from Texas Tech, has been elected vice president of Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI). As vice president, Gary will manage the DC Solutions business within TI’s power management business and is responsible for driving the strategic development of several power product lines that have broad portfolios including DC/DC converters, controllers, power modules, FETs and power stages.

Gary joined TI in 1998 as a product engineer within TI’s high-reliability business unit. He has held a number of positions within the company, including product line manager for battery fuel gauges, business unit manager for TI’s linear power business and most recently business unit manager for TI’s DCS business.

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Bourdon
Bourdon
Clem
Clem
Gray
Gray

Texas Tech Ranks Second Behind Harvard in 2014 IPO Class

Texas Tech University ranked second among universities in the initial public offering (IPO) class of 2014, according to a list compiled by Equilar, an executive compensation data firm. Three CEOs who earned their undergraduate engineering degrees from Texas Tech took their companies public during 2014.

Steven Gray, CEO of RSP Permian, Inc., had an IPO date of Jan. 17, 2014; Lynn Bourdon III, took Enable Midstream Partners, LP public on April 11, 2014; and Jack Clem, CEO of Orion Engineered Carbons S.A., had an IPO date of July 25, 2014.

“These alumni’s distinctive achievements are representative of the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit that our graduates bring to the table,” said Dr. Al Sacco Jr., dean of the Whitacre College of Engineering. “Red Raider engineers are leading the advancement of technology and forging solutions to society’s problems all over the world.”

Bourdon graduated from Texas Tech with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering in 1984. He became president and CEO of Enable Midstream Partners, LP in February 2014.

Clem obtained a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering at Texas Tech in 1975. The Whitacre College of Engineering awarded him the distinguished engineer citation in 1993. Clem has been CEO of Orion Engineered Carbons since July 2011 and became manager of the company in May 2014.

Gray graduated from Texas Tech with a Bachelor of Science in petroleum engineering. He co-founded RSP Permian in 2010, which is when he became CEO.

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Grants and Contracts

February 19, 2015 – March 10, 2015

Investigator(s) Agency Title Amount
Center for Pulsed Power and Power Electronics
Dr. Stephen B. Bayne* and
Dr. Michael G. Giesselmann
U.S. Army Research Lab Semiconductor Evaluation for High Action Applications $400,000
Dr. James Dickens and
Dr. Andreas A. Neuber
Office of Naval Research Theoretical and Experimental Development of a SiC Photonic to RF Converter for HPM Generation using Both Conventional Radiators and Wavelet Based Antenna Arrays $309,283
Chemical Engineering
Dr. Gregory B. McKenna, and
Dr. Sindee L. Simon
III Agri-Enterprises LLC Sprayon Proposal $13,648
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Dr. Daan Liang National Science Foundation NWI: Travel Funds for the 14th International Conference on Wind Engineering $24,600
Industrial Engineering
Dr. Ismael R. De Farias Office of Naval Research Nonconvex Combinational Nonlinear Optimization: New Methodologies and Critical Applications $33,436.22

* Primary Investigator

Events

See a full listing of the college's events on the Engineering Master Calendar.

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Apr 30, 2020