Fort Collins Resident Kyle Picha Earns National Award for Civic Service

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EVANSVILLE, IN (05/29/2012)(readMedia)-- A Fort Collins resident and Poudre High School alumnus has won one of the nation's top honors for engineering-related civic service.

Kyle Picha, a Spring 2012 graduate of the University of Evansville's mechanical engineering program, received the 2012 Arthur L. Williston Medal for his paper "The Future of Power Generation in a Post-Fukushima Society: A Partnership of Rising Renewables and Promising Nuclear Technologies." The Williston competition is a national writing contest sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and honors the student who submits the best paper on a specific topic in the area of civic service. This year's contest challenged students to reflect on how the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan affect the future of power generation.

"At the University of Evansville, engineering students gain more than technical knowledge: They also develop impressive writing skills and a strong sense of social awareness," said Brian Swenty, chair of UE's Department of Mechanical and Civil Engineering. "All three elements came together in Kyle's nationally award-winning paper, and we're tremendously proud of his achievement."

The award consists of a $1,000 prize, a bronze medal, a certificate, and travel expenses to receive the award at the ASME 2012 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition, November 9-15 in Houston, Texas. An abstract of Picha's paper will also be published in ASME News Online or Mechanical Advantage.

This fall, Picha will attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, to pursue a doctorate in aerospace engineering.