Recent honors, awards and publication collected by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln community include recognition for Amy Millmier Schmidt, Florin Bobaru, Guanfeng Zhang, Rob Simon, Roger Wilson, and students from UNL’s student veterans organization, College of Architecture, School of Natural Resources, College of Business Administration and College of Journalism and Mass Communications.

Faculty/Staff

• Amy Millmier Schmidt, an assistant professor and livestock bioenvironmental engineer, has been awarded a 2015 Outstanding Service Award from the Nebraska Pork Producers Association. Schmidt received the award during the NPPA annual meeting on Feb. 17 in Lincoln. Schmidt was nominated by Larry Berger, head of the Animal Science Department. She received the award for producer outreach. The Outstanding Pork Service Awards are given annually to recognize exceptional work by an individual, company or organization that has advocated the fundamental efforts of the NPPA.

• Florin Bobaru, professor of mechanical and material engineering, and Guanfeng Zhang, graduate student in engineering, were invited to publish a study in the 50th-anniversary issue of the International Journal of Fracture. By comparing a series of model-based simulations with experimental results, the study helps resolve the long-standing question of how cracks branch — split into two or more cracks — and propagate through brittle materials such as glass. To view the study, click here.

• Rob Simon, associate professor of practice of marketing, will receive the outstanding article award for 2015 for an article in the Journal of Marketing Education at the 2016 Marketing Educators’ Association conference April 15 in Denver. Also receiving the award are Simon’s colleagues on the article, James Cross and Nadia Pomirleanu of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas; and Shannon Cummins and James Peltier of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. The article, “Evaluating Educational Practices for Positively Affecting Student Perceptions of a Sales Career,” which was published in the April 2015 issue of the journal, identifies educational innovations for reducing students’ reservations towards careers in sales. For more information, click here.

• Roger Wilson, farm management budget analyst in the Department of Agricultural Economics, has been named the recipient of IANR’s 2016 First Quarter Outstanding Employee Award. Wilson develops enterprise budgets for traditional and non-traditional commodities. These budgets have a wide distribution and are used by producers, bankers, researchers and academic instructors. He has co-authored three journal articles, two research bulletins and seven Nebraska Beef Cattle Reports. For more information, click here.

Students

• Chloe Neuvirth, an interior design student in the College of Architecture, received first place in Gensler’s Brinkmann Scholarship competition for her project, “CONTINUUM — A Design Study Investigating the Relationship Between Food, City and the Interior Built Environment.” As part of her award, Neuvirth will be given a tuition scholarship for her fourth year, plus a 10-week internship at the Gensler location in San Francisco. In developing the project, Neuvirth proposed creating a cultural food hub in the now vacant Pershing Center in Lincoln. Neuvirth’s project is featured in an video available on UNL’s YouTube channel. For more information, click here.

• Members of UNL’s student veteran organization, including Justin Otoski,Elizabeth Whitacre, Justin Collier and Dannee Sengdara, attended the national Student Veterans of America Conference in Orlando, Florida, in January. The conference featured opportunities for student veterans to network, receive professional development, and meet and speak with professionals that work with military veterans. As part of a national competition, the UNL group was one of just six student veteran chapters invited to present its business plan. Darrell Everhart, director of the Military and Veteran Success Center at UNL, said the Nebraska group won a monetary grant, were recognized for dedication and hard work and gained a great deal of experience. For more information on the Military and Veteran Success Center, click here.

• The winners of the School of Natural Resources Elevator Speech Contest were announced Feb. 25. In addition to a People’s Choice category based on a vote of the audience, the contestants were evaluated by a three-judge panel — State Sen. Ken Haar; NU State Museum Director Susan J. Weller and Michael Farrell, special projects manager for NET. The undergraduate elevator speech division was won by Jenna Schweiss, with Alli Hough, Matthew Russell and Brook Welsh as runners-up. The masters division was won by Ann Smith with Qwynne Lackey, Brian Harmon and Alexis Fedele as runners-up. The doctorate division was won by Kelly Willemssens with Jessica Burnett, Michael Whitby and Johnica Morrow as runners-up. Welsh won the audience choice award, while Olivia Straka, Christian Cruz, Jonathan Spurgeon and Dylan Tegtmeier claimed poster contest awards.

• Four teams of students competed in a preliminary Union Pacific Case Competition March 4 at the College of Business Administration. The competition challenged the teams to take on a case that examined the capacity of the railroad at a specific port and which business opportunities would provide the most value and return for the company. The winning team of Trevor Burr, Tucker Krantz, Colter Meisner and Taylor Moore advanced to the April 1 regional competition in Omaha. For more on this achievement, click here.

This column is a regular feature of UNL Today. Faculty, staff and students can submit their achievements to be considered for this column via email to achievements@unl.edu. For more information, call 402-472-8515.