
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has funded a College of Engineering student, Katie Gant (PhD,BME) through their Science Made Sensible program to work with middle school students in the Miami-Dade Public Schools to encourage students to pursue science as a career and to make science more fun and less intimidating. Katie, whose mentors are Dr. Justin Sanchez and Dr. Jorge Bohorquez (both BME), looks forward eagerly to this opportunity to both improve her teaching skills and continue her research with Dr. Sanchez in translating signals from the brain into electrical stimulants to control paralyzed muscles. Katie adds, I am especially excited to be working with an underserved population of young people and encouraging them to pursue further education in science and engineering.”

The Goldstein Family challenges all young alumni to reach new heights of participation in Annual Giving by participating in The GOLDstein Family Challenge. The challenge is simple, if 2,013 young alumni make a contribution to the University of Miami by May 31st, 2013, the Goldstein Family will make a $25,000 contribution to need-based student scholarships. For more information on the GOLDstein Family Challenge visit their site
Heather Durkee, MS BME, has been granted a Whittaker International Fellowship which will fund a year’s study in Florence, Italy working on a collaborative nanotechnology project dealing with a tissue welded synthetic corneal lenticule. Heather was nominated for this prestigious grant by her mentor, Dr. Jean Marie Parel, Research Professor of Ophthalmology and it will allow her to collaborate with one of his associates, Dr. Pini at the Instituto di Fisica Applicata Nello Carrara. This work is part of the collaboration with Dr. Patel and the Ophthalmic Biophysics Center at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.

Dr. Antonio Nanni (Professor and Chair, CAE) presented an invited lecture “Extending the Life of Concrete Structures: Institutional Activities and Innovative Technologies” at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, co-sponsored by the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development. Dr. Nanni, whose research areas include civil infrastructure sustainability and renewal, is also the Editor-in-Chief of the ASCE Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering and serves on the editorial board of other technical journals. Dr. Nanni commented that the research area of repair and preservation of the existing compendium of buildings is becoming central to the national and international efforts in sustainability.

Mark Agate ( MAE ’14) was recently notified he has been awarded a NASA internship at the Langley Research Center. This highly competitive internship will allow Mark to further his research interest in composite materials, working on a research team designing trailing edge flaps for a continuous flexible wing aircraft. Hoping to eventually complete a PhD in this area, Mark commented,” I could not be more excited for this upcoming opportunity.” This internship is yet another example of how undergraduate students are successfully combining research and education to promote their career paths.

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On Sunday, April 28th graduating CoE students, underclassmen, faculty, staff and alumni gathered to recognize and celebrate the Class of 2013 at the Coral Gables Country Club.
The evening featured a reception followed by dinner and the presentation of numerous departmental, student involvement and College awards. With warm congratulations for our new engineers as the Class of ’13 embarks on the many exciting options available for tomorrow’s technology leaders. Congratulations and Go ‘Canes!

Dr. Vincent Omachonu (Professor IE) has just received the IBM Faculty Award for 2012. Dr. Omachonu is one of 100 recipients world-wide – and the only one in Florida – to be thus honored by IBM in 2012. The IBM Faculty Awards constitute a competitive program intended to: 1) foster collaboration between researchers at leading universities world-wide and those at IBM’s research, development and services organizations; and 2) promote courseware and curriculum innovation to stimulate growth in disciplines and geographies that are strategic to IBM. As we are all aware, Dr. Omachonu is an expert in health services, especially in regard to hospital management.
Juan Pablo Ruiz (BME’13) has been awarded another major academic honor, the Howard Hughes Institute Gilliam Fellowship for Advance Study, which will allow him to pursue his PhD studies at the school of his choice. In addition to his undergraduate Singer Scholarship and Barry Goldwater Fellowship, this latest honor will provide for tuition, expenses and a yearly stipend for him to pursue his doctoral studies in biomedical research. Dr. Herman Cheung, who has mentored Juan through his entire undergraduate career, comments on this latest accomplishment, “I am extremely proud of Juan, the quality of our students, and the excellent mentorship we can provide them.” Juan, who has already been accepted into the joint MIT/Harvard BME doctoral program, credits Dr. Cheung for not only guiding his research activities, but also for providing invaluable guidance and support throughout his time at UM. Upon receiving notice of the fellowship, Juan quickly admitted “This award is for Dr. Cheung as much as it is for me.”

Dean James M. Tien received the Governor’s Business Ambassador award during the recent Florida Trade Mission to Colombia. Dean Tien and Advancement Director Rafael Robles accompanied Governor Rick Scott and other business and educational members of Enterprise Florida on the five day visit in December to Colombia. During the visit, Governor Scott presented Dean Tien with the medal and noted “I am honored to award Dean Tien the Governor’s Business Ambassador award for his efforts in promoting higher education in Florida and helping attract global talent to the Sunshine State. “

Dean James Tien takes pride in developing a research program that has helped increase the visibility of the University of Miami in engineering as well as other academic fields.
Dean James M. Tien was recently featured in Miami Today’s “The Achiever” section, highlighting his vision for the College of Engineering and discussing future intuitional goals. “As the University strives to gain AAU status by 2020, the College hopes to play a central part in this plan, developing three areas of research (healthcare and technobiology, risk and informatics, and sustainable systems)in collaboration with the Medical School and the Rosensteil School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. ...more

The latest in computer numerically controlled (CNC) machines, capable of 5-axis milling and turning
The University of Miami College Of Engineering is pleased to announce the establishment of a professionally staffed, state-of-the-art Prototyping Facility, available for use both within UM and with outside customers.
The 3000 square feet, air-conditioned facility is equipped to handle the most complex prototyping task (large or small)....more
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