Stevens News

School of Systems and Enterprises Announces 2023 Student Awards

With the 2022-23 academic year at Stevens coming to a close, the School of Systems and Enterprises is proud to recognize the recipients of its annual undergraduate, graduate and doctoral student awards.

"I wish to offer my sincere congratulations to the 2023 award winners," said Anthony Barrese, interim dean for the School of Systems and Enterprises. "It was another great year for SSE and I am watching with excitement to see what these high-achieving students will go on to do in the future."

"I would like to express my appreciation to SSE for providing me with the opportunity to pursue my academic and professional goals," added Chenhao Wei, winner of the School of Systems and Enterprises Exceptional Achievement Award. "I am grateful for the support and guidance of my professors and colleagues, who have all been instrumental in my success."

The 2023 SSE Student Award winners are as follows:

Undergraduate

Donald N. Merino Award for Academic Excellence

This award is the gift of Donald N. Merino, Ph.D., P.E., Stevens class of 1960, who was the founding program director of the Bachelor of Engineering Management program. It is presented to a graduating Engineering Management student whose paper from any course or journal is considered by the Bachelor of Engineering in Engineering Management Academic Committee to achieve the highest academic excellence of all the papers submitted for that year.

Winners: Reva Grover, Dehan Kong, Laura Mathews, Daniel Wadler and Samantha Weckesser

Frederick Winslow Taylor Award

This award is presented to the graduating senior with the highest GPA and who did the most to promote the undergraduate Engineering Management program at Stevens.

Winner: Kayleigh Kubit

Hans J. Lang Award for Excellence in Accounting and Business Analysis

This award is presented annually to the member of the junior class in Engineering Management who has distinguished themselves in these topics.

Winner: Chloe Brenna

Humphreys-Ennis-Lesser Award

This award was established by Dr. Donald Merino in memory of professors Humphreys, Ennis and Lesser, all former professors of Engineering Economics at Stevens. It is presented to the senior with the highest GPA in the required undergraduate Engineering Economics core courses.

Winners: Michael Botros and Jordan Fernandes

John Mihalasky Award

This award was established in memory of John Mihalasky, the longtime director and Senior Design coordinator of the Engineering Management program. It is presented to the Senior Design group in Engineering Management that has distinguished itself through the research of its project.

Winners: Andrew Donahue, Ronie Melao and Troy Tomasch

Graduate

Academic Achievement Award in the Engineering Management Program

Awarded for academic achievement and professional promise in the Engineering Management master's program.

Winner: Ruben Moses Massey

Academic Achievement Award in a Systems Analytics Program

Awarded for outstanding academic achievement and professional promise in Systems Analytics.

Winner: Eddieb Sadat

Academic Achievement Award in the Software Engineering Program

Awarded for academic achievement and professional promise in the Software Engineering master's program.

Winner: Mathieu Mounounga Touloungou

Academic Achievement Award in the Software Engineering Program

Awarded for academic achievement and professional promise in the Software Engineering master's program.

Winner: Farah Elkourdi

ASEM Outstanding TA Award

This award is given to the best TA in SSE graduating that May as determined by the undergraduate ASEM executive board. It is decided by the ASEM local chapter.

Winner: Carolyn Moreira

Best Student Paper Award

Awarded to graduate students in SSE who have distinguished themselves in the conduct of scholarly literature.

Winner: Meng Jiao (Ph.D. student)

Distinguished Leadership by a Master's Student in the School of Systems and Enterprises Award

Awarded in recognition of outstanding leadership and service to the school, university and community in the School of Systems and Enterprises' master's programs.

Winner: Babafemi Sorinolu

Fabrycky-Blanchard Award

Awarded in recognition for exemplary academic performance, excellence in research and promise in the study and practice of systems engineering.

Winners: JD Caddell, Mostaan Lotfalian Saremi, Maximilian Vierlboeck, Jingda Yang and Tongze Zhang

Outstanding Master's Project Award

Awarded to master’s degree students in SSE programs who have submitted the best capstone project, as judged by the quality of the work, its practical relevance and the clarity of presentation.

Winner: Jarret Rock

School of Systems and Enterprises Exceptional Achievement Award

Awarded to graduate students in SSE programs who have demonstrated exceptional academic achievement and outstanding contributions beyond the classroom. Preference is given to students who provide evidence of success in the face of adversity.

Winner: Chenhao Wei

Doctoral

Academic Achievement Award in a Doctoral Program in the School of Systems and Enterprises

Awarded for outstanding academic achievement and professional promise in SSE doctoral programs.

Winner: Bing Mak

Distinguished Leadership by a Ph.D. Student in the School of Systems and Enterprises Award

Awarded in recognition of outstanding leadership and service to the school, university and community in the School of Systems and Enterprises' doctoral programs.

Winner: Shihao Yang

Outstanding Dissertation Award

Awarded to Ph.D. candidates in SSE programs who have distinguished themselves in the conduct of research.

Winner: Safa El kefi

Related Stories

Six people pose together in a bright room with large windows overlooking a waterway. The group includes a woman in a blue dress, a woman in a floral skirt and white top, a woman in business attire, a man in a suit and tie, and two women in summer dresses.
July 08, 2026
Pratiksha Parsewar Named 2026 David Belanger Fellowship Award Winner
July 07, 2026
Associate Professor Ying Wang’s $1.19M DARPA Award Could Help Make AI More Energy Efficient
July 07, 2026
Game on: Brad Miller ’06 M.Eng. ’08 Sets up NJDOT to Score High-Tech Traffic Solutions for the World Cup
June 23, 2026
Did Two Historical New York and New Jersey Hurricanes Trigger Tsunamis? Stevens Scientists Unravel a Mystery and Future Threat of Flooding
All Stevens News

Stevens News

Three young alumni outside on Stevens campus at Alumni Weekend 2026
June 12, 2026
Stevens Celebrates Alumni Weekend 2026
June 16, 2026
Stevens Professor Dibyendu "Dibs" Sarkar Receives Fulbright Specialist Award for Environmental Remediation Project in India
May 13, 2026
Engineering the Future of Our Oceans
June 11, 2026
Every Gift Tells A Story: Mary VanLeer M.Eng. ’12
All Stevens News