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New graduate fellowship announced at awards dinner

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Michael Messner, who received the S.M. in transportation (1980) from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and his wife, Jenny Messner, have established a new fund to support graduate student fellowships in CEE. The Messners attended the department’s annual awards dinner May 8, where Professor Patrick Jaillet announced the establishment of the Speedwell Foundation Graduate Fellowship in Transportation, created to honor Professor Joseph Sussman and Senior Research Associate Carl Martland, who served as teachers and mentors to Messner. Martland was Messner’s thesis advisor on “A System for Controlling a Railroad’s On-Line Freight Car Cycle,” February 1980. At the dinner, Jaillet and Sussman thanked Martland for his service and congratulated him on his upcoming retirement.Jaillet also congratulated two CEE staff members who are being recognized by the School of Engineering for their contributions. Vicki Murphy, financial administrator in Parsons Laboratory, and Jeanette Marchocki, administrative assistant in the Academic Programs Office, were honored at the school’s Infinite Mile Awards May 10. This year, the School of Engineering honored Professor Harold Hemond with the Bose Award for Excellence in Teaching, which was presented at the Institute’s annual awards convocation May 9.

Professor Moshe Ben-Akiva will receive the Samuel M. Seegal Prize from the School of Engineering, a prize recognizing a professor who “inspires students in pursuing and achieving excellence.” The family of Samuel Seegal established the prize in 1992 to honor their father, a member of the Class of 1922. The prize is awarded every other year and rotates between CEE and the Sloan School.

Other CEE students and faculty who received awards for their exceptional academic contributions and service to the department are:Matthew Williams, a senior from Battle Creek, Mich., received the Steinberg Prize, given to an undergraduate who shows academic achievement and demonstrable interest in construction management.Sueann Lee, a senior from Hong Kong, received the Richard Lee Russel Award, honoring an outstanding undergraduate in civil and environmental engineering who plans to continue with graduate study at MIT or elsewhere. Lee will attend Stanford University in the fall.Kyle Frazier, a graduate student from Madison, Miss., pursuing a joint degree in the CEE Masters of Engineering program and the Technology and Policy Program, received the Tucker-Voss Award. This award was established in memory of Professors Ross F. Tucker and Walter C. Voss, the first two heads of the Department of Building Construction, Course 17, which merged with the Department of Civil Engineering in the 1950s. The award is given annually to a student who shows particular promise in the field of building construction.Senior Joshua Maciewjewski of Catawissa, Penn., received the Leo (Class of 1924) and Mary Grossman Award. This award honors Leo Grossman, who had a professional career in highway design and planning. It is given to an undergraduate with a strong interest in transportation and an excellent academic record.Masters of Engineering student Sean Homem, of Billerica, Mass., received the Trond Kaalstad (Class of 1957) Graduate Award. Named in honor of a longtime CEE administrative officer, this award honors a graduate student who has displayed leadership and/or contributed significantly to the well being of the CEE community. Homem was nominated for his leadership role in getting Course 1 involved in the national American Society of Civil Engineers Steel Bridge Competition.The Maseeh Award for Excellence as a Teaching Assistant was awarded to graduate student David Gonzalez-Rodriguez for his outstanding performance as a teaching assistant in 1.060 Engineering Mechanics II. The award is made possible by alumnus Fariborz Maseeh-Tehrani, who received the Doctor of Science from CEE in 1990. Gonzalez-Rodriguez is from La Coruna, Spain.Professor Amedeo Odoni received the Maseeh Award for Excellence in Teaching. Odoni, who has a joint appointment in CEE and aeronautics and astronautics, teaches graduate subjects 1.200 Transportation Systems Analysis and 1.203 Logistical and Transportation Planning Methods.Shannon O’Connell, president of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Student Association, recognized several members of CEESA, including the outgoing president, Tracy Takemura, and members of the Steel Bridge team.

PHOTO/Stephen Rudolph

Professor Jerome Connor (left) of the Department of Civil and Envi-ronmental Engineering congratu-lates CEE graduate student Sean Homem, who received the Trond Kaalstad (Class of 1957) Graduate Award for his work with the Steel Bridge Team, which took second place in the regional competition and will compete in the national finals during May. The award was presented during the department’s awards ceremony on May 8 in Morss Hall.PHOTO/Stephen RudolphProfessor Patrick Jaillet (left), head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Professor Ole Madsen (right) of CEE present the Maseeh Award for Excellence as a Teaching Assistant to CEE graduate student David Gonzalez-Rodriguez during the department’s awards ceremony held May 8 in Morss Hall.

Professor Jerome Connor (left) of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering congratulates CEE graduate student Sean Homem, who received the Trond Kaalstad (Class of 1957) Graduate Award for his work with the Steel Bridge Team, which took second place in the regional competition and will compete in the national finals during May. The award was presented during the department’s awards ceremony on May 8 in Morss Hall.
PHOTO/Stephen Rudolph

Professor Patrick Jaillet (left), head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Professor Ole Madsen (right) of CEE present the Maseeh Award for Excellence as a Teaching Assistant to CEE graduate student David Gonzalez-Rodriguez during the department’s awards ceremony held May 8 in Morss Hall.
PHOTO/Stephen Rudolf