Fitts Distinguished Professor, Russell King, receives the CA Anderson Outstanding Faculty Award
For one special night, NC State’s University Club came alive as it played host to the 38th annual CA Anderson Award Ceremony, fittingly named, “A Night for the Stars of ISE to Shine.” The awards dinner was a chance to celebrate the best and brightest students, staff and faculty that the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department has to offer.
Dr. Paul Cohen, department head, kicked off the celebration with a review of the outstanding accomplishments that made this year such an unrivaled success. The following are just some of the outstanding achievements from this year. Dr. Ola Harrysson will lead a team of ISE researchers as they work toward changing the future of energy distribution. Three ISE faculty members received awards from such organizations as the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE), SME, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and both undergraduate and graduate students received awards from IIE for their work with the Food Bank of Central & Eastern NC. This level of success does not occur without the support of alumni, donors and friends of the department and many alumni attended the event for the first time in 2014.
The night had its surprises as well. Justin Lancaster, IT director, was honored with a College of Engineering Award for Excellence and a Pride of the Pack Award. This award was issued in March, but was kept secret until this ceremony so Justin could officially receive his award in front of his friends and colleagues. To no one’s surprise, Cecilia Chen was recognized as the ISE Staff Employee of the Year for her dedication to our graduate program.
But this night wasn’t just about the faculty and staff, the students’ stars also shone brightly. Professors Vila-Parrish, Ivy, Shirwaiker, King and Roberts all stepped to the podium to recognize their student organization officers with a variety of awards, honors and scholarships. As the furniture manufacturing and management program transitions into the next generation of advanced manufacturing, Professor Culbreth awarded the very last Rudolph Willard Outstanding Senior in Furniture Manufacturing Award to Jessica Rose.
The evening culminated with the three student organization presidents awarding Dr. Russell King the CA Anderson Outstanding Faculty Award. The Anderson Award recognizes the member of the Industrial and Systems Engineering faculty who, by consensus of the students, has made the greatest contribution towards their educational development. Dr. King has received the Anderson Award on four previous occasions (1986, 1996, 2002 and 2008). He was named to the NC State Academy of Outstanding Teachers (1990) and received NC State’s George Blessis Outstanding Advisor Award (2010). Congratulations to Dr. King on his well-deserved award. As the CA Anderson Award winner, he will provide the commencement address at the department graduations in the spring and fall of 2014.
To watch Dr. King’s commencement speech, go to The King’s Speech.