In 1992, the College of Engineering Alumni Society established a recognition program to honor those alumni who personify the College’s tradition of excellence. The awards are presented at the Alumni Society Awards Dinner, which is traditionally held during Michigan Engineering Homecoming Weekend each fall. Initially, the Alumni Society Board established two categories of awards to be presented annually:

• The College of Engineering Alumni Society Medal, to be presented to one alumnus/a who has shown extraordinary overall distinction, and
• The College of Engineering Alumni Society Merit Awards, recognizing distinction at the department level, one to be presented from each academic department.

The Board voted in 1997 to establish a third category to be awarded beginning 1998:

• The College of Engineering Alumni Society Distinguished Service Award, to be presented annually to one alumnus/a who has generously volunteered service to the College.

In 2001, the Board established a fourth category to be awarded beginning 2002:

• The Recent Engineering Graduate Award, recognizing the meritorious contributions by an alumnus/a in the early stages of his/her career.

This year’s Alumni Society Awards Dinner was, again, a great tribute to the tremendous successes and contributions of our alumni. The event was held on Friday, October 3, 2008.

The top three award recipients include:

Alumni Society Distinguished Service Award

Edward E. Moon (BSE ME ’47)

Mr. Moon has made significant contributions to the College of Engineering.  As chair of the Class of 1947E for more than 15 years, he has organized the Emeritus-year celebration, as well as other five-year class reunions.  Mr. Moon has led members in raising more than $300,000 for two campus icons:  the Class of 1947E Reflecting Pool and “Fred’s Fountain.”  Additionally, Mr. Moon has helped the Class achieve the rare feat of a second gift, raising more than $300,000 for the Class of 1947E Scholarship. 

Recent Engineering Graduate Award

Shawn J. Ward (BSE ME ’96)

Shawn Ward is president, chief executive officer and co-founder of SHANE&SHAWN, an innovative lifestyle company that creates footwear and accessories that combine fashion with function. Launched in 2003, the brand is carried in retailers such as Macy's, Nordstrom, Zappos.com and Amazon.com.  Shawn's brand has appeared on NBC's "Access Hollywood," CNBC's "The Big Idea" with Donny Deutsch, The View, and the cover of Black Enterprise.

Alumni Society Medal

John Seely Brown (PhD ’72)

Dr. Brown has revolutionized the vision and application of technology’s role in society.  His research has spanned organizational learning, complex adaptive systems, ubiquitous computing, digital culture and more.  During the mid-1980s, he was the director of the pioneering Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), and later, the Chief Scientist at Xerox Corp.  At PARC, he expanded the field of user interfaces and user-centered design by exploring how broader social context of technology could transform the workplace and social life more broadly.  This helped to shape three movements—social computing, pervasive computing and knowledge management.  Presently, he is co-chairman of the Center for Edge Innovation at Deloitte and advisor to the provost and visiting scholar at the University of Southern California.

To get more information about nominations for an Alumni Society Award this year, see the Alumni Society Awards page.