June 10, 2021
MSU Engineering faculty members recognized by ASCE
Two faculty members of the MSU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering have been honored by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) – the nation’s oldest engineering society that represents 150,000 members of the civil engineering profession in 177 countries.
Kristen Cetin is the recipient of the 2021 ExCEEd New Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award.
Her outstanding teaching record as a new faculty member and her contributions to the academic and surrounding community, and proven commitment to education were noted in Cetin’s award notification.
Irene Xagoraraki was awarded with the ASCE Society State-of-the-Art of Civil Engineering Award for her virus-related work. The Society Award is presented each year to recognize the expert efforts of civil engineers who are advancing their profession either through achievement or published papers.
Cetin joined the MSU engineering faculty in August of 2019 and is an assistant professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. She is passionate about teaching and learning, especially for providing students with constructive classroom experiences by integrating diversity, software tools, and skillsets. Her involvement in the ASCE ExCEEd Teaching Workshop program includes having served as an assistant mentor for several years and participated as an ExCEEd fellow.
“I greatly enjoy teaching the bright and enthusiastic students in our engineering courses, and the challenges and rewards that come with this experience,” Cetin said. “They have great ideas, and a strong willingness to learn. Participating in the ExCEEd program has been an excellent experience, both to enhance my teaching and to help other faculty improve their teaching skills. I also hope to utilize the skillsets and tools that we have learned throughout the past several semesters of remote learning to better enhance the classroom environment,” she added.
Xagoraraki, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, has been with MSU since 2006. Since 2017, she has been working in collaboration with the Great Lakes Water Authority and the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department on a wastewater-based epidemiology detection program. Her research team identifies endemic diseases and predicts outbreaks, including early detection of Covid-19, in the City of Detroit and Wayne, Macomb and Oakland counties.
Her break-through research on viruses in environmental systems has led to several recognitions, such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Scientific and Technological Achievement Award, and a series of state and federal grants to continue her local, state and Midwest collaborations.
“Working with talented and enthusiastic graduate students to create a productive and visionary environmental virology laboratory that focuses on public health issues is among my most important accomplishments,” she noted.
Written by Kee-Ri Burkitt, student writer for the MSU College of Engineering
