Contact: Phil Hearn
STARKVILLE, Miss.--New Mississippi State graduate student Justin M. Crapps of Florence, Ala., is the 2004-05 silver medalist in the national Charles T. Main Award Competition of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
A May magna cum laude graduate of the university in mechanical engineering, he now is seeking a master's degree in the field at MSU. He placed second in the ASME event to gold medalist Mandy L. Brogdon of the University of Dayton (Ohio) as most outstanding national student leader.
"This is a well-deserved honor for Justin," said Glenn Steele, head of the MSU mechanical engineering department.
The Main Award was established in 1919 to honor the 37th president of the society, a professional organization of some 120,000 members. In 1971, it was combined with the Arthur L. Williston Medal contest to encourage student members of ASME and young engineers to become active in public service. The award later was expanded to include a second-place award.
Crapps, the son of Kerwin and Donna Crapps, was a President's Scholar and University Honors Program participant during his undergraduate studies. He also served as Ingersoll-Rand coordinator for MSU's student chapter of ASME.
The MSU chapter recently finished third nationally in ASME's annual Ingersoll-Rand Inter-Regional awards competition, which recognizes outstanding activities and leadership. It was the MSU group's first national award.
Crapps continues as general business manager for Mississippi State's Challenge X team, a group of students seeking to design an alternative powered vehicle as part of a national, three-year competition featuring teams from 17 universities.
For more information, contact Julie Lemons at (662) 325-8098 or jlemons@engr.msstate.edu.