Skip to main content

News & Events

Explore the latest news, achievements and events from the College of Engineering as our faculty, students and alumni advance groundbreaking research, celebrate innovation and create solutions that address the challenges of today and shape the technologies of tomorrow.

Latest News

Changing filters will update the results after each selection.

Posted

Nishant Ojal to Start LLNL Post-Doc Position

Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. student Nishant Ojal will be going to Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory after he graduates this summer, continuing…

Read More
Posted

New GM Defense Facility Brings Innovation to Greater Charlotte

At the invitation of W.S. Lee College of Engineering Advisory Board member Pam Fletcher, Vice President of Global Innovation at…

Read More
Posted

ACS Nano Publishes Paper of ARO-supported Research on Miracle Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Semiconductors

The American Chemical Society has published a paper on its website ACS Nano about the research of UNC Charlotte faculty…

Read More
Posted

Spring 2021 Commencement

Spring 2021 commencement ceremonies were held at Jerry Richardson Stadium on the UNC Charlotte campus last weekend, with Lee College…

Read More
Posted

After 45 Years at UNC Charlotte, Dr. Yogi Kakad Retires

When he graduated with his Ph.D. in 1975, Dr. Kakad was offered two jobs, one at UNC Charlotte and the…

Read More
Posted

Spring 2021 Senior Design Expo Winners

The William States Lee College of Engineering held its virtual spring-semester Senior Design Expo on May 7, 2021. Teams who…

Read More
Posted

Freshmen Build Mobility Cart for Boots

Students from the Lee College of Engineering’s Freshman Learning Community designed and built a mobility cart for 8-month-old puppy Boots,…

Read More
Posted

Don Blackmon Retiring from College of Engineering

At a time when he could have started slowing down and taking things easy, Don Blackmon decided instead to give…

Read More
Posted

From Canada to Forty Niners Racing

When you hear that a 6-foot-7-inch-tall transfer student is coming from another country to join a Forty Niner team, you…

Read More
Posted

Rocket Girls

A tradition has been growing on the Forty Niner Rocketry Team, in which female students in the ETCM program recruit…

Read More
Posted

Water Bos Team Advances in DOE Waves Water Prize

Utilizing an innovative system that intakes seawater and directly converts ocean wave energy into the driving force to produce fresh…

Read More
Posted

1st Quarter Research Grants Total $1.75 Million

Researchers in the William States Lee College of Engineering won 27 grants totaling almost $1.75 million in the first quarter of 2021….

Read More

Pagination

Niner Engineer Student Awards

The Niner Engineer Awards highlight the innovation, leadership and achievements of UNC Charlotte engineering students and teams. From national competitions and research accomplishments to scholarships and industry recognition, these honors showcase the creativity, dedication and impact of Niner Engineers shaping the future of technology and engineering.

Submit Competition Results
Niner Engineer Student Awards
DateStudent OrganizationCompetitionDescription
June 2026Kendrick Grant, Civil and Environmental EngineeringMountains to Sea Graduate Research FellowshipKendrick Grant named NC Mountains to Sea Fellow
April 2026Andrei Vince, Computer EngineeringStanford Center on Longevity Design ChallengeNiner earns 2nd place in Stanford competition for fall prevention innovation
Summer 2025ASCE UNC CharlotteASCE Concrete Canoe CompetitionTeam placed in top ten in two categories: men’s slalom and proposal
Summer 202549ers RacingFSAE CompetitionIC team placed in top 10 for third straight year; EV team raced at national level third year in a row
Summer 202549er Miner RoboticsNASA Lunabotics Competition#6 Caterpillar Autonomy Award and 11th place overall
April 2025Design-Build-Fly TeamAIAA Design-Build-Fly CompetitionUNC Charlotte team competes for first time in international competition
April 2025AIAA Student ChapterAIAA Southeastern Regional Student ConferenceKyle VanHorn wins 1st place in undergraduate research competition
February 202549ers RacingStudent Night49ers Racing claims top 2 podium spots at Clemson’s Student Night
Spring 2025Steven Sanchez2025 IPG Scholarship from SHPESteven Sanchez, pursuing his BSCE, was awarded the nationally competitive IPG scholarship from the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers
October 2024Nada Aboelmagd, Felix Fiifi Ekuful, Juliana Somuah, Nneka Ubi2024 Foundation Scholarship from IFMAGraduate engineering students receive IFMA Foundation Scholarships
September 2024Houston Norris, Mechanical Engineering Technology2024-25 Society Scholarship from ASHRAENiner Engineer Houston Norris, mechanical engineering technology student, awarded the Gordon V.R. Holness Engineering Technology Scholarship from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers
September 2024Khayzaran Qubbaj, Biomedical Engineering Biomedical Sciences SymposiumNiner Engineer wins Best Poster Award at Biomedical Sciences Symposium
August 2024Layne Riggs, Mechanical EngineeringNASCAR Truck SeriesMechanical engineering student wins NASCAR race
July 202449ers Racing Formula SAESTEAM Sports FoundationScholarship awarded to Niner Engineer Ximena Garcia-Pena, ME major and motorsports student
July 2024BATT CAVE Grad StudentNC Space GrantDaniel Saraphis named Graduate Research Fellow for research re: NASA’s autonomous vehicle operations
June 202449er Rocketry TeamNASA Student Launch3rd place overall in NASA competition (claiming a podium spot 7 straight years)
May 2024Layne Riggs, Mechanical EngineeringNASCAR Truck SeriesMechanical engineering student finishes in 3rd in NASCAR Truck Series race
May 2024Astrobotics Team (49er Miners)NASA Lunabotics Challenge49er Miners win 1st place in Presentation and Demonstrations
May 202449er Racing Formula SAE Internal Combustion TeamFormula SAE Internal Combustion49ers Racing FSAE IC takes 2nd place among 113 international schools
April 2024ASCE TeamConcrete Canoe, Steel Bridge, Surveying, Sustainable SolutionsUNC Charlotte’s ASCE chapter wins 10 awards at the 2024 Carolinas ASCE Student Symposium
March 2024UNC Charlotte Track and Field TeamNCAA Indoor ChampionshipsNiner Engineer Riley Felts finishes national runner-up in women’s pole vault
January 2024URBAN GREEN NINERS TeamJump into STEM1st place for the Challenge “You and Me, Carbon Free”
October 2023ASCE TeamASCE Innovation ContestUNC Charlotte ASCE team wins national Innovation Contest
June 2023Robotic Mining TeamRobotic Mining ChallengeUNC Charlotte Robotic Mining Team continues tradition of innovation and awards
May 2023Formula SAE TeamFSAE International Collegiate Competition49ers Racing speeds into top 10 in international FSAE competition
April 202349er Rocketry TeamNASA Student LaunchRocketry team places 2nd overall
November 2022Civil Engineering Grad StudentASCE 9th Forensics Engineering CongressRohan Reddy Jonna places 3rd in the Three Minute Failure Case Study Competition
October 2022ASPE TeamASPE Student Challenge – Optical ProfilometryPrecision metrology PhD students win first place in national competition
June 202249er Rocketry TeamNASA Student Launch1st place again this year in NASA competition
May 2022WATER BROSWaves to Water PrizeUNC Charlotte team of researchers and students finish 2nd in U.S. Department of Energy competition
June 202149er Rocketry TeamNASA Student Launch1st place for first time for 49er rocketry team
July 202049er Rocketry TeamNASA Student Launch2nd place in U.S. for third year in a row
May 201949er Rocketry TeamNASA Student Launch2nd place in NASA competition
May 201849er Rocketry TeamNASA Student Launch2nd place – highest award to date for rocketry team

Faculty and Staff Recognition

UNC Charlotte’s Faculty and Staff Recognition celebrates the achievements of the educators, researchers and leaders who drive innovation, student success, and engineering excellence. Their dedication and expertise help shape the future of engineering and inspire the next generation of Niner Engineers.

Submit Nomination
Faculty and Staff Recognition

Date		FacultyAwardDescription
April 2026Tara CavallineACI Board of DirectionCavalline elected elected to serve on the American Concrete Institute (ACI) Board of Direction
January 2026Carlos Gonzalez-CalderonGambrell Faculty FellowMobility and the air we breathe: transportation emissions and chronic disease
January 2026Stuart SmithNAI FellowStuart Smith elected National Academy of Inventors Fellow
June 23, 2025Dipankar MaityNSF CAREERHelping smart machines make smarter decision
June 18, 2025Xiang ChenNSF CAREERSupersizing energy efficiency by unlocking the potential of superlattice
June 6, 2025Zhao, Chen, Braxtan, Lee, El-GhannamUNC Charlotte Invention of the YearAwards ceremony celebrate groundbreaking inventions and cutting-edge technology designed to solve today’s grand challenges.
April 23, 2025MultipleW.S. Lee College of Engineering Faculty AwardsTeaching, research and service awards recognize engineering faculty excellence
April 4, 2025Multiple$1MM Research CircleFaculty researchers honored for funding, research successes
March 2025Tara CavallineFellow, ACIDr. Cavalline has been elected a Fellow of the American Concrete Institute, a prestigious recognition of an individual’s contribution to the concrete industry
February 2025James Amburgey and Olya KeenSenior MembersAmburgey and Keen honored by National Academy of Inventors
June 2024Brigid MullanyFellow, SMEMullany is newest Fellow with Society of Manufacturing Engineers for her 20+ years experience and outstanding contributions to manufacturing
May 2024Lin MaORAUMa receives ORAU Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award
April 2024Youxing ChenNSF CAREERUnraveling the secrets to tougher materials to support safer, lower cost energy production
March 2024Hamed TabkhiNSF KeynoteNational Science Foundation has featured Hamed Tabkhi as its first Featured PI spotlight for the Smart & Connect Communities Virtual Organization
January 2024Rob KeyntonNSF I-Corps HubUNC Charlotte accepted as NSF I-Corps Hub Mid-Atlantic Region
October 2023Ed MorseTech Strategy Development GrantCPM benefits from US Economic Development Administration Award
October 2023Qiang ZhuNSF CAREER, DOE Early Career AwardZhu uses modeling to support clean energy generation through organic materials
June 2023Amir GhasemiNSF CAREERAmir Ghasemi wins NSF CAREER Award for human machine interface project
May 2023Mike MazoolaNSF Engine DevelopmentAward to fund CLEANcarolinas supporting clean energy innovations
April 2023Rob KeyntonInvited to White House RoundtableKeynton shares importance of increasing increasing Hispanic representation in STEM with federal Office of Public Engagement
February 2023In Hong YangNSF CAREERIn Hong Yang earns NSF CAREER Award for bioelectronics-project
February 2023Rob CoxClean Cities/Clean Fuels Coalition AwardPoleVolt™ receives award from Centralina Regional Council to promote clean fuels and energy efficient mobility options
November 2022Ahmed ArafaNSF CAREERArafa speeds up the impact of data for networked communications systems
November 2022Badrul ChowdhuryUS Department of Energy$4 million grant supports advanced architecture that will control the interface between the bulk power grid and community-based microgrids
2022Vincent OgunroFulbrightOgunro selected for Fulbright Scholar Program to Nigeria
2022Janos GergelyFulbrightGergely selected for Fulbright Scholar Program to Hungary
2017Gary GehrigFulbrightGehrig selected for Fulbright Scholar Program to Namibia
2017Sheng-Guo WangFulbrightWang selected for Fulbright Scholar Program to Hong Kong
2015Shen-En ChenFulbrightChen selected for Fulbright Scholar Program to India
2011Harish CherukuriFulbrightCherukuri selected for Fulbright-Nehru Senior Research Fellowship to Bangalore
2001Harish CherukuriW.S. Lee College of Engineering Teaching AwardCherukuri receives Maxheim Faculty Fellowship Award
1998Jy WuFulbrightWu selected for Fulbright Scholar Program to Thailand

Upcoming Events

No events found.