Former WiMNet Ph.D. student Dr. Jelena Diakonikolas (nee Marasevic) received the Morton B. Friedman Memorial Prize for Excellence from the Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Morton B. Friedman was a visionary in the vanguard of engineering education through his lifelong service as professor, department chair, and senior vice dean. Professor Friedman joined the Columbia Engineering faculty in 1956, and spent the next seven decades becoming the heart, soul, and collective memory of the School, diligently serving as mentor for a long line of students and junior faculty. A former Fulbright Professor in Applied Mathematics and Field Instrumentation Scholar for the American Institute of Physics, Professor Friedman was recognized for his outstanding teaching by the Society of Columbia Graduates with the Great Teacher Award. He chaired the Executive Committee of the University Senate and was widely respected across Columbia for his insight, contributions, and leadership.

The Morton B. Friedman Memorial Prize for Excellence is awarded periodically to a doctoral graduate in Columbia Engineering who best exhibits Dean Friedman’s characteristics of academic excellence, visionary leadership, and outstanding promise for the future.

The award was conferred in the Engineering School Class Day ceremony.

For more details, see the Columbia Engineering School news item.