Raul Flores, Ph.D. student, is one of two recipients of the Ronald and Mary Nece Endowed Fellowship, established by the late professor emeritus Ronald Nece and his wife. The fellowship is awarded annually to the top Ph.D. students in the hydrology and hydrodynamics program, based on their Ph.D. dissertation, scholarship and academic performance.

Emma Hutchinson, undergraduate student, received a $1,000 scholarship sponsored by Shannon & Wilson, a geotechnical and environmental consultancy firm headquartered in Seattle. The scholarship was presented in May 2018.

Ruimin Ke, Ph.D. student, was awarded the Institute of Transportation Engineers Washington 2018 Outstanding Graduate Student Award. The competitive scholarship is awarded to a graduate student who is planning to pursue a career in a transportation–related field.

Tianyi Li, Ph.D. student, was selected by the Washington State chapter of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) to receive the 2018 Mt. Rainier Scholarship. The award supports the development of individuals pursuing a career in the transportation field, with a mission of “ensuring a level playing field and maximum participation in the transportation industry.”

Nasser Marafi, Ph.D. student, received an Earthquake Engineering Research Institute’s 2018 Graduate Student Paper Award for his paper titled “Effects of Deep Basins on Structural Collapse during Large Subduction Earthquakes.” The paper quantifies the effects of deep sedimentary basins during subduction zone earthquakes on building structures.

Brett Maurer, assistant professor, received an NSF Early CAREER Award for his novel research approach to investigate earthquakes for which no record exists. To do so, he will study the only evidence left behind: soil liquefaction. He hopes to expose important information that can be used to inform the development of more resilient buildings and infrastructure. 

Alumnus Geoffrey Morgan (BSCE ’11, BA ‘11) was named a Young Engineering Laureate by the World Federation of Engineering Organizations. Employed by the United Nation’s Office for Project Services, Morgan led the development of an infrastructure assessment tool to help countries, particularly those with developing economies, plan, deliver and manage sustainable, resilient infrastructure from the local to the national level.

Rebecca Neumann, associate professor, was honored with the American Geophysical Union’s Charles S. Falkenberg Award for her work to address food and water security challenges around the world. Neumann has worked to resolve arsenic contaminated groundwater in Bangladesh and helped reduce rice contamination by advocating for the use of less arsenic-laden water for irrigation.

Yinhai Wang, professor, was honored with the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Transportation Education Council Innovation in Education Award. According to the ITE nomination committee, Wang is an innovator in transportation education by founding and directing the Smart Transportation Applications and Research (STAR) Lab, which connects students to transportation agencies for real-world research opportunities.