2023 Viterbi Undergraduate Awards
Date: Wednesday, May 10,
Time: 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Location: USC Hotel Grand Ballroom
The Viterbi Undergraduate Awards are held annually and provide the opportunity to recognize students in the Viterbi School of Engineering who have demonstrated outstanding academic achievement, displayed leadership in professional and honorary societies, and provided exceptional service to the Viterbi School of Engineering and surrounding community.
Nomination Deadline: March 24, 2023
The Albert Dorman Scholar Award is presented to a graduating senior who has maintained a high level of academic achievement, and who has been actively involved as a member and leader of the undergraduate student body at USC and within the Viterbi School of Engineering throughout their collegiate career. This student is selected as a representative of their senior class and is recommended by the faculty and staff of the Viterbi School.
The Albert Dorman Future Leader Award is presented annually to a graduating senior in the Viterbi School of Engineering. The successful candidate demonstrates a high level of academic success (minimum of a 3.6 GPA) and has also demonstrated those personal qualities which would lead one to be selected as the graduating senior “most likely to succeed in the future.
The winner of the Leadership award is selected on the basis of outstanding leadership and participation in school, department, and/or society functions.
The Viterbi Community Impact Award is given to the student who has provided the highest quality service to the Viterbi School outside of his/her area of responsibility within a student organization. Voluntary participation in a generous manner is important in the selection of the student receiving this award.
This award honors a graduating senior transfer student who has enhanced our Viterbi community with outstanding achievement in scholarship, leadership, and service.
This award is given to a senior female engineer who has excelled academically in addition to holding leadership positions within the Viterbi and/or USC community. This student should have made a significant impact and contribution to the female engineering community, as well as worked to promote and further the issues surrounding women in engineering.
This award honors a graduating senior who has demonstrated a commitment to the surrounding USC community by offering his or her time and talents to enhance programs or projects that benefit our neighborhood.
Department Awards
Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering
The Eyre Associates award recognizes an AME student who has demonstrated outstanding academic excellence throughout their undergraduate academic career. This award honors the Eyre Associates’ contributions over many years to the support and development of the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering.
Professor Tony Maxworthy was a leading light in the Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering department from his arrival in 1967 to his passing in 2013. He was a Distinguished University Professor and recipient of numerous awards in his illustrious life, but he always drew considerable joy and satisfaction from teaching our undergraduate projects labs. His research covered numerous fields in fluid mechanics, from planetary and geophysical flows to the breakup and instabilities of slow-moving viscous liquids. It was always characterized by an elegance and incisiveness where any given experiment often proved to be the defining study of its time. This was partly because experiments were always conducted with a purpose that was clearly and analytically outlined beforehand. The Tony Maxworthy Award is therefore given to the student work that most closely exemplifies this combination of experimental and analytical elegance for which ‘TMax’ was famous.
John Laufer founded the Aerospace part of the AME Dept. at USC in 1964 and was chairman of the Department for 19 years. He was an internationally known experimentalist in fluid mechanics and had an illustrious career at Cal Tech, NBS and JPL in addition to the many years spent at USC. He also was instrumental in developing the Sr. Experimental Projects Laboratory, one of the most demanding courses in the AME curriculum. The John Laufer Memorial Award was established in his honor to recognize the student with the most outstanding project in the 441 Senior Experimental Projects Laboratory.
Al Bleeker was an enthusiastic, dedicated supporter of undergraduate experimental studies in AME. As a friend, technician and teacher, Al counseled over two generations of laboratory students. This award for excellence and imagination in the design and construction of experiments during the senior year laboratory course is presented by the faculty, students and friends of Aerospace engineering as a tribute to Al's contributions.
These awards are given to the students in the AME Senior Projects Laboratory who has shown outstanding ingenuity and performance in the design, construction, and testing of their senior project.
Astronautical Engineering
This award is given to a graduating senior in Astronautical Engineering who has demonstrated exceptional academic performance.
This award is given to a graduating senior in Astronautical Engineering who has demonstrated exceptional excellence in leadership and initiative.
Biomedical Engineering
Conferred annually since 1994, this is the highest award given by the BME Department to one of its undergraduate students. The Grodins Undergraduate Award is given for outstanding academic achievement in the BME program, with a record of participation in biomedical engineering research and service to the department, school and/or university.
The Alfred E. Mann Institute Award for Academic Excellence in Biomedical Engineering is awarded to a BME junior in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements.
Awarded to BME a senior who has demonstrated excellence in biomedical research in their work with a BME faculty member.
Awarded to a BME student team for innovative health care applications, through their senior design project or other competitions.
Awarded to a BME senior who exhibited exemplary leadership in support of the biomedical engineering student community.
Chemical Engineering
After working 15 years for Chevron Research, Lyman Handy joined USC in 1966 bringing his experimental research expertise to lead significant studies in miscible processes, capillary action, surface and interfacial phenomena, and foam and thermal processes. He was instrumental in establishing a successful Ph.D. program by attracting industrial and government sponsored studies. Handy also gave substantial stability to the Petroleum Engineering Department by successfully recruiting three endowed chairs. He served as the Chairman of the Petroleum Engineering Department for 20 years. Additionally, Handy served the Professional Society of Petroleum Engineers as an editor and as the Director of its Los Angeles Based Section. Handy received much professional recognition including the AIME award and SPE’s distinguished member award.
Handy was a source of inspiration to his students in emphasizing experimental work. His former students are now serving petroleum companies, research laboratories and academic institutions throughout the world. To honor his contributions to the field, the annual Lyman L. Handy award recognizes an outstanding chemical engineering senior, with an emphasis in petroleum engineering, who has an excellent academic record and demonstrated service and leadership capabilities.
Professor Rebert joined USC in 1955 after receiving his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Ohio State University. Until his passing in 1982, he was the faculty advisor to USC’s student chapter of AIChE. He also devoted much of his time advising students about academic and career goals. In honor of Professor Rebert’s dedication to students, and service to the Department and University, an endowment fund in his memory was established after his untimely death.
In 2005 the Department added Rebert’s name to these awards. The outstanding student award is given to a student who has demonstrated academic excellence, while the outstanding service award is given to a graduating senior who has performed the most service to the department, university, and community.
The Minet Award was established to honor the late Dr. Minet who taught the Chemical Engineering Senior Design Project class for over 15 years and is currently sponsored by PBF Energy. The recipient of this award is chosen based on the best senior design project submitted in Chemical Engineering 480. Students must demonstrate the engineering ability and creativity to apply various essential elements in Chemical Engineering process design, including process safety, environmental considerations, public impact, process flow sheeting, equipment design, and economic considertions.
Civil and Environmental Engineering
David M. Wilson Affiliates (DMWA) was founded in 1959 by a group of alumni who felt a loyalty to Professor Wilson for his untiring devotion to USC and his Civil Engineering students. As the longtime Chairman of the Civil Engineering Department, Professor Wilson assisted numerous students to the point of drawing from his own funds. He gave so generously that, upon his retirement, he had little left to live on. Former students came to his aid and assisted the man who had been so important to their careers. When Professor Wilson passed away, the DMWA turned their energy and financial support to the Civil Engineering Department and became one of the first philanthropic support groups at USC.
To this day, DMWA continues to offer scholarships and fellowships to civil and environmental engineering students. Thousand of engineers have benefited from the tremendous engineering education they received thanks to the generosity of alumni who came before them. This award honors the student with the highest GPA.
David M. Wilson Affiliates (DMWA) was founded in 1959 by a group of alumni who felt a loyalty to Professor Wilson for his untiring devotion to USC and his Civil Engineering students. As the longtime Chairman of the Civil Engineering Department, Professor Wilson assisted numerous students to the point of drawing from his own funds. He gave so generously that, upon his retirement, he had little left to live on. Former students came to his aid and assisted the man who had been so important to their careers. When Professor Wilson passed away, the DMWA turned their energy and financial support to the Civil Engineering Department and became one of the first philanthropic support groups at USC.
To this day, DMWA continues to offer scholarships and fellowships to civil and environmental engineering students. Thousand of engineers have benefited from the tremendous engineering education they received thanks to the generosity of alumni who came before them. This award honors the student with the highest GPA.
Computer Science
This award is given to those graduating students in CSCI who have distinguished themselves through scholarship, research, and service.
This award is given to those graduating students in CECS who have distinguished themselves through scholarship, research, and service.
This award is given to those graduating students in CS Games who have distinguished themselves through scholarship, research, and service.
This award is given to those graduating students in CSBA who have distinguished themselves through scholarship, research, and service.
Presented to those undergraduate Computer Science students who have distinguished themselves through outstanding service to the Computer Science Department.
Presented to those undergraduate Computer Science students who have distinguished themselves through their outstanding contributions to research.
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Professor Philip S. Biegler, Chair of the Electrical Engineering department, was the first USC Dean of Engineering. Under Biegler’s leadership, the new College of Engineering moved from the “Red Barn”, a temporary structure put up during World War I, to headquarters in Bridge Hall. Biegler began laying a foundation for further growth by recruiting a number of excellent teachers and expanding into the new Petroleum and Chemical Engineering Building. In his honor, this award honors the EE student with the highest GPA.
The Ming Hsieh Institute in the Department of Electrical Engineering is pleased to announce a new annual award recognizing a graduation senior student with an outstanding trach record of engaging and excelling in research.
Industrial and Systems Engineering
The founder and CEO of ConAm Management Corporation, Dan Epstein used his USC ISE education to become a leading real estate developer and manager. In 2003, Mr. Epstein donated $11 million to the department to recruit new faculty members in multiple areas of Industrial and Systems Engineering, including two endowed chairs, the first of which was filled by Prof. Sheldon Ross in Fall of 2004. The Department became The Daniel J. Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering—the first named department at the University of Southern California, and only second named Industrial Engineering department in the United States. Outstanding students are recognized based on any one of several criteria, including scholarship, leadership, and service to the Epstein Department, the Viterbi School, the University, or the community.
This award is given to those graduating students who have distinguished themselves through outstanding leadership to the Daniel J. Epstein Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering Department.
Students have demonstrated ability and creativity in incorporating various essential elements in industrial and systems engineering design.