Dayton Engineer

By Emma Kraft '22, School of Engineering marketing intern

Every year, the School of Engineering presents four Vision Awards to faculty and staff that represent innovation, creativity, entrepreneurial thinking and outstanding performance. These awards include a plaque and monetary award in the amount of $2000. The four awards — Community, Innovation, Scholarship, and Engagement and Service — distributed relate to our Marianist values. 

This year, we would like to recognize the 2021 Vision Award recipients, as it is a great honor. 

Kevin Pierson, senior lab manager, Engineering Makerspace

The recipient of the 2021 Vision Award for Excellence in Community is Kevin Pierson. This award recognizes faculty and staff who have made significant contributions to enhancing the climate for diversity and inclusion within the School of Engineering for students, faculty and staff. Pierson’s nomination included several letters of support, and in particular, highlighted his work that promotes an inclusive learning environment in the Makerspace. His nominators commented on his efforts to eliminate gender stereotypes with regards to the use of power tools. He also advocated for a women’s restroom and a gender inclusive restroom in the basement of Kettering Labs. Additionally, Kevin met individually over Zoom with students in different time zones to accommodate them during COVID-19, recruited prospective students and supported adjunct faculty.

Congratulations on this recognition Kevin Pierson, and thank you for your contributions to the School of Engineering!

Stephanie McChesney, director, Engineering Safety and Facilities

The recipient of the 2021 Vision Award for Excellence in Engagement and Service is Stephanie McChesney. This award recognizes faculty and staff who have demonstrated excellence as servant leaders. The recipient of this award demonstrates a commitment to engaging in activities that have made a significant contribution to the common good within the School of Engineering, the University, or in the local or global community. These activities should reflect the manifestations of Marianist charism: people of community, discipleship of equals and leaders in mission. McChesney’s nomination letter specifically called out several key achievements that reflect those of a servant leader. In particular, her efforts to propose ideas and implement protocol to ensure a safer environment for our community during COVID-19, and her efforts to minimize the disruption to student learning, faculty research, and the work of all is to be commended. She additionally made many efforts to help with numerous on campus events, such as COVID testing and student check-in.

Congratulations on this recognition Stephanie McChesney, and thank you for your contributions to the School of Engineering!

Joshua Heyne, associate professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

The recipient of the 2021 Vision Award for Excellence in Scholarship is Joshua Heyne. This award recognizes faculty and staff who have made a significant contribution in the area of scholarship. This could include traditional research or other forms of knowledge generation or a demonstrated commitment to lifelong learning. Heyne received several nominations for this award, including nominations from research collaborators. One nominator described Heyne as being in the top 1 percent of the most talented young researchers they had ever worked with in their 55-year career. Heyne was also identified as a top expert in the design and optimization of alternative and sustainable jet fuels. His work has been recognized internationally and has resulted in numerous publications and over $3.7M in external funding. Aside from all this, Heyne has served as an excellent mentor to students and a great supporter of the research efforts of community partners through ETHOS. 

Congratulations on this recognition Joshua Heyne, and thank you for contributions to the School of Engineering!

Julie Motz, senior lab manager, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

The recipient of the 2021 Vision Award for Excellence in Innovation is Julie Motz. This award recognizes faculty and staff who have made significant contributions to the education of our students through innovative teaching strategies, providing unique experiential learning experiences for students, and continuing to demonstrate success in the classroom. Motz was selected for this award because of the numerous contributions she has made to the experiential learning of our students since coming to the University. Among these contributions is the way in which she helped identify laboratory skill gaps in our students and work to address these through innovative approaches to teaching. Her work to foster interdepartmental faculty collaborations to enhance experiential learning of UD’s students is also noteworthy. In particular, Julie’s innovative approach by ideating and assembling kits for eight different lab courses ensured that our students had hands-on experiences while learning remotely.

Congratulations on this recognition Julie, and thank you for your contributions to the School of Engineering!

Congratulations to the four recipients of the School of Engineering 2021 Vision Awards. Your efforts and contributions to our community never go unnoticed!