The Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) is recognizing and celebrating the achievements of its students, staff, and faculty with honors from the Roger P. Webb Awards Program.

The 2021 awards recognized 33 students at a virtual awards program on April 21, and five staff members and four faculty members at a second virtual awards program on April 23.

Below are the recipients of the 2021 Roger P. Webb Awards. Please see the accompanying pdf file of the program listing this year’s award winners from this program and from other springtime awards programs at Georgia Tech.

STUDENT AWARDS

Outstanding Electrical Engineering Sophomore Award

Marcus Chan

Eta Kappa Nu, the honor society for ECE, recognizes the electrical engineering student who is in their second year and who has the highest scholastic average by presenting a check for $250 and a plaque.

Outstanding Computer Engineering Sophomore Award

William Buxton

Eta Kappa Nu, the honor society for ECE, recognizes the computer engineering student who is in their second year and who has the highest scholastic average by presenting a check for $250 and a plaque.

Electrical Engineering Junior Scholar Award

Peter Wilson

This award is presented to the student who is in their third year and who has the highest GPA in the electrical engineering degree program. The recipient will be awarded a $250 check and a plaque.

Computer Engineering Junior Scholar Award

Zachary Olkin

This award is presented to the student who is in their third year and who has the highest GPA in the computer engineering degree program. The recipient will be awarded a $250 check and a plaque.

ECE Undergraduate Research Award

Abigail Ivemeyer

This award recognizes an undergraduate student who has demonstrated an unusually strong aptitude for research. The recipient will be awarded a $250 check and a plaque.

Most Outstanding ECE Senior Co-op Award

Benjamin Nixon

This award is presented to the ECE senior co-op student who is considered of the highest caliber by his/her co-op employer. The recipient will be awarded a $250 check and a plaque.

ECE Outstanding Service and Outreach Award

Tianren Fan

Georgia Tech has a responsibility to serve its local, national, and international communities. This award reflects the importance of improving people’s lives in the surrounding Georgia community and beyond. Investing time in such activities can have significant rewards for Georgia Tech in the future, and recognizing students who participate in and organize such activities helps to motivate other students to do the same. This award consists of a $250 check and a plaque.

ECE Faculty Award

Victor Rodriguez Toro

This award is given to the electrical or computer engineering student who, in the opinion of the ECE faculty, has done the most to improve the educational environment within ECE or Georgia Tech and has contributed significantly to both student welfare and student-faculty interactions. The recipient will be awarded a $250 check and a plaque.

Outstanding Electrical Engineering Senior Award

Baran Usluel

Eta Kappa Nu, the honor society for ECE, recognizes a graduating senior electrical engineering student with a 4.0 GPA with the most Institute hours and who plays an active role in extracurricular activities. The award consists of a plaque, engraving the name of the individual on a plaque in the Van Leer (ECE) Building, and awarding a check for $750.

Outstanding Computer Engineering Senior Award

Madeline Loui

Eta Kappa Nu, the honor society for ECE, recognizes a graduating senior computer engineering student with a 4.0 GPA with the most Institute hours and who plays an active role in extracurricular activities. The award consists of a plaque, engraving the name of the individual on a plaque in the Van Leer (ECE) Building, and awarding a check for $750.

ECE Senior Scholar Awards                  

Jordan Altaffer, Yatong Bai, Carmen E. Dyck, Mark Faingold, Tyler French, Yuyan Oscar Gao, Andrew Gauker, Jesse Jiang, Aditya Jituri, Jackson Moody, Mukund S. Pandiri, Jonathan Park, Subhachote (Shane) Pornprinya, Tara Poteat, Celeste R. Smith, Owen Sowatzke, Benjamin Terry

These awards consist of plaques and cash awards that are given to the electrical or computer engineering senior(s) with the highest academic average.

Colonel Oscar P. Cleaver Awards

Andrew McRae, Panni Wang

The Colonel Oscar P. Cleaver Awards are given to the Ph.D. students who presented the most outstanding Ph.D. dissertation proposals in the previous year. Proposals are judged based upon the quality and originality of the proposed work, and the student’s expertise and insight on the subject matter. This award consists of a $1,000 check and a plaque.

ECE Graduate Teaching Assistant Excellence Awards

Nishant Bilakanti, Aniruddh Marellapudi

Teaching undergraduates is one of ECE’s most important missions. Teaching assistants are necessary to ensure that every student has the opportunity for personal attention during their course of study. The recipient will be awarded a $500 check and a plaque.

ECE Graduate Research Assistant Excellence Awards    

Yu-Ching Liao, Siddharth Ravichandran

Research is the cornerstone to ECE’s success. Nurturing bright and hardworking graduate research assistants (GRAs) are among the most important factors in ensuring that ECE remains a leader in the research community. These awards will be given to the GRAs who have demonstrated particular excellence in performing their duties. The recipients will each be awarded a $500 check and a plaque.

STAFF AWARDS

Hats Off Performance Awards              

Kevin Ferri, Bao Nguyen, Tschnadia Robinson

These awards, each consisting of a $2,000 check and a plaque, recognize the classified staff members who have demonstrated exceptional job performance and/or service to ECE above and beyond the call of duty.

Research Spotlight Award                                                                                 

Chin-Wei Hsu

This award is presented to a researcher who has made a significant contribution to the research efforts in ECE. The awardee will receive a $2,000 check and a plaque.

Academic Spotlight Award                                                                                

Keith May

This award is presented to the researcher, classified employee, or general faculty member who has made a significant contribution to the ECE teaching or academic program. The awardee will receive a $2,000 check and a plaque.

FACULTY AWARDS

Outstanding Junior Faculty Member Awards                       

Azadeh Ansari, Tushar Krishna                                                                                       

These awards, each consisting of a $2,000 check and a plaque, recognize the most outstanding assistant professor.

Outstanding Mid-Career Faculty Award                                                         

Maryam Saeedifard

This award is presented to an associate professor or full professor no more than 10 years past his/her appointment as, or promotion to associate professor. The award consists of a $2,000 check and a plaque.

Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award                                      

Ali Adibi

This award, consisting of a $5,000 check and a plaque, is presented to the senior faculty member (full professor or Regents’ Professor) who has made significant contributions throughout his/her career.