NC State Honors Exceptional Faculty

The Celebration of Faculty Excellence is held each spring to recognize outstanding faculty who have received prestigious state, national and international awards, accolades or other distinctions during the previous year. In 2021, NC State honored 29 faculty virtually since the annual event could not be held in person.

Among the awards celebrated was the Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal for Excellence, NC State’s highest award recognizing faculty achievement.

The 2021 honorees were:

  • Robert Kelly, Alcoa Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
  • Robin Moore, Professor, Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning

Hasan Jameel, the Jordan Family Distinguished Professor for Natural Resource Innovation, was recognized for receiving the University of North Carolina Board of Governors Award for Excellence in Teaching, the most prestigious award given to faculty for teaching excellence.

The following faculty were also recognized:

  • Veronica Augustyn, assistant professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering: Department of Energy Early Career Research Award
  • Aydin Aysu, assistant professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: National Science Foundation Early Career Development Award
  • Sylvia Blankenship, professor emerita, Department of Horticultural Science, and senior associate dean emerita, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences: National Inventors Hall of Fame
  • Douglas Call, associate professor, Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering: National Science Foundation Early Career Development Award
  • Ruben Carbonell, Frank Hawkins Kenan Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow
  • Phil Castellano, Goodnight Innovation Distinguished Chair, Department of Chemistry: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow
  • Paul Dayton, William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor and interim head, UNC/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering: National Academy of Inventors Senior Member
  • Veljko Dubljevic, assistant professor, Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies: National Science Foundation Early Career Development Award
  • Ryan Emanuel, professor, Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources: National Humanities Center Fellow
  • Peter Fedkiw, professor and head, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow  
  • Donald Freytes, assistant professor, UNC/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering: National Academy of Inventors Senior Member 
  • Ismail Guvenc, professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: National Academy of Inventors Senior Member
  • Lilian Hsiao, assistant professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: National Science Foundation Early Career Development Award
  • Warren Jasper, professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science: Jefferson Science Fellow
  • Frances Ligler, Ross Lampe Distinguished Professor, UNC/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering: National Academy of Engineering Simon Ramo Founders Award
  • Louis Martin-Vega, professor, Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and dean, College of Engineering: National Academy of Engineering
  • Roger Narayan, professor, UNC/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering: National Academy of Inventors Senior Member
  • Lewis Owen, professor and head, Department of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow
  • Christopher Parnin, assistant professor, Department of Computer Science: National Science Foundation Early Career Development Award
  • Behnam Pourdeyhimi, Klopman Distinguished Professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science: National Academy of Inventors Fellow
  • Thomas Ranney, JC Raulston Distinguished Professor, Department of Horticultural Science: National Academy of Inventors Fellow
  • Jean Ristaino, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow
  • Munindar Singh, professor, Department of Computer Science: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow
  • Brian Space, professor, Department of Chemistry: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow 
  • Dali Sun, assistant professor, Department of Physics: Department of Energy Early Career Research Award
  • Paul Turinsky, professor emeritus, Department of Nuclear Engineering: American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow

2021 marks the tenth year of the Celebration of Faculty Excellence. In recognition of all honored faculty, the university will light the Memorial Belltower red from 7:30-9 p.m. on May 18.

This post was originally published in Provost's Office News.