High School Seniors Get a Taste of College at UH Engineering Camp
(June 28, 2007)The Program for Mastery in Engineering Studies (PROMES) hosted fifty high school seniors at its annual Mentoring & Enrichment Seminar in Engineering Training (MESET) Camp held June 3-15. Students participated in various design challenge activities during the two-week camp to learn basic engineering principles. They also took field trips to local industries and agencies to experience the applications of engineering in day-to-day operations.

Engineering Professor Honored for Work with Minority Students
(June 26, 2007)Gerhard Paskusz, professor emeritus at the University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering and founder of PROMES (Program for Mastery in Engineering Studies, has received the Dupont Minorities in Engineering Award from the American Society for Engineering Education. Paskusz founded the program in 1974 to offer workshops for students to sharpen their study skills, as well as be able to network and socialize with their peers. He retired from the program after 30 successful years. PROMES is now directed by Dr. Kathy Zerda, who nominated Paskusz for the award.

UH-Led Group Wins Wind Turbine Testing Facility
(June 25, 2007)The University of Houston-led Lone Star Wind Alliance has succeeded in bringing one of the Department of Energy's large turbine testing facilities to the Texas Coast. Cullen College of Engineering Distinguished University Professor of Mechanical Engineering Su Su Wang and Dean Raymond Flumerfelt submitted a proposal to the DOE on behalf of the Alliance in May, competing with a group in Massachusetts. Both groups will receive $2M from DOE to design, construct and operate a research facility capable of testing offshore wind blades up to 100m long. Texas' proposed $24M facility will be located in Ingleside, Texas.

Texas Holds Strong Potential for Offshore Wind Power
(June 18, 2007) Leaders in the field of wind energy from industry and from the University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering laid out the viability and importance of developing offshore wind energy in the State of Texas during a presentation last Thursday at the Texas Society of Professional Engineers Annual Meeting. Dean Raymond Flumerfelt led the panel discussion, which outlined how the industry and intellectual capital in the region best positions the state to be a leader in renewable energy, particularly in offshore wind production.

UH Partners with Duke TIP Program on New Recruiting Initiative
(June 12, 2007) Cullen College of Engineering has partnered with the Duke Talent Identification Program (TIP), the University of Houston Honors College and UH-Downtown to a launch a new recruiting initiative aimed at attracting talented students to university programs. Cullen College hosted one of many Scholars Weekend courses offered around the country through Duke TIP. Fifteen high school students attended the "Extreme Engineering" course designed and instructed by Dr. Julie Trenor, director of undergraduate recruitment and retention at the college.

Engineering Alum Journeys to Space
(June 5, 2007) Cullen College alumnus John "Danny" Olivas (1993 MSME) will journey to the International Space Station on June 8 as a member of the STS-117 Atlantis crew. Atlantis is scheduled to launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center at 6:38 p.m. (CST). During the 11-day mission, Olivas will assist in installing two truss segments on to the station as part of its solar-power system. He will participate in two of the mission's three space walks during his inaugural journey into outer space.

UH Concrete Canoe Team Headed to Nationals
(June 5, 2007) The University of Houston student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) took first place in the Texas/Mexico regional Concrete Canoe Competition in April, earning them the right to represent region at the upcoming national competition on June 14 in Seattle, Wash. In addition, the chapter received the 2007 ASCE Governor's Award for submitting an outstanding annual report highlighting chapter activities for the previous year. Those activities also earned them the Most Improved Chapter Award for the region, moving them from the lower third to the upper third of all schools in the country.