Alumni News

Alumni News

Harry Robinson

Howard University Mourns the Passing of Harry Granville Robinson III

It is with extraordinary reverence that we acknowledge the irreplaceable contributions of Harry Granville Robinson III (B. Arch. ’66, M.C.P. ’70), who passed away on Friday, June 13. Over the course of a career that spanned decades, he was instrumental in the transformation of the University into a modern, relevant, highly regarded institution of higher learning — serving as vice president for University administration, interim vice president for academic affairs, and dean of the School of Architecture and Planning [now the Department of Architecture in the College of Engineering and Architecture] for 16 years. We remain in his debt.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Dr. Sonya Smith

Howard University CEA Researchers Honored at Inaugural Research and Leadership Awards

The President’s 1867 Award, Howard’s highest honor for research, was presented to Sonya Smith, Ph.D., professor of mechanical engineering and executive director of the Research Institute for Tactical Autonomy (RITA). Danda B. Rawat, Ph.D., and Nea Maloo, FAIA, NOMA, LEED AP, ICC, were also honored at the awards ceremony with the Outstanding Faculty Mentor Awards and Su Yan, Ph.D., was honored with the Up and Coming Researcher of the Year award.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, Research, College of Engineering and Architecture, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering

Eric Scandrett in cap and gown

Meet Our 2025 CEA Awards and Recognition Ceremony Student Speaker Eric Scandrett

Presenting this year is Eric Scandrett (BSME ‘25), who in his own words shared that graduating from Howard University with his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering is a moment he will cherish forever—a milestone that represents not only years of hard work, but also a journey filled with growth, discovery, and unforgettable experiences.

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

Aprille Ericsson, Ph.D.

Howard University Mechanical Engineering Alumna Aprille J. Ericsson Nominated to Be Assistant Secretary of Defense for Science and Technology

Howard University mechanical engineering alumna Aprille J. Ericsson (MEng ‘90; Ph.D. ‘95) has been nominated by United States President Joseph Biden to serve as the assistant secretary of defense for science and technology.

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Anietie Andy

Howard University Researchers Awarded NIH AIM-AHEAD Grant To Help Mitigate Harmful Biases in National Health Data

Howard University computer science assistant professor Anietie Andy, PhD (MSc ’09; PhD ’17), recently received a $500K grant from the National Institutes of Health Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Consortium to Advance Health Equity and Researcher Diversity (AIM-AHEAD) to build the Howard University Integrated Clinical Data Repository (CDR). Anietie Andy and Abiodun Otolorin, MD, MS, FAAFP, assistant professor of community and family medicine, were named PIs on the project in collaboration with MedStar Health.

Category: Alumni, Research, College of Engineering and Architecture, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Dr. Kimberly Jones

Howard University Civil Engineering Alumna and Associate Provost Kimberly Jones Makes History with Appointment to Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Advisory Board

Kimberly L. Jones, Ph.D. (BSCE '90) is the first African American in the EPA's 45-year history to be appointed as chair of the board that advises the nation’s top agency responsible for protecting the environment and human health.

Category: Alumni, Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture

Dr. Hazel Edwards at Harvard

Howard University Architecture Alumna and Professor Hazel R. Edwards Joins Harvard Radcliffe Institute Class of Fellows

Howard University Architecture Professor Hazel R. Edwards, Ph.D. (B.Arch. ‘86) was selected as a 2023-2024 fellow of the Harvard Radcliffe Institute. According to the Institute, a Radcliffe fellowship offers scholars in the humanities, sciences, social sciences, and arts—as well as writers, journalists, and other distinguished professionals—a rare chance to pursue ambitious projects for a full year in a vibrant interdisciplinary setting amid the resources of Harvard.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, Research, College of Engineering and Architecture

2023 CEA Student Speakers

Meet Our 2023 CEA Awards and Recognition Ceremony Student Speakers

This year three outstanding College of Engineering and Architecture (CEA) graduates will be presenting at our Spring 2023 CEA Awards and Recognition Ceremony, Olabisi Bello (BSChE ’23), Myles Bostic (BSCS ‘23) and Marie-Chantal Nyirahategekimana (BSChE ‘23).

Category: Alumni, Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

2022 awardees with AR editor-in-chief

Howard University Architecture Professor Hazel R. Edwards Receives 2022 Architectural Record Award

Howard University architecture professor Hazel Ruth Edwards, PhD., FAICP, (B.Arch. ’86) recently received Architectural Record's 2022 Women in Architecture Design Leadership Award in the category of educator.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Hazel Ruth Edwards delivering TEDx talk

Howard University Architecture Alumna and Professor Hazel Ruth Edwards Delivers TEDx Talk on Black Voices in Architecture

Howard University architecture alumna, professor and former chair of the Department of Architecture Hazel Ruth Edwards, Ph.D., FAICP (B.Arch. ’86) was an invited speaker at a local, independently organized TED event, the TEDxPearlStreet event Mavericks & Moonshots, this past summer.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Aprille Ericsson at Rutgers hooding ceremony

Mechanical Engineering Alumna Aprille J. Ericsson Awarded ASME Ralph Coats Roe Medal and Honorary Doctorate

Howard University mechanical engineering alumna Aprille J. Ericsson (M. Eng. ‘90; Ph.D. ‘95) was recently awarded the Ralph Coats Roe Medal from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). The Ralph Coats Roe Medal was established in 1972 to recognize engineers who have made an outstanding contribution toward a better public understanding and appreciation of engineering and its impact on society.

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

Professor Lorraine Fleming

Civil Engineering Professor Lorraine Fleming Elected to the UC Berkeley Academy of Distinguished Alumni

Howard University civil engineering professor Lorraine Fleming has been elected to the Academy of Distinguished Alumni by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), University of California, Berkeley. She will be inducted at a banquet on the Berkeley campus on June 16, 2022. CEE faculty established the CEE Academy of Distinguished Alumni in 2012. Among the  objectives of the Academy are to honor the outstanding professional accomplishments and contributions of CEE alumni and to present Academy members to students as examples of successful CEE graduates and role models. The CEE Academy shines a light on the achievements of its graduates. 

Category: Alumni, Civil and Environmental Engineering

ME alumna Delicia Gunn

Mechanical Engineering Alumna Delicia Gunn Challenges Industry with Product Launch for Sustainable Building Insulation Material

Mechanical engineering alumna Delicia Gunn (BSME ‘94), recently launched HEMPSULATION®, the debut product of her new venture HEMPSULATION, LLC. HEMPSULATION® is a sustainable building insulation material for commercial and residential use. The non-toxic, negative carbon footprint building material offers thermal, environmental and health benefits surpassing mineral wool, fiberglass, rockwool and other synthetic building insulation products.

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Lewis Thigpen

Mechanical Engineering Alumnus and Professor Emeritus Lewis Thigpen Recognized as IIT Distinguished Alumnus

Mechanical engineering alumnus and professor emeritus Lewis Thigpen, Ph.D., PE (BSME ’64) was invited to deliver a lecture as a distinguished alumnus at the Illinois Institute of Technology’s Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering (MMAE) Department’s 2022 MMAE Student Research Competition and Departmental Awards.

Category: Alumni, Mechanical Engineering

Jason Pugh

Architecture Alumnus Jason Pugh Named Principal at Gensler and Serves as 2021-2022 NOMA President

Jason Pugh, AIA, AICP, NOMA, LEED AP, (B. Arch. 2005) was named principal at Gensler, the world’s largest design and architecture firm, according to Architectural Record. Founded in San Francisco, California in 1965, Gensler generated $1.2 billion in revenue in 2021, the most of any architecture firm in the U.S. Gensler operates offices in forty-nine cities in sixteen countries worldwide, working for clients in over one hundred countries.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Justin Drummond

Civil and Environmental Engineering Ph.D. Student Justin Drummond Receives National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship

Howard University Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Ph.D. student Justin Drummond was recently selected as a recipient of the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF). According to NSF, the NSF Graduate Research Fellowships Program (GRFP) is a highly competitive fellowship program that “recognizes and supports outstanding graduate students in NSF-supported STEM disciplines who are pursuing research-based master’s and doctoral degrees at accredited US institutions.”

Category: Alumni, Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture

Renetta Garrison Tull, Ph.D.

Electrical Engineering Alumna Renetta Garrison Tull Receives ECEDHA Diversity Award as UC Davis Vice Chancellor of DEI

Alumna Renetta Garrison Tull, Ph.D. (BSEE ‘91) recently received the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Head Association’s (ECEDHA) Diversity Award. According to the ECEDHA website, this award is given to department(s) or individual(s) in recognition of proactive efforts to increase cultural, ethnic, and gender diversity within the ECE student body and among ECE faculty, that go well above and beyond the normal institutional recruiting practices. ECEDHA membership comprises over 250 ECE department heads or chairs from across the US and Canada.

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Dr. Barton receiving award

Mechanical Engineering Alumnus Oscar Barton, Jr. Receives 2022 DCCEAS Lifetime Achievement Award

Mechanical engineering alumnus Oscar Barton, Jr., Ph.D., P.E., F.ASME (MSME ‘87, Ph.D. ‘93) recently received the 2022 District of Columbia Council of Engineering and Architectural Societies (DCCEAS) Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr. Barton is the first African American mechanical engineering Ph.D. recipient at Howard University and was named dean of the Clarence M. Mitchell, Jr. School of Engineering at Morgan State University in 2020.

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

Architecture alumnus Alonzo Robinson

Architecture Alumnus Alonzo Robinson Honored with Renaming of Milwaukee Fire Department Administration Building

Architecture alumnus Alonzo Robinson (B.Arch. ’51) was recently honored with the renaming of the Milwaukee Fire Department Administration Building, which he designed. The building now stands as the Alonzo Robinson Milwaukee Fire Department Administration Building. Robinson was the first African-American architect to be registered in the state of Wisconsin.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Lewis K. Downing and Howard H. Mackey

Honoring Our Building Namesakes Lewis K. Downing and Howard H. Mackey This Black History Month

This Black History Month, we honor our building namesakes and pioneers in engineering and architecture education, Lewis King Downing (BSCE 1921) and Howard Hamilton Mackey.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture

Dr. Kimberly Jones

Appointment of Alumna Kimberly L. Jones as Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs

The Office of the Provost recently announced the appointment of alumna Kimberly L. Jones, Ph.D., (BSCE ‘90) as associate provost for faculty affairs. In her role, Dr. Jones will work directly with President Frederick and Provost Wutoh and advise on faculty academic matters, disciplinary actions, academic processes and procedures and other assigned responsibilities.

Category: Alumni, Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture

Sapavath and Muhati

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Ph.D. Students Receive IEEE CSCloud 2021 Best Student Paper Award

Recent computer science Ph.D. graduate Naveen Naik Sapavath and Ph.D. candidate Eric Muhati received the IEEE CSCloud 2021 Best Student Paper Award at the 8th IEEE International Conference on Cyber Security and Cloud Computing.

Category: Alumni, Research, College of Engineering and Architecture, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Architecture Chair Hazel R. Edwards, Ph.D.

Howard University Architecture Chair Hazel Ruth Edwards, Ph.D., FAICP, Appointed to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts

Howard University Department of Architecture Chair Hazel Ruth Edwards, Ph.D., FAICP will be appointed to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts by President Joseph Biden. The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) was established by Congress in 1910 as a permanent body to advise the federal government on matters pertaining to the arts and national symbols, and to guide the architectural development of Washington, D.C. The seven-member body is appointed by the President to serve four-year terms; new appointees are not subject to Senate review.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Alumnus Jamel Ali, Ph.D. and Associate Professor Patrick Ymele-Leki, Ph.D.

Alumnus Jamel Ali and Associate Professor Patrick Ymele-Leki Featured in C&EN for $1M NSF-Funded Bacteria Research

Chemical Engineering Alumnus Jamel Ali, Ph.D., assistant professor of chemical and biomedical engineering at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering and National High Magnetic Field Laboratory partners with Patrick Ymele-Leki, Ph.D., interim chair and associate professor of chemical engineering on bacteria research funded by a total of over $1M in National Science Foundation grants. The pair were featured in a special issue of Chemical & Engineering News (c&en), a publication of the American Chemical Society (ACS), that celebrated 2021 Black Trailblazers in the chemical sciences and engineering.

Category: Alumni, Research, Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture

ME Alumnus David Canada

Alumnus David Canada Receives BEYA 2021 Science Spectrum Trailblazers Award

Mechanical Engineering Alumnus David Canada (BSME ‘04) received the Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) 2021 Science Spectrum Trailblazers Award. The award recognizes distinguished individuals who are making a difference in mathematics, biological sciences, physical sciences and social sciences.  

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Edwards and Dr. Jones

Honoring our Alumnae and Leaders Hazel R. Edwards and Kimberly L. Jones this Women’s History Month

​​​​​​​This Women’s History Month we honor and share the stories of two alumnae who are dedicated College of Engineering and Architecture leaders, Hazel R. Edwards, Ph.D. and Kimberly L. Jones, Ph.D. Department of Architecture Chair Hazel R. Edwards, Ph.D., FAICP (B. Arch. ‘86) made history when she became the first female architecture department chair at Howard University (HU) in 2016. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Chair Kimberly L. Jones, Ph.D. (BSCE ‘90) is in our spotlight as an alumna who serves and leads her alma mater in various leadership roles. Dr. Jones also serves as Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education for the College of Engineering and Architecture.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture

Dr. Lewis Thigpen

Alumnus and Professor Emeritus Lewis Thigpen Publishes Autobiography

Alumnus and professor emeritus Lewis Thigpen, Ph.D., PE (BSME ’64) recently published his autobiography, Born and Rai

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Mechanical Engineering

James E. Silcott

Alumnus James E. Silcott Elevated to the 2020 AIA College of Fellows

Architecture Alumnus James E. Silcott (B.Arch. ‘57) has been elevated to the 2020 College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA). Silcott was selected for his notable contributions to the advancement of architecture education and the profession through his philanthropy and as a role model and leader in public service.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

Professor Emeritus Victor C. W. Dzidzienyo

A Tribute to Professor Emeritus and Alumnus Victor C. W. Dzidzienyo

We celebrate the life of Architecture Professor Emeritus and Alumnus Victor C. W. Dzidzienyo (B.Arch. '67; MCP '69). We deeply appreciate his dedicated service and extend our condolences to family and friends.

Category: Alumni, Architecture, College of Engineering and Architecture

PhD students

Recent Computer Science Ph.D. Graduates Join Industry as Outstanding Researchers

Recent Computer Science Ph.D. graduates Abdulhamid Adebayo (far right) and Ronald Doku (second to the right) joined tech giants IBM Research and Oracle as researchers in cybersecurity and data science. Dr. Adebayo joined IBM Research as Hybrid Cloud Security Researcher and Dr. Doku joined Oracle, Inc. as Data Scientist. Both were graduate research assistants and advisees of Danda B. Rawat, Ph.D., Computer Science Professor and Director of Howard University’s Data Science & Cybersecurity Center (DSC2).

Category: Alumni, College of Engineering and Architecture, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science