2012-2013 MSE Undergraduate Awards

MSE Department Awards Winners. Far left: MSE professor and chair Robert M. Briber. Left to right: Chris Berkey, Elizabeth Ashley, Nick Weadock, Mark Reese, Nick Faenza, Santiago Miret, and Norena Beaty.

Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) undergraduates were among the award recipients at the 2012-2013 A. James Clark School of Engineering's Honors and Awards Ceremony, held April 9. The event honors students from all departments who have demonstrated outstanding academic performance, research, and contributions to their departments or fields. Clark School dean Darryll Pines and MSE professor and chair Robert M. Briber presented the awards.

This year, the awards and their recipients were:

Department Awards

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering Chairman’s Outstanding Senior Award
Presented to a graduating senior for scholarship, leadership and service to the department.

Awarded to Mark Reese.

Mark Reese has been very active in scholarship, leadership and service in the Department, particularly in outreach activities to recruit new students. He has conducted research in thin films and had an internship at Adell Plastics. He currently serves as the President of both the department's student chapter of the Materials Engineering Society (MatES) and the university's chapter of Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society. Reese will join Microsoft this summer as a hardware engineer.

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering Outstanding Materials Student Service Award
Presented to graduating seniors for outstanding service to the department and to the student chapter of the Materials Engineering Society.

Awarded to Elizabeth Ashley and Nick Faenza.

Senior Elizabeth Ashley has been a very active participant in service to both the Department and to the student chapter of MatES, in which she currently serves as Vice President. She is always willing to attend open houses to share her experiences at the Clark School and University of Maryland. Ashley has also been active in research in the both department and at the National Institute of Standards and Technology through a summer undergraduate research fellowship during 2012. She is a member of Tau Beta Pi, the National Engineering Society; Alpha Sigma Mu, the Materials Science and Engineering Honor Society; and Engineers Without Borders.

Senior Nick Faenza has been active in service to the Department, including assisting in outreach activities at open houses. He has also served as a Clark School Ambassador. Faenza has participated in research at both the University of Maryland and at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. His work on lithium ion batteries has been submitted for publication. Faenza is interested in attending graduate school.

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering Student Research Award
Presented to an undergraduate who has demonstrated creativity and scholarship in research.

Awarded to Nick Weadock.

Nick Weadock has been involved in research activities in the Department, primarily in the area of materials for energy, and particularly on sodium ion batteries. Weadock’s research activities have resulted in two presentations and four papers that have been submitted for publication. Weadock was a core member of the 2011 Watershed team, which won the Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon. He collaborated with Facilities Management on green design for the Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center at the University of Maryland. Weadock was a member of Engineers without Borders, Tau Beta Pi and Alpha Sigma Mu. He will attend graduate school in the fall.

A. James Clark School of Engineering Awards

The Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering Service Award
This award is presented for dedicated service to the Clark School's Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering and the university community, and for commitment to promoting diversity in engineering.

Awarded to Norena Beaty.

Santiago Miret MSE senior Norena Beaty is the President of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, a student organization she has been a part of since her sophomore year. As a summer intern she played a key role in developing a program to introduce engineering to underrepresented minority students. She considers her work with SHPE and with the Center for Minorities in Science and Engineering to be some of the most rewarding during her time at the University of Maryland. She is deeply appreciative of this service award and for all of the opportunities the Center has afforded her.

The Dinah Berman Memorial Award
The Dinah Berman Memorial Award is presented to a third year engineering student with a 4.0 grade point average and who has combined academic excellence with demonstrated leadership or service to the Clark School.

Awarded to Chris Berkey.

MSE junior Chris Berkey is a member of the university Honors Program and has maintained a 4.0 GPA while also remaining active in Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society. Outside of the classroom, Berkey volunteers in the MindSET program, where he works with other Clark School students to teach engineering concepts to kids at local middle schools and encourage them to pursue careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math. He is currently researching the possible role of unique nanostructures in new high energy density batteries.

The Kim Borsavage and Pamela J. Stone Student Award for Outstanding Service
Established in 1995, this award is presented to a student who has demonstrated outstanding dedication and service to the Clark School and is a truly unique individual whose contributions to the School exemplify a high level of dedication and service.

Awarded to Santiago Miret.

MSE senior Santiago Miret is a member of two multidisciplinary programs, the Quality Enhancements Systems and Teams (QUEST) program, which focuses on systems innovation; and the Hinman CEOs program, which focuses on entrepreneurship. In his fourth semester, he spent a semester abroad at Fudan University in Shanghai, China, and he has used his experiences in there to assist in the Clark School's international outreach efforts. Miret has also been an active member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) for four years, in which he has held multiple leadership positions. He has served as a Clark School Ambassador since his second semester.