Every year, the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering recognizes the achievements of faculty members, students and alumni, who have excelled in various fields. This year, the school has awarded four professors with awards for their contributions to public service, research and teaching.
The UCLA Engineering 2020 award recipients include:
Adrienne Lavine, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and associate vice provost of the UCLA Center for the Advancement of Teaching, was recognized with the University Service Award. She has previously served as director of education and outreach for the National Science Foundation-sponsored Center for Scalable and Integrated Nano-Manufacturing, and served as chair of both her department and the Academic Senate.
Yongjie Hu, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has received the V. M. Watanabe Excellence in Research Award. His research focuses on interdisciplinary experimental and theoretical approaches to investigate energy transport mechanisms and device applications, with an emphasis on developing advanced materials and experimental metrologies to characterize nanoscale energy processes.
Robert Candler, professor of electrical and computer engineering, was awarded the Lockheed Martin Excellence in Teaching Award. Candler researches micro- and nano-electromechanical systems, including control of magnetism at the small scale using multiferroics, sensing systems for robotic surgical tools and microscale magnetic devices for electron beam manipulation. His teaching portfolio spans undergraduate courses in engineering physics and electromagnetics, semiconductor fabrication and graduate courses in sensor design.
Stephanie Seidlits, assistant professor in the bioengineering department, has been recognized with the Northrop Grumman Excellence in Teaching Award. Her research seeks to develop multifaceted therapies for the central nervous system that utilize biomaterial platforms to both model and directly alter the pathological microenvironment. Seidlits has previously been honored with the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, the 2019 Society for Biomaterials Young Investigator Award and the 2019 BMES Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering Rising Star Award.