HOUGHTON--Dr. James Mihelcic, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Michigan Technological University, has been selected to receive the 2002 AEESP/Wiley Interscience Award for Outstanding Contributions to Environmental Engineering and Science Education from the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors.

The award includes a $1,000 cash prize donated by the John Wiley & Sons, Inc., publishing company. It honors educators for "the development of innovative teaching methods, including the application of these methods in the classroom and the dissemination of methods to the academic community. "

"Jim has worked tirelessly on behalf of our students and the whole civil and environmental engineering department," said C. Robert Baillod, department chair. "He richly deserves this recognition for his success in not only in education, but also in research and service. He is an outstanding scholar, and his efforts have played a big role in building Michigan Tech's national reputation in environmental engineering."

Mihelcic was a leader in establishing Michigan Tech's Peace Corps Master's International Program in Civil and Environmental Engineering, the only engineering program of its kind in the nation. He actively promotes the environmental engineering profession among area high school students and has instituted innovative teaching approaches at the undergraduate and graduate level.

He coauthored the textbook "Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering," which was recently translated into Spanish, and also spearheaded MTU's undergraduates' successful participation in the WERC International Environmental Design Contest. His environmental engineering Web site (www.cee.mtu.edu/BSEE/BSEEweb1.html), which he codeveloped with fellow MTU faculty member Dr. Kurt Paterson, provides prospective students with a broad base of information about the profession.

"We have heard nothing but positive statements from students who talk about the enthusiasm Dr. Mihelcic projects about our profession and who have used this Web-based tool to investigate a career in environmental engineering," said Presidential Professor John Crittenden and Professor Martin Auer, both of MTU's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, in nominating Mihelcic for the award.

Mihelcic joined the Michigan Tech faculty in 1989 and earned his PhD in Civil Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. His dissertation was recognized in 1988 by AEESP with an Engineering Science/AEESP Doctoral Dissertation Award. He will receive the education award at AEESP's annual luncheon banquet in October held in conjunction with the Water and Environment Federation's 75th Annual Technical Exposition and Conference.

8/30/02--MTN091