Columbia Engineering Faculty Win Multiple Awards, Prizes, and Other Honors

Dean Mary Boyce Honored with Timoshenko Medal

Mary C. Boyce, Dean of Columbia Engineering and Morris A. and Alma Schapiro Professor, has been named the recipient of the 2020 Timoshenko Medal, which is the highest honor accorded by the Applied Mechanics Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. She was cited for her “foundational achievements on the large strain nonlinear deformation of elastomers, thermoplastic polymers and polymeric composites; and for the development of rich mathematical mechanics descriptions of material response that reveal the material physics and mechanisms.”

Prof. Julia Hirschberg Awarded ISCA Special Service Medal

Julia B. Hirschberg, Percy K. and Vida L. W. Hudson Professor of Computer Science , was awarded the International Speech Communication Association’s (ISCA) Special Service Medal for her help in shaping the Speech Communication community and advancing gender diversity in terms of membership and recognition in the field of speech communication. She is the fifth recipient of this significant honor.

Prof. Michal Lipson Receives Honors

Michal Lipson, Eugene Higgins Professor of Electrical Engineering and Professor of Applied Physics, has been honored by two organizations.

• She has been selected by the Optical Society (OSA) to serve as the society’s 2021 Vice President. Her four-year commitment to OSA’s Board of Directors consists of serving one year as vice president in 2021, followed by one year as president-elect in 2022, president in 2023, and past president in 2024.
• In November, Lipson will also virtually receive the Erna Hamburger Prize, an award given by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne—Women in Science and Humanities Foundation to "the most influential woman in science" that year.

Prof. Elizabeth Hillman Given the RMS 2020 Mid-Career Scientific Achievement Award

Elizabeth Hillman, Herbert and Florence Irving Professor at the Zuckerman Institute and professor of biomedical engineering and radiology (physics), has been honored with the Royal Microscopical Society Mid-Career Scientific Achievement Award 2020 for her long-term contributions across all forms of microscopy.

DSI Director and Prof. Jeannette Wing Awarded Honorary Degree

Jeannette Wing, Avanessians Director of the Data Science Institute and professor of computer science, was virtually presented with an honorary Doctor of Technology from Linkoping University, Linkoping, Sweden in the late spring.

Fellow Recognition in Professional Society

Prof. X. Edward Guo Named a BMES Fellow

X. Edward Guo, Stanley Dicker Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, was named a 2020 fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society for his exceptional achievements and significant contributions within the biomedical engineering field.

Prof. Ah-Hyung (Alissa) Park Elected as ACS Fellow

Ah-Hyung Alissa Park, Lenfest Earth Institute Associate Professor of Applied Climate Science, Earth And Environmental Engineering and Chemical Engineering, was selected as an American Chemical Society (ACS) fellow in recognition of her outstanding achievements in and contributions to science, the profession, and ACS.

Prof. Christine Hendon and Senior Lecturer Aaron Kyle Win Several Honora

Two faculty members were elected by the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) to its College of Fellows, one of the highest professional distinctions accorded to medical and biological engineers.

• Christine Hendon, an associate professor of electrical engineering, was cited for “developing optical imaging, spectroscopy, and processing tools for real time tracking and guidance of cardiac ablation therapy.”
• Aaron Kyle, a senior lecturer in the discipline of biomedical engineering design, was cited for his “outstanding teaching and training in STEM, outreach to underserved communities, and the development of low-cost solutions for global health.”
• Hendon was also elected as a fellow to The Optical Society for her contributions to the advancement of optics and photonics.
• Kyle was also honored with the 2020 Biomedical Engineering Society Diversity Lecture Award for his “outstanding contributions to improving gender and racial diversity in biomedical engineering.”