2012 Award Winners

Dan Parker received his BA in English Education from the University of Michigan (’78) and his Masters in Labor and Industrial Relations from Michigan State University (’85).  He has over 25 years’ experience working in Human Resources for original equipment manufacturers in the auto industry, including American, French, and Japanese companies, both in union and non-union environments. Since 1999, Dan has worked for Trane, a division of Ingersoll Rand, in Lexington, Kentucky, serving as Manager of Labor Relations and, in his current role, as Employee Relations Manager, where he is responsible for talent development and professional recruitment.

Susan Matney is the Associate Director of the Cooperative Education Program at North Carolina State University.    Susan has been a dedicated member of ASEE/CEED since 1989, having served in many roles of leadership.  This includes being a Program Chair for the Division as well as CEED Chair in 2008-2009. In addition, she chaired the CIEC Executive Board in 2009.  Susan has also supported the American Society for Engineering Education Annual Meeting in various capacities for many years.  She has presented at numerous conferences at the state, regional and national level.  Susan has dedicated the majority of her professional career to promoting the ideals of cooperative education. Most importantly, she has been a friend to students, employers and other administrators in the cooperative engineering education community.

Kody Ensley is a Descendent of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Indian Reservation in Pablo Montana. He is currently enrolled in the world’s first and only four-year tribal Computer Engineering program at Salish Kootenai College (SKC) and is scheduled to graduate in 2012 with a B.S. in Computer Engineering and an A.S. in Information Technology. Kody has completed over 12 months of internships at N.A.S.A. Johnson Space Center in the Software, Robotics, and Simulation Division during which he designed software for Robonaut 2 and the Lunar Electric Rovers. Once graduated, he plans to return to Johnson Space Center to continue his work, and also to start on graduate work. It has been a privilege to work with the Robonaut 2 team at Johnson Space Center. I am truly honored for their recognition of my contributions to the Robonaut 2 project.

Melissa McPartland is a senior in Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University.  She has completed three co-op rotations with the Total Vehicle Validation Group at BMW Manufacturing in Spartanburg, SC, and is scheduled to complete two more rotations with the company in Munich, Germany this upcoming summer and fall.  To date, Melissa has worked in both acoustics and assembly and one of her projects has already been recognized at BMW’s research and development center in Munich. In addition to her accomplishments in the classroom and on assignment at BMW, Melissa is a member of Engineers Without Borders, a group dedicated to resolving issues in third world countries through thoughtful and creative engineering.