Contact: Phil Hearn
Atly Jefcoat
Atly Jefcoat, holder of Mississippi State's Hunter Henry Chair of Chemical Engineering, is receiving national recognition for his work advising a student organization in his professional field.
Jefcoat recently was named the 2002-03 Outstanding Student Chapter Adviser by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, a professional organization of more than 50,000. He has held the university's Henry Chair, or endowed professorship, since 1998.
Chapter members John C. Reed of Clinton and Renita E. Horton of Pickens also were honored with scholarships during the organization's national meeting in San Francisco.
A Soso native and Mississippi State faculty member for more than five years, Jefcoat received a plaque and a cash award. He was nominated by chapter officers and Kirk H. Schulz, director of the university's Swalm School of Chemical Engineering.
Reed, a senior, was selected for the Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer National Scholarship Award for academic excellence and involvement in chapter activities.
Horton, a junior, received the Donald F. Othmer Sophomore Academic Excellence Award for highest grade-point average in the MSU chapter.
Under the leadership of former president and graduating senior Levell Hairston of Pascagoula, the MSU chapter received its third consecutive Outstanding Student Chapter Award during the conference, which was attended by 20 undergraduate chapter members.
Nationally, some 30 of the organization's more than 150 student chapters usually submit nominations for the annual award, which recognizes outstanding service and leadership as a chapter adviser over a sustained period.
A member of AIChE for more than 40 years, Jefcoat earlier served as chair of the Western South Carolina, Mid-South and Central Alabama sections. He also has chaired the Research Committee of the professional group's environmental division and served as program chair for the 1988 and 1990 Hazardous Materials Spills conferences.
Jefcoat earlier taught at the universities of Alabama and Cincinnati and Christian Brothers University. He also worked for Exxon Corp., W.R. Grace and Co., U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and ENSR International, a Massachusetts-based private consulting firm.
He holds a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Virginia Tech University, and master's and doctoral degrees in the field from Clemson University.
LOCAL EDITORS:
John Reed is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Randolph Reed.
Renita Horton is the daughter of Melvin Horton and Thena Horton.
Levell Hairston is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hairston.