The Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine of Florida (ASEMFL) has inducted former UF dean of engineering, Cammy R. Abernathy, Ph.D., as member, in a formal ceremony that coincided with its annual meeting in Orlando. Fifteen prominent scholars from throughout the state of Florida have been selected for membership to the academy, a group that brings together the nation’s most distinguished scholars who live and work in Florida.
A professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at UF since 1993, the William H. Wadsworth Director of the Engineering Leadership Institute received her S.B. degree in materials science and engineering from MIT in 1980, and her master and doctoral degrees in materials science and engineering from Stanford University in 1982 and 1985, respectively. In 2004, Dr. Abernathy became the College’s associate dean for Academic Affairs, then was appointed dean in July 2009, the first female dean of the college.
Author of nearly 1,000 journal/conference papers and owner of seven patents, Dr. Abernathy has served as chair of the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE), Engineering Dean’s Council (EDC), and as a delegate for the Industrial Science and Technology Section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). In 2016, she was recognized by the Association for Academic Women at UF as a “Woman of Distinction.”
As dean, Dr. Abernathy tripled the number of female faculty, doubled the number of Black faculty, and nearly doubled the number of Hispanic faculty. In 2017, the College produced the second highest number of Black doctoral graduates and the third highest number of Hispanic doctorates in the U.S.
Fulfilling the mission of the ASEMFL to “guide the future generations of scientists, engineers and medicine,” Dr. Abernathy has made engineering education a top priority, creating a dedicated department solely for that purpose, and providing programmatic support and dedicated spaces to execute that vision. She led historic capital campaigns that funded two state-of-the-art facilities — the Herbert Wertheim Laboratory for Engineering Excellence and the Malachowsky Hall for Data Science and Information Technology, that just opened in early November.
“Throughout her career as a researcher and administrator, Dr. Abernathy has been an exemplary contributor to the mission of the University of Florida,” said David Norton, UF’s vice president for research and a professor of materials science and engineering. “Her impact on the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering has set forth a positive trajectory that will benefit engineering students and faculty for many years.”
The ceremony also saw the naming of twelve mid-career researchers from throughout the state of Florida as “Rising Stars” by the academy, including two from UF. Both associate professors at the J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ruogu Fang, Ph.D., and Parisa Rashidi, Ph.D. were among the 12 honorees who were competitively selected among nominated researchers at universities from across the state in the categories of science; engineering; and medicine and public health.
Dr. Fang was recognized for her pioneering contributions in using medical AI and deep learning models to diagnose, predict and treat brain diseases that include Alzheimer’s and Depression. Her dedication to mentoring diverse, transdisciplinary, next-gen researchers has also won her far and wide praise among her peers and students.
Dr. Rashidi’s groundbreaking technology – the intelligent patient monitoring system – uses artificial intelligence and sensing technology in hospital critical care settings. Already adopted by UF Shands as Intelligent Clinical Care, or IC3, she uses scalable machine learning to predict patient’s acuity level in real-time. In the outpatient setting, she uses AI-powered wearables and digital sensors to monitor the cognitive and mental health of community-dwelling patients.
Ashutosh Agarwal (MAE Ph.D., ’09), an associate professor at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Miami, was also named an ASEMFL Rising Star.
“Rising Stars recognition showcases these individuals’ significantly growing contributions to their disciplines,” says Angela Laird, Ph.D., ASEMFL member and Rising Stars committee chair. “Identifying Rising Stars … call attention to the state of Florida’s pioneering contributions to science, engineering and medicine,” Laird says.
In addition to current UF faculty, UF’s Department of Materials Science & Engineering alumnus, Ashutosh Agarwal (Ph.D., ’09), an associate professor at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Miami, was also named an ASEMFL Rising Star. Addressing the audience at the ceremony was former Chair of UF’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, Christine Schmidt, Ph.D., with her talk, entitled, “Engineering Materials for Clinical Nerve Repair, and Other Applications Along the Way.”
Housed at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, ASEMFL is a not-for-profit organization of top scholars and researchers from universities, public agencies and industries statewide who study issues in science, engineering and medicine that impact the people of Florida and provide unbiased, expert advice related to these issues.
Members of the National Academies – National Academy of Sciences (NAS), National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and National Academy of Medicine (NAM) – who live or work in Florida have automatic ASEMFL membership. National Academy membership is considered the highest career distinction in the United States in these disciplines.