FA C U LT Y A W A R D S
Simmons Receives ASCE’s Editor’s Choice from a Third Journal by Reba Liddy
Denise R. Simmons, Ph.D., a civil engineering associate professor in the Engineering School of Sustainable Infrastructure & Environment (ESSIE), recently had a manuscript featured as the Editor’s Choice in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Journal of Civil Engineering Education. Dr. Simmons also received the Editor’s Choice in the ASCE Journal of Construction Engineering and Management in 2018 and the ASEC Journal of Management in Engineering in 2017. Since 2017, nearly 20% of Dr. Simmons’ papers in these three journals have received the editor’s choice award. “After 28 years of reviewing the performance of faculty at all ranks, I
have seen no more than four individuals whose frequency of distinguished paper awards exceed that of Dr. Simmons’. This is a great accomplishment,” said Kirk Hatfield, Ph.D., the director and professor in ESSIE. This recent paper, Connecting Engineering Students’ Perceptions of Professional Competencies and Their Leadership Development, collected quantitative and qualitative data from students to explore whether there was a correlation between the rating of professional competencies that enable leadership and the leadership development process. From the study, she found that students who place greater emphasis on leadership and professional competencies are in
the more advanced stages in their leadership identity development. “I am honored to have had my work selected as Editor’s Choice in each of these three peer-reviewed ASCE journals. Contributing to the knowledge of scholars in civil engineering research and education is a prime motivator for me,” Dr. Simmons said. Dr. Simmons has nearly 15 years of experience in academia. Her groundbreaking research focuses on workforce development in construction engineering and leadership in engineering education. In 2014, she received a National Science Foundation CAREER award for her research in engineering education.
2020-21 Awards
4
Elliot P. Douglas
Lily Elefteriadou
American Society for Engineering Education Fellow
American Road & Transportation Builders Association’s S.S. Steinberg Award
Scott Powell
Timothy Townsend
UF Superior Accomplishment Award (Division III)
Air & Waste Management Association’s Richard I. Stessel Waste Management Award
ENGINEERING SCHOOL OF SUSTAINABLE INFRASTRUCTURE & ENVIRONMENT
