Contact: Phil Hearn
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Mississippi State professor and administrator Roger L. King is the first recipient of the J. Donald Trotter Leadership Award for distinguished service in electrical and computer engineering.
Associate dean for graduate studies and research in the university's Bagley College of Engineering, King was chosen by a vote of tenure-track colleagues in the department of electrical and computer engineering. King also is a William L. Giles Distinguished Professor, the highest rank bestowed on MSU faculty members with lengthy and distinguished records of academic achievements.
A 1960 MSU graduate, Trotter established and directed MSU's Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems, and served as the university's associate vice president for strategic initiatives until his retirement in 2005.
"I have worked with Don Trotter for many years at Mississippi State and am well aware of his many contributions to the state and the university," said King, a 17-year veteran of the department. "To be named the recipient of this leadership award named in his honor is very humbling."
ECE professor and department head James C. Harden presided over the ceremonies, which were attended by Trotter and his wife Lynda.
"It was an opportunity to express to Roger and Don our gratitude for many years of unprecedented leadership and commitment," he said.
Harden said the award will be given annually to a tenured member of the department who has distinguished himself or herself by providing vision and leadership in education and research.
Leadership examples, he observed, include such activities as enhancement of the department's use of technology, mentoring new faculty, training students and providing them with career-enhancement opportunities, and providing national recognition to both the department and the engineering college.
"Roger has done an outstanding job in developing a research agenda for the Bagley College of Engineering, and is using his talents and skills to assist us in becoming a top 50 college of engineering," said college Dean Kirk Schulz.
King also serves as interim director of the university's Institute for Clean Energy Technology--or ICET ("ice tea")--formerly known as the Diagnostic Instrumentation and Analysis Laboratory or DIAL.
Widely recognized for his research in areas that include remote sensing and intelligent systems, King has administered scientific investigations in more than $23 million of sponsored research.
For more information, contact Julie Lemons at (662) 325-8098 or jlemons@engr.msstate.edu.