Outstanding Faculty to Receive Awards at Commencement

David Pines, associate professor of civil, environmental, and biomedical engineering in the College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture (CETA), is the recipient of the Donald W. Davis All-University Curriculum Award.

The All-University Curriculum (AUC) is an innovative program of cross-disciplinary courses that allow students to explore the depth and breadth of a liberal arts education. The Donald W. Davis Award honors a faculty member who has made outstanding contributions to the AUC and to interdisciplinary education.

Pines embodies the concept of interdisciplinary learning and what it is capable of achieving. Over the past six years, he has brought together students, faculty, and professionals from such fields as engineering, graphic design, business, and sociology to tackle real-life projects in developing countries around the world. The interdisciplinary courses that Pines has created have provided transformational experiences for students—and for residents of the communities where the projects have taken place.

Working under the umbrella of Engineers Without Borders, the interdisciplinary teams have created water supply systems for a village in rural India, helped to develop and promote a sustainable form of agriculture in western Kenya, and helped to relocate and restore historic sugar mills on the Caribbean island of St. Vincent.