UT Tyler Shines at 2020 ASCE Conference
April 8, 2020
UT Tyler Office of Marketing and Communications
UT Tyler Shines at 2020 ASCE Conference
Follow @UTTyler TweetApril 8, 2020
Media Contact: Beverley Golden
Senior Director of Media Relations
Marketing and Communications
The University of Texas at Tyler
903.566.7303
The University of Texas at Tyler announced that members of the American Society of Civil Engineering student chapter outperformed 11 collegiate teams and earned nine awards at this year’s ASCE Texas-Mexico Regional Conference.
In the most popular and prestigious team competition, the University – with its 2020 concrete canoe entry “Usain Boat” – tied for first place with the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey and narrowly lost the tiebreaker, which is a complex point system formula determined by judges, to qualify for nationals.
UT Tyler placed first in design paper and third place in canoe final product design. The University also placed first in concrete bowling and second in concrete Frisbee team competitions.
“I am incredibly proud of our students’ successes this year,” said Dr. Michael McGinnis, faculty adviser. “The leaders among this group did an amazing job bringing together our most diverse team ever to ensure that UT Tyler didn’t just belong in these contests but excelled as a top performer.”
Other awards include:
- Junior and student chapter president Luisa Cardona-Suarez of Longview and junior Gilberto Lara of Tyler placed first in the innovation contest for their idea of improving the construction and thermal efficiency of residential buildings.
- Seniors Tosin Ogunlaja and Zachary Smolen, both of Tyler, placed first for their research poster titled, “Feasibility of Using PIOx to Oxidize Endocrine Disrupting Compounds at Wastewater Treatment Plants” with faculty collaborator Dr. Torey Nalbone, department chair.
- Senior Gabby Morales of Tyler placed second for her research poster titled, “Improved Engineered Scoring System for Bicycle Lane Mapping Development,” with faculty collaborator Dr. Mena Souliman, associate professor.
- Junior Nathaniel Honea of Tyler received “Best Dressed” at the awards banquet.
The annual conference brings together hundreds of students from civil engineering programs in Texas and Mexico to network with industry leaders, attend ASCE workshops and compete in group and individual competitions.
A member of the prestigious UT System, The University of Texas at Tyler focuses on student success and innovative research in the more than 80 undergraduate and graduate degree programs offered to nearly 10,000 students. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News and World Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.