Top UW Engineering Honors Awarded at Tau Beta Pi Banquet

The University of Wyoming’s College of Engineering and Physical Sciences and the Wyoming Alpha chapter of Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering honor society, have announced award recipients for 2023. The awards were presented at the annual Tau Beta Pi Awards Banquet April 29 in the Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center.

“The college wants to recognize and honor the exemplary accomplishments of our students, faculty and staff and to thank our generous scholarship donors for their greatly appreciated and much-needed support,” says Cameron Wright, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences Carrell Family Dean. “We also get to recognize some very special alumni who have brought great credit upon our college and university throughout their careers.”

This year’s award recipients are:

Engineering and Physical Sciences Hall of Fame

-- John Steadman (electrical engineering ’64 and ’66) is professor and dean emeritus of engineering at the University of South Alabama. A native of Cody, Steadman worked on astronaut life support systems for General Dynamics. Steadman taught at UW and served as head of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and the associate dean of the college.

Steadman recently retired as the dean of engineering at the University of South Alabama and, now, he and his wife, Sally, are teaching engineering courses part time with the university.

-- Tamara “Tammy” Johnson (architectural engineering ’91) is president of Merrick & Co. and a structural engineer. Johnson established Merrick & Co.’s San Antonio, Texas, office; led one of Merrick’s largest projects, which was an airman training center at Lackland Air Force Base; and has served as senior vice president for its High Performance Facilities Team as well as an employee-owner.

Alumnus Eminent Engineer

-- Eric Marsh (petroleum engineering ’82) is the founder of Vine Oil and Gas and served as the CEO and chairman of the board of Vine Energy before its merger with Chesapeake Energy in 2022. Previously, Marsh worked his way up to executive vice president at Encana Corp. He has served on Gov. Mark Gordon’s Energy, Engineering and STEM Integration Task Force, on the UW Foundation Board and on the Engineering National Advisory Board.

Wyoming Eminent Engineer

-- Gene Humphrey (mechanical engineering ’93) is co-founder of 9H Research Foundation, which supports UW’s efforts in clean energy research and education. Humphrey is the retired president and co-founder of the semiconductor technology company called International Test Solutions. Humphrey is a Burns native and owns 9H Ranch in Albany County.

Distinguished Service

-- H.T. Person was a professor and dean of the engineering college and president of UW. Known as “Prof,” Person shaped the college and the university in many ways, and he was beloved and respected by his colleagues, his peers and, most importantly, by his students, who called him “the finest teacher I ever had.” His students remembered his ability to make a complicated subject understandable.

All of the above awardees have dedicated their lives in the service of engineering and UW, and all have supported UW through their philanthropy, or others have established endowments in their name.

Special Faculty and Staff Achievements

Sam D. Hakes Outstanding Graduate Research and Teaching: Chip Kobulnicky, professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy.

College of Engineering and Physical Sciences Outstanding Staff: Kathy Webb, office associate, Department of Chemistry.

Tau Beta Pi Awards

Tau Beta Pi Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching: Randolph Pfeiffer, assistant professor of practice, Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering.

Tau Beta Pi Outstanding Staff: Jennifer Martin, senior academic advising professional, Susan McCormack Center for Student Success.

Joint Engineering and Physical Sciences Council Outstanding Seniors, listed by hometown:

Casper -- Jenna Crouse.

Vale, Ore. -- Daniel Wenger.

Outstanding Juniors:

Cheyenne -- John Miller.

Jackson -- Lachlan Brown.

Lander -- Nicholas Kulow.

Laramie -- Joshua Gardner.

Palmer, Alaska -- Kaj Taylor.

Powell -- Clayton Brown and Grace McDaniel.

Richfield, Ohio -- Raymond Krauth.

Riverton -- Eoin Crane.

Cheboksary, Russia -- Tatiana Lubashkina.

Outstanding Sophomores:

Casper -- Edward Murray and Zachary Nelson.

Cheyenne -- Sullivan Fagan.

Cody -- Solomon Stewart.

Cora -- Reese Noble.

Craig, Colo. -- Alexander Nichols.

Eastlake, Ohio -- Victoria Dulzer.

Erie, Colo. -- Garrett Felton.

Fort Collins, Colo. -- Adrianna Francone.

Gillette -- Steven Mansheim and Daniel Marasco.

Grand Junction, Colo. -- Mcginley Zastrow.

Greybull -- Colton Farrow.

Jackson -- Spencer Berezay.

Laramie -- Orion Garrett Johnson, Teagan Riedel, Samantha Smith and Ryan Zafft.

Powell -- Ethan Bartholomew, Jaymison Cox and Sierra Vogt.

Riverton -- Brett Jones.

Rock Springs -- Yesenia Vicencio-Delgadillo.

Sheridan -- Megan Hollingshead and Kendall Redinger.

Torrington -- Matthew Vanatta.

Worland -- Annalise Gade.

Unlisted -- Kayla Davenport.

Outstanding Freshmen:

Alpine -- James Grupp.

Baldwin City, Kan. -- Isabelle Harvey.

Beaver, Pa. -- Brody Greene.

Brighton, Colo. -- Anthony Grissom.

Cheyenne -- Connor Fisbeck, Tristan Ganskow, Nedra McIlwaine, Thomas Paral, Ishita Patel and Justin Van Kirk.

Chugwater -- Rebecca Geary.

Cody -- Keifer Buss.

Colorado Springs, Colo. -- Enzo Knapp and Cian Melker.

Commerce City, Colo. -- Hailey Haufler.

Evanston -- Larry Cornell.

Gillette -- Reis Iken and Risa Pilon.

Glendo -- Daniel Collins and Calvin Fertig III.

Hanna -- Jase Smith.

Hudson, N.H. -- Keagan Bowen.

Jackson -- Stella Vickland-Davis.

Lander -- Ross Anderson and Noah Hampton.

Laramie -- Caden McFate and Rickie Morrow.

Mead, Neb. -- Laura Kuhr.

Monument, Colo. -- Bennett Patrick.

Parker, Colo. -- Hayden Goedekerj.

Pinedale -- Sabrina Donaldson.

Phoenix, Ariz. -- Samuel Mitchell.

Red Wing, Minn. -- Camille DeSutter.

Spring Hill, Tenn. -- Anya Riechers.

Toano, Va. -- Rhiannon Kilduff.

Wibaux, Mont. -- Ashlyn Lutts.

Unlisted -- Paula Medina, Liam Royle-Grimes and Max Seibold.

Outstanding Tau Beta Pi Member:

Fort Collins, Colo. -- Kaytlyn Vander Meer.

Wyoming Engineering Society Award

Student Engineer of the Year: Jenna Crouse, a senior from Casper.