Electrical & Computer

The winners of this year's Waterloo Engineering awards were honoured at the annual Faculty of Engineering dinner held on October 10.

The Faculty’s Teaching Excellence Award recognizes outstanding teaching and commitment to the enrichment of Waterloo Engineering education. This year’s deserving recipients are David Brush of civil and environmental engineering, Keith Hipel of systems design engineering, and David Wang of electrical and computer engineering.

The University of Waterloo Robotics team came within a hair's breadth of successfully completing the Level 1 of the Sample Return Robot Challenge, a part of NASA's Centennial Challenges prize program.

The event, hosted by Worcester Polytechnic Institute from June 5-7 in Worcester, Mass., drew robotics teams from the United States, Canada and Estonia to compete for a total of $1.5 million in NASA prize money.

Wayne Loucks, an electrical and computer engineering faculty member, has been reappointed as associate dean, undergraduate studies from July 1, 2013 to December 31, 2015.  Loucks has served as the associate dean for engineering undergraduate studies since 1998. 

"He continues to work in the interests of our growing number of undergraduates," says dean of engineering Pearl Sullivan in a memo to faculty and staff about Loucks' reappointment.  "I know that all the departments are grateful that he has agreed to continue leading this important portfolio for the Faculty."  

Engineering students dominated the University of Waterloo men’s curling team that earned national gold with a 7-5 victory over the University of Alberta Golden Bears in Kamloops, B.C.

Skip Jake Walker, a fourth-year electrical engineering student, second Jordan Moreau, a management engineering student, third Edward Cyr, a mechanical engineering master's student, and alternate Nathan Ransom, an undergraduate mechanical engineering student, and other members of the team, captured top spot in the 2013 Men’s Curling Championship in a rematch of last year's finals.

Jonathan Eyolfson, an electrical and computer engineering graduate student, is one of just four campus-wide recipients of the 2013 Amit & Meena Chakma Award for Exceptional Teaching by a Student.  Eyolfson, a teaching assistant and instructor for various courses for several years, is noted by his students as having a deep understanding of the material and dedication to teaching. He's described as “a knowledgeable and approachable teaching assistant who really understands our confusion.”

The 2012 Waterloo Engineering Awards dinner held on November 22 honoured engineering's exceptional students, alumni and a friend of the faculty. More than 2,500 students received awards this year for everything from top marks to extracurricular activities such as leadership, community engagement, and involvement in athletics.

A number of awards were distributed at the event, including: