Faculty excellence recognized at convocation


Professor Arindam Chowdhury took top honors Sept. 27 at Faculty Convocation, an annual event that welcomes new faculty and recognizes faculty accomplishments.

Chowdhury, director of wind engineering at the International Hurricane Research Center, received the President’s Council Worlds Ahead Faculty Award.

Under Chowdhury’s direction, the Wall of Wind research team has had a significant impact in mitigating hurricane damage by enhancing building codes, validating innovative mitigation technologies and developing new materials. The team has a patent pending for a new type of roofing material.

Recommendations made as a result of Wall of Wind testing were published in the 2010 Florida Building Code. The new code provisions are geared toward decreasing the vulnerability of roofs and rooftop equipment.

Along with the honor, Chowdhury received a $12,500 award. Two finalists for the award were Philip Church and Elizabeth Price Foley.

This year, the Faculty Convocation keynote speaker was Ira Harkavy, founding director of the Barbara and Edward Netter Center for Community Partnerships at the University of Pennsylvania. Harkavy spoke about university-community engagement, advancing knowledge, and realizing America’s democratic promise in the 21st century. Click here to read the entire speech.

Faculty Convocation 2012 Awardees

President’s Council Worlds Ahead Faculty Award:

  • Arindam Gan Chowdhury, Civil and Environmental Engineering

President’s Council Worlds Ahead Faculty Award Finalists:

  • Phillip M. Church, Theatre
  • Elizabeth Price Foley, Law

Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching:

  • Michael Brown, Biomedical Engineering
  • Wendy Gelman, Accounting
  • Krishnaswamy Jayachandran, Environmental Studies
  • Edward Lawrence, Finance and Real Estate
  • Mark Macgowan, Social Work
  • Santiago Juan-Navarro, Modern Languages

Faculty Award for Excellence in Research:

  • Jiuhua Chen, Mechanical and Materials Engineering
  • John Dufresne, English
  • Albert Gan, Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • Robert Malow, Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
  • Osama Mohammed, Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • David Rifkind, Architecture

Faculty Award for Excellence in Engagement:

  • James Webb, Physics

Faculty Award for Excellence in Service:

  • Gustavo Roig, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Faculty Award for Excellence in Graduate Mentorship:

  • Jose Almirall, Chemistry and Biochemistry
  • Stanislaw Wnuk, Chemistry and Biochemistry

Faculty Award for Excellence in Advising:

  • John Makemson, Biological Sciences

Faculty Award for Excellence in Librarianship:

  • Althea “Vickie” Silvera, Library

Adjunct Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching:

  • Israel Garcia, Theatre
  • Patricia McDermott-Wells, Computer and Information Sciences
  • Diane Mooney, English