PLAUDITS
SCHULZ NAMED PRESIDENT-ELECT OF INTERNATIONAL ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING SOCIETY
Noel Schulz, K-State's first lady and Paslay professor of electrical and computer engineering, has been elected to lead the IEEE Power and Energy Society, a worldwide, nonprofit association of more than 24,000 individuals engaged in the electric power energy industry.
In January, Noel Schulz will begin a six-year term with two years as president-elect, followed by two as president and two as past president.
Schulz is a nationally recognized expert in power systems engineering who researches the use of computers, including intelligent systems, to solve problems in power system design, operations and controls. Her research has been funded by a variety of agencies, including the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Departments of Defense, Energy and Homeland Security. She also works with electric utilities and power equipment manufacturers.
In 2009, Schulz came to K-State with her husband, K-State President Kirk Schulz. She came from Mississippi State University, where she held an endowed professorship as the Tennessee Valley Authority Professor in power systems engineering.
As an administrator, Schulz has been actively involved in recruiting and retaining women in engineering, faculty development and encouraging international experiences in education.
Her teaching interests include power systems, energy conversion, application of computer programs to power engineering, application of intelligent systems to engineering problems, fundamentals of electrical circuits, renewable and distributed generation, and smart grid technologies.
Schulz has received a number of awards and belongs to the American Society for Engineering Education and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. She holds a bachelor's and master's degree in electrical engineering, both from Virginia Tech, and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Minnesota.
MOXLEY FIRST TO RECEIVE NATIONAL PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD
Virginia Moxley, dean of K-State's College of Human Ecology, was recognized Nov. 16 by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities' Board on Human Sciences as the first recipient of its Public Service Award.
This award honors national leadership that advances the human sciences in higher education. Moxley was cited for career accomplishments that include her leadership in the Great Plains Interactive Distance Education Alliance -- which, since its inception in 1994, has grown to a nationwide alliance sponsoring multiinstitutional undergraduate and graduate academic programs. Moxley was a founder of the alliance and was the first chair of the Great Plains IDEA Board of Directors. She currently serves as the chair of the Great Plains cabinet, and she administers management services for the alliance.
Moxley's work with the Great Plains IDEA supported the development of the Great Plains IDEA Model for multiinstitutional academic programs, which has been replicated by other higher education academic alliances. Moxley co-administers K-State's Institute for Academic Alliances, which provides consultation and management support for higher education alliances nationwide.
Prior to the publication of the 2000 Classification of Instructional Programs by the National Center for Educational Statistics, Moxley led a team of representatives from six professional associations and two federal agencies to implement a major redefinition of the fields of study within the human sciences -- the first major correction in four decades.
Additionally Moxley has served as past national president of Omicron Nu Honor Society (now Kappa Omicron Nu Honor Society), co-founded the Undergraduate Research Community for the Human Sciences and helped establish a human sciences program at the National University of Paraguay. She currently serves on the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities' Board on Human Sciences and on the Advisory Panel for the Food and Agriculture Education Information System.
MINIHAN TO SERVE AS NATIONAL ADVISER TO ORGANIZATION FOR STUDENTS IN AGRONOMY, SOIL AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
A K-State faculty member has been appointed a national adviser to the Students of Agronomy, Soils and Environmental Sciences.
Dana Minihan, assistant academic coordinator and an instructor for K-State's department of agronomy, was recently appointed to a one-year term on the organization's national advisory committee. The Students of Agronomy, Soils and Environmental Sciences is the undergraduate organization of the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America.
Minihan is representing the Crop Science Society of America on the advisory committee and will help plan the students' portion of the annual meetings of the three societies, which will be Oct. 31-Nov. 4, 2010, in Long Beach, Calif.
The Students of Agronomy, Soils and Environmental Sciences is composed of chapters at colleges and universities that provide a curriculum in agronomy, crops, soils and environmental sciences. The organization provides variety of programs and activities on the local and national levels for students to become professionally involved and to prepare for their future careers.
Minihan joined K-State in 1989 and has served with the department of agronomy since 1994. She is a faculty adviser to K-State's Wheat State Agronomy Club and has been active with the Kansas Association of Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture, where she currently serves as past president. She earned a bachelor's degree in management and ethics from Manhattan Christian College; a master's degree in college student personnel from K-State; and is a K-State doctoral candidate in college student personnel.
K-STATE AGRICULTURE DEAN, AGRONOMY PROFESSORS RECEIVE NATIONAL AWARDS FROM AMERICAN SOCIETY OF AGRONOMY
The dean of K-State's College of Agriculture and two faculty members from K-State's department of agronomy are recipients of national honors from the American Society of Agronomy.
The awards were presented at the society's annual meetings in Pittsburgh, Pa., Nov. 2-5.
The K-State honorees include:
* Fred Cholick, dean of the K-State College of Agriculture and director of K-State Research and Extension, the Agronomic Service Award. The focus of the award, which is given for the development of practices and products for acceptance by the public, is on agronomic service with associated educational, public relations and administrative contributions of industrial agronomists, governmental, industrial or university administrators and others.
* Dave Mengel, professor of agronomy, the Werner L. Nelson Award for Diagnosis of Yield-Limiting Factors for outstanding performance in the development, acceptance and/or implementation of diagnostic techniques and approaches in the field. Selection criteria include the creativity and innovation of the nominee.
* Chuck Rice, university distinguished professor of agronomy, the Environmental Quality Research Award for contributions that have enhanced the basic understanding of environmental sciences in relation to agriculture, or demonstrated sound and effective management practices for maintaining or improving the quality of soil, water and air resources. An award-winning soil scientist, Rice was a member of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for its work.
ORNELAS BEGINS TERM AS PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL ARCHITECTURE ACCREDITING BOARD
Wendy Ornelas, associate dean of K-State's College of Architecture, Planning and Design, is the new president of the National Architectural Accrediting Board. Her 2010 term began Oct. 24.
As president, Ornelas is responsible for implementing the new conditions for accreditation, which were revised in 2009. The first schools to be accredited under these new standards will submit their self-study reports in fall 2010 and be visited in spring 2011. K-State will be among the first schools visited.
The National Architecture Accrediting Board's membership comes from the American Institute of Architects, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, the American Institute of Architecture Students and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. Ornelas is one of three members nominated by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture.
Ornelas is a professor of architecture who joined K-State in 1989. In addition to serving as associate dean, she is director of the college's doctoral program in environmental design and planning and the department of architecture's internship program. She also has been recognized for her teaching.
Ornelas is the first woman and first Latina in Kansas to be named a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. She also received the 2006 Henry W. Schirmer Distinguished Service Award, which recognizes distinguished leadership and service to the Kansas chapter of the American Institute of Architects.
The Condia + Ornelas architecture firm, of which she is a partner, has received multiple design awards for local projects including Gaia salonspa, Coco Bolo's Woodfired Grille and Cantina, and Thomas Joseph Studio One. The firm also designed della Voce Restaurant in Manhattan.
Ornelas earned a bachelor's degree in architecture from California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo, and bachelor's and master's degrees in architecture from Oklahoma State University.
The mission of the National Architectural Accrediting Board is to establish educational quality assurance standards to enhance the value, relevance and effectiveness of the architectural profession. It is the sole agency authorized to accredit U.S. professional degree programs in architecture.