VOLUME 13, NO. 3     June 2001

FPE fellowship supports doctoral research

With a gift of $25,000, Hughes Associates Inc., a fire protection engineering, code consulting and fire research corporation, recently sponsored WPI’s second Hughes Research Fellowship in Fire Protection Engineering.

Ph.D. candidate Keum-Ran Choi of Taegu, Korea, is the newest recipient of the one-year fellowship, which covers tuition and provides a stipend. Choi, who earned a master’s degree in architectural engineering at Kyungpook National University, is completing a doctoral dissertation on thermal engineering. Ph.D. candidate James Ierardi ’97 (M.S. ’98) won the first fellowship, for 1999-2000.

"This is the largest industrial fellowship contribution of its kind for the fire protection engineering program," says David A. Lucht, director of the Center for Firesafety Studies, who notes that industry support has played a vital role in the development of the University’s fire protection engineering studies program. WPI offers dual-degree (B.S./M.S.), M.S. and Ph.D. programs in fire protection engineering.

"WPI has been a source of talented and motivated graduates who meet Hughes Associates’ corporate human resources needs," adds company President Philip J. DiNenno. "This fellowship is one way we felt we could show our support for WPI, help talented young men and women through their advanced degree studies, and make further contributions to the profession." Founded in 1980, Hughes Associates employs 80 scientists and engineers at its headquarters Baltimore, Md., and in offices and laboratories throughout the United States, in Singapore and in Europe.