Faculty Awards
The Office of Faculty Development and Success is excited to highlight the accomplishments of our engineering faculty. The following are internal and external faculty awards announced from April 1, 2024 - April 1, 2025.
College
| Award | Awardee | Department | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alcoa Foundation Distinguished Engineering Research Award: It is made to a senior faculty member for research achievements over a period of at least five years at NC State. | Yong Zhu | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | |
| Alcoa Foundation Engineering Research Achievement Award: Recognizes young faculty who have accomplished outstanding research achievements during the preceding three years. | Albert Keung | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2025 |
| George H. Blessis Outstanding Undergraduate Advisor Award: Recognizes outstanding undergraduate advising. | Giorgio T. Proestos | Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering | |
| RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company Award- honors an engineering faculty member who has demonstrated superiority in several areas relating to teaching, research and extension to bring recognition to scientific and educational achievements in fields of engineering. | Francis de los Reyes | Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering | 2024 |
University and State
| Award | Awardee | Department | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alumni Association Distinguished Graduate Professorship Award: It recognizes outstanding graduate level teaching at North Carolina State University. | Ola Harrysson | ISE | 2025 |
| Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor Award: It is one of the most prestigious undergraduate teaching awards at NC State. | Casey Dietrich | Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 2025 |
| Chancellors Innovation Fund: Supports innovative research and projects at the university. | Amay Bandodkar | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| Chancellors Innovation Fund: Supports innovative research and projects at the university. | Samira Mirbagher Ajorpaz | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| Gertrude Cox Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching and Learning with Technology: Recognizes innovative teaching with technology. | Ignacio Dominguez | Computer Science | 2025 |
| William C. Friday Award for Excellence in Teaching – This award is for dedication and excellence in scholarship, leadership, service, and character. | Kenneth Donnelly | Biomedical Engineering | 2025 |
| Goodnight Early Career Innovators: (For tenure-track assistant professors at time of application) Their scholarship must be clearly & substantively contributing to innovations & advancement in STEM or STEM education. | Katherine Anarde, | Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 2024 |
| Goodnight Early Career Innovators: (For tenure-track assistant professors at time of application) Their scholarship must be clearly & substantively contributing to innovations & advancement in STEM or STEM education. | Nathan Crook | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| Goodnight Early Career Innovators: (For tenure-track assistant professors at time of application) Their scholarship must be clearly & substantively contributing to innovations & advancement in STEM or STEM education. | Jordan Kern | Industrial and Systems Engineering | 2024 |
| Goodnight Early Career Innovators: (For tenure-track assistant professors at time of application) Their scholarship must be clearly & substantively contributing to innovations & advancement in STEM or STEM education. | Sara Shashaani | Industrial and Systems Engineering | 2024 |
| Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal for Excellence -It is the highest honor bestowed by NC State and the university’s Board of Trustees. | K. L. Murty | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal for Excellence -It is the highest honor bestowed by NC State and the university’s Board of Trustees. | Jacob Jones, | Materials Science and Engineering | 2025 |
| NC State Outstanding Teacher Award: Recognizes excellence in teaching at NC State University. | Steve Welton | Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 2025 |
| NC State Outstanding Teacher Award: Recognizes excellence in teaching at NC State University. | Douglas Call | Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 2025 |
| NCSU Outstanding Teacher Award: Recognizes excellence in teaching at NC State University. | Scott Palmtag | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| 2024-2025 Provost Faculty Fellow: Supports faculty who want to explore academic leadership roles at the university’s highest levels. | Nina Balke | Materials Science and Engineering | 2024 |
| UNC Creativity Hub Award – This award supports interdisciplinary collaboration and funding teams to address complex challenges over the next two years. | Paul Dayton Oleg Favorov Gianmarco Pinton Michael Daniele Rahima Benhabbour | Biomedical Engineering | 2024 |
| University Faculty Scholars was established by Chancellor Randy Woodson in 2012. The program recognizes and rewards emerging academic leaders who demonstrate significant achievement. | Matthew Fisher | Biomedical Engineering | 2025 |
| University Faculty Scholars- The program recognizes & rewards emerging academic leaders who demonstrate significant achievement. | Lilian Hsiao | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2025 |
| University Faculty Scholars- The program recognizes & rewards emerging academic leaders who demonstrate significant achievement. | Arun Kota | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2025 |
| University Faculty Scholars- The program recognizes & rewards emerging academic leaders who demonstrate significant achievement. | Marie Muller | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2025 |
| University Faculty Scholars- The program recognizes & rewards emerging academic leaders who demonstrate significant achievement. | Chengying “Cheryl” Xu | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2025 |
National
| Award | Awardee | Department | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| AAAS Fellow: Honors distinguished contributions to the advancement of science. | Jim Pfaendtner Krista Walton Jan Genzer | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2025 |
| Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS): This honor recognizes his significant contributions to materials science, particularly in the areas of nanotechnology, thermodynamics, and applied polymer science | Martin Thuo | Materials Science and Engineering | 2025 |
| ACM Fellow: Recognizes outstanding contributions to computing. | Tim Menzies | Computer Science | 2025 |
| Acta Materialia Inc. Holloman Award for Materials and Society: Recognizes contributions to materials science and engineering with societal impact. | Richard Spontak | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| AIAA Fellow: Honors individuals for notable contributions to aeronautics and astronautics. | Srinath Ekkad | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| AIChE Braskem Award for Excellence in Materials Engineering and Science: Recognizes outstanding contributions to materials engineering and science within chemical engineering. | Orlin Velev | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| AIChE Catalysis & Reaction Engineering (CRE) Division Early Career Investigator Award: Honors early-career researchers for significant contributions to catalysis and reaction engineering. | Milad Abolhasani | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| AIChE Fellow: Recognizes significant professional accomplishments and contributions to chemical engineering. | Robert Kelly | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| American Chemical Society 2025 BIOT Young Investigator Award: Recognizes young investigators in the ACS Division of Biochemical Technology. | Stefano Menegatti | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2025 |
| American Nuclear Society 40 under 40: Recognizes emerging leaders in nuclear science and technology. | Florian Lagner | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| American Physical Society 2025 Early Career Award for Soft Matter Research: Recognizes outstanding early-career contributions to soft matter physics. | Lilian Hsiao | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| ASME Fellow: Recognizes exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the ASME. | Matt Bryant | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2025 |
| ASB Founders Award: Award from the American Society of Biomechanics. | Kate Saul | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| ASME Bazant Medal: Recognizes significant contributions to fluid mechanics. | Yong Zhu | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| ASME Fellow: Recognizes exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the ASME. | Tiegang Fang | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| ASME Fellow: Recognizes exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the ASME. | Kara Peters | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| ASME Rising Star Award: Recognizes early-career engineers with significant potential. | Jun Liu | Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| Bal-Raj Sehgal Memorial Award: Award in nuclear engineering. | Igor Bolotnov | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| Cell and Molecular Bioengineering Young Innovator’s Award: Recognizes young innovators in cell and molecular bioengineering. | William Polacheck | Biomedical Engineering | 2024 |
| Chancellor’s Innovation Fund: Supports innovative research and projects at the university. | David Zaharoff | Biomedical Engineering | 2024 |
| DARPA Director’s Fellowship: Supports exceptional researchers with innovative ideas. | Tim Horn | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| DOE Early Career Award: Recognizes outstanding early-career scientists and engineers. | Amanda Lietz | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| DOE Distinguished Early Career Award: Recognizes outstanding early-career scientists and engineers. | Xu Wu | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| ELATES Fellow in National Leadership Program: Participation in a leadership program for women in STEM. | Julie Swann | Industrial & Systems Engineering | 2024 |
| ELATES Fellow in National Leadership Program: Participation in a leadership program for women in STEM. | Chengying “Cheryl” Xu | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2024 |
| Fellow of the Society of Plastics Engineers: Honors significant contributions to plastics engineering. | Richard Spontak | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2025 |
| Fulbright Canada Distinguished Chair in Environmental Science: A prestigious academic exchange program. | Fernando Garcia Menendez | Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 2024 |
| Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate: Recognizes researchers with significant influence demonstrated by multiple highly cited papers. | Michael Dickey | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate: Recognizes researchers with significant influence demonstrated by multiple highly cited papers. | Aram Amassian | Materials Science and Engineering | 2024 |
| Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal for Excellence: It is the highest faculty award at NC State and recognizes faculty members whose careers have demonstrated outstanding achievement and sustained impact in research, teaching, or extension and engagement. | Laurie Williams | Computer Science | 2024 |
| IEEE OPEN ACCESS JOURNAL OF POWER AND ENERGY (OAJPE) Best Paper Award: Award for an outstanding research publication. | Hantao Cui | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| IEEE Fellow: Recognizes outstanding contributions to IEEE fields of interest. | Aranya Chakrabortty | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2025 |
| IEEE Nick Holonyak Jr. Medal: Recognizes outstanding contributions to electronic materials and devices. | Fred Kish | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2025 |
| IEEE Communications Society William R. Bennett Prize: Recognizes significant contributions to communications technology. | Huaiyu Dai | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| IEEE Emilio Gatti Radiation Instrumentation Technical Achievement Award: Recognizes technical achievements in radiation instrumentation. | Ge Yang | Nuclear Engineering | 2025 |
| IISE Fellow and IISE Technical Innovation in Industrial Engineering: Recognizes significant contributions to industrial engineering and innovation. | Rohan Shirwaiker | Industrial & Systems Engineering | 2024 |
| IISE UPS Minority Advancement Award: Honors individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to the advancement of minorities in industrial and systems engineering. | Maria Mayorga | Industrial & Systems Engineering | 2025 |
| Innovate Carolina Inaugural Member to National Academy of Inventors Chapter: Innagural members of chapter that supports and celebrates the achievements of inventors within the UNC-Chapel Hill community. | Paul Dayton; Matthew Penny; Koji Sode | Biomedical Engineering | 2025 |
| Fellow of American Nuclear Society: Honors significant contributions to nuclear science and technology. | John Mattingly | Nuclear Engineering | 2024 |
| Frank A. Chambers Excellence in Air Pollution Control Award: Recognizes excellence in air pollution control. | Andy Grieshop | Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering | 2024 |
| NSF Engineering Advisory Board Member: Appointment to advise the National Science Foundation’s engineering directorate. | Veena MIsra | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| Materials Research Society Fellow: Honors outstanding contributions to materials research. | Michael Dickey | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2025 |
| McPherson Family Distinguished Professor: It is an endowed professorship, often associated with excellence based on their research, teaching, and entrepreneurial achievements. | Omer Oralkan | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2025 |
| McPherson Family Distinguished Professor: It is an endowed professorship, often associated with excellence based on their research, teaching, and entrepreneurial achievements. | Alper Bozkurt | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2025 |
| MGB-SIAM Fellowship: Supports research in mathematical biology. | Sara Shashaani | Industrial & Systems Engineering | 2025 |
| NAI Fellow: Honors academic inventors who have demonstrated a spirit of innovation. | Martin Thuo | Materials Science and Engineering | 2024 |
| NAI Fellow: Honors academic inventors who have demonstrated a spirit of innovation. | Victor Veliadis | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| Senior Member, National Academy of Inventors- An active NAI faculty, scientist, or administrator from an NAI Member Institution who is recognized for significant contributions to patents, licensing, and commercialization | Ge Yang | Nuclear Engineering | 2025 |
| National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine: Appointment to a NASEM committee enabling DOE Regional Energy-Water Demonstrations. | Jordan Kern | Industrial & Systems Engineering | 2024 |
| National Academy of Inventors: Honors academic inventors who have demonstrated a spirit of innovation. | Victor Veliadis | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| National Science Foundation Early Career Development (CAREER) Award: Supports early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models. | Chau Wai Wong | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| National Science Foundation Early Career Development (CAREER) Award: Supports early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models. | John-Paul Ore | Computer Science | 2024 |
| National Science Foundation Early Career Development (CAREER) Award: Supports early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models. | Thomas Price | Computer Science | 2024 |
| National Science Foundation Early Career Development (CAREER) Award: Supports early-career faculty who have the potential to serve as academic role models. | Wujie Wen | Computer Science | 2024 |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director’s New Innovator Award: Supports unusually innovative research from early-career scientists. | Amol Yadav | Biomedical Engineering | 2024 |
| Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE): The highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent research careers. | Jie Yin | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering | 2025 |
| Opal Mann Award: Honors contributions to diversity and inclusion. | Jacob Jones, Nina Balke | RTNN, Materials Science and Engineering | 2024 |
| Oxide Electronics Prize for Excellence in Research: Recognizes researchers demonstrating excellence in the field of oxide electronics research. | Ruijuan Xu | Materials Science and Engineering | 2024 |
| Charles C. Shepard Science Award: Recognizes outstanding scientific contributions by CDC and ATSDR authors of outstanding scientific papers. | Rahima Benhabbour | Biomedical Engineering | 2024 |
| Viness Pillay Award for Applied Polymer Science and Technology- The African Academy of Sciences (The AAS) recognizes excellence through The AAS’ highly prestigious fellowship and award schemes to shape Africa’s Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) strategies and policies to addres developmental challenges. | Martin Thuo | Materials Science and Engineering | 2025 |
| Visiting Miller Professorship Award, Berkeley: Brings promising or eminent scientists to the UC Berkeley campus on a short-term basis for collaborative research interactions within the Institute’s interdisciplinary community. | Sabre Kais | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
International
| Award | Awardee | Department | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| L.E. Scriven Young Investigator Award (International Society of Coating Science and Technology): Recognizes young investigators in coating science. | Lilian Hsiao | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| Medal for Excellence by the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3): Recognizes excellence in this sector and the leadership role in NUSINC, an international research collaborative with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NU), SINTEF Industry (SI), and NC State (NC). | Richard Spontak | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | 2024 |
| Millenium Technology Prize: It recognizes technological innovations that significantly improve quality of life. | Jay Baliga | Electrical and Computer Engineering | 2024 |
| Jackson Rigney Service Award: Honors outstanding service to the university community. | Richard Spontak | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering | 2024 |