Recent accomplishments earned by members of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln community include those by faculty Sheree Moser, Lance Pérez and Michael Sibbernsen.

Faculty/Staff

Sheree Moser, assistant professor of practice in Child, Youth and Family Studies, has been named the Association of Career and Technical Education of Nebraska Postsecondary Teacher of the Year. She received the award at the Nebraska Career Education Conference in Kearney. ACTE and ACTEN Member Awards recognize excellence and dedication within the field of career and technical education among ACTE members. Recipients of these awards are exceptional individuals who have contributed to the success of career and technical education through the quality of their work and their involvement in the CTE community. Moser has been a member of ACTE and FCSTN since 1985. She has served as the president-elect, president and past president of the Nebraska Association of Family and Consumer Sciences and the Family and Consumer Sciences Teachers of Nebraska. Moser has published several articles, presented at many conferences and served on a variety of committees for these organizations as well.

Lance Pérez, interim dean of the College of Engineering and professor of electrical and computer engineering, has been selected to receive the 2016 IEEE Education Society Edwin C. Jones Jr. Meritorious Service Award. The award is given to an IEEE Education Society member recognizing significant leadership and administrative contributions to the society. Pérez served as treasurer, as well as providing other sustained contributions. He will be presented the award in October at their annual conference in Pennsylvania. Pérez has also been named to the Women in Engineering ProActive Network Board of Directors for 2016-17. The board is comprised of volunteers from higher education institutions, organizations and agencies who advocate for inclusion in engineering and to help develop a diverse and innovative engineering workforce. WEPAN’s network connects more than 1,000 leaders to increase participation, retention and success of women and other underrepresented groups in engineering.

Michael Sibbernsen, lecturer of astronomy, prepares for high-flying science next year during the Aug. 21, 2017, total solar eclipse. Michael and his wife Kendra Sibbernsen with Metropolitan Community College-Omaha manage the NASA-Nebraska High Altitude Balloon program, and have more than 50 successful launches and recoveries under their belts. Next year’s total eclipse provides a rare opportunity for these research scientists and their student participants. NASA, with the help of 55 student teams across the United States, will launch high altitude balloons within the eclipse path of totality. Balloon payloads will not only run a number of scientific experiments, but will also provide live video of the eclipse as viewed from almost 19 miles above Earth.

Students

UNL’s Fountain Wars Team took first palce at the 2016 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers annual meeting July 20 in Orlando. In the last three years, the UNL team has won twice and finished second. Fountain Wars is a hands-on competition in which a team of up to six students design a fountain to complete challenges using the necessary PVC pipes, couplers, fittings, valves, nozzles and pumps. Awards are based on the combined scores of a written report, oral presentation, video abstract, construction, technical tasks and aesthetic display. Members of the team are Ellen Emanuel, Mitch Goedeken, Doug Rowen, Mitch Maguire, Anna Siebe and Paulina Guzek. Maguire and Siebe served as team captains. For more information, click here.

This column is a regular Friday 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.