{"427571":{"#nid":"427571","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Ruffin and Pierson honored for STEM outreach","body":[{"value":"\u003Ctable width=\u0022200\u0022 border=\u00220\u0022 cellspacing=\u00221\u0022 cellpadding=\u00225\u0022 align=\u0022right\u0022\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd\u003E\u003Cem\u003EAccepting the CDEP Service Award was\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003EDr.\u0026nbsp;Stephen Ruffin\u003C\/strong\u003E, seen here with FVSU President Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith, left, and FVSC Associate Vice President Dr. Isaac J. Crumbly\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETheir longstanding commitment to STEM outreach has earned Prof. Stephen Ruffin and program manager Wanda G. Pierson special recognition from the Cooperative Developmental Energy Program (CDEP) of Fort Valley State University.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERuffin, the chair of NASA\u0027s National Council of Space Grant Directors, and Pierson, the program manager for the GT-based Georgia Space Grant Consortium (GSGC), each were recognized with the CDEP Service Award during the organization\u0027s 16th Annual Industry Awards Banquet, Feb. 22.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThrough their involvement in the GSGC, Ruffin and Pierson have spearheaded the Institute\u0027s efforts to promote STEM education and careers among underrepresented\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Ctable width=\u0022200\u0022 border=\u00220\u0022 cellspacing=\u00221\u0022 cellpadding=\u00225\u0022 align=\u0022right\u0022\u003E\u003Ctbody\u003E\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\u003Ctr\u003E\u003Ctd class=\u0022rtecenter\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Cem\u003EWanda Pierson\u0026nbsp;\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003Cem\u003EGeorgia Space Grant Consortium Program Manager\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cem\u003ERecipient of the CDEP Service Award\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/td\u003E\u003C\/tr\u003E\u003C\/tbody\u003E\u003C\/table\u003E\u003Cp\u003Egroups. Pierson manages a statewide consortium of 17 universities, two non-profit organizations, and two industrial affiliates, all of whom contribute to GSGC\u0027s goal of increasing the diversity of students and professionals in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics-related fields.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022For me, the payback has been when students visit [Georgia Tech] campus for tours and to meet our faculty,\u0022 said Pierson.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022It\u0027s great to see them exploring what might be their futures.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to serving the Space Grant Consortium on a state and national level, Ruffin is the founder and director of GT\u0027s University Center of Exemplary Mentoring which promotes aggressive recruitment, academic enrichment, fellowship, and development funding for doctoral students. He is also on the board of the NSF-funded FACES program, which seeks to increase the diversity of engineering, science and computing students at Morehouse, Spelman, Emory, and Tech.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022As an HBCU, Fort Valley is already well-aligned with the Space Grant Consortium\u0027s goals,\u0022 said Ruffin.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022We\u0027ve been supporting their Math Science and Engineering Academy and hosting their students on tours of Georgia Tech. It\u0027s a great relationship.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFunded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Fort Valley\u0027s CDEP program focuses on increasing the number of minorities and women working in the private and governmental sectors of the energy industry. Its Service Award recognizes individuals who have dedicated five or more years to the success of this goal.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Their longstanding commitment to STEM outreach has earned Prof. Stephen Ruffin and program manager Wanda G. Pierson special recognition from the Cooperative Developmental Energy Program (CDEP) of Fort Valley State University."}],"uid":"27456","created_gmt":"2015-07-22 11:07:30","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:19:15","author":"Britanny Grace","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-02-25T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2015-02-25T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1239","name":"School of Aerospace Engineering"}],"categories":[{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"136451","name":"Georgia Space Grant Consortium"},{"id":"167258","name":"STEM"},{"id":"169894","name":"Stephen Ruffin"},{"id":"136441","name":"Wanda Pierson"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":["communications@ae.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}