IEEE Philadelphia Section Honors Two Engineering Faculty

The Philadelphia Section of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) presented the Member Award to Dr. Pritpal Singh, Chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, at the Annual Awards Banquet, held April 4 at the Union League. The citation read: “For outstanding innovation in engineering education and for continuous support to the Philadelphia Section.”

Dr. Singh has been a member of the College of Engineering’s faculty since 1984. He has played a critical role in initiating new programs at Villanova University, including a biomedical engineering track in the ECE Department, a College-wide Engineering Entrepreneurship minor, a social entrepreneurship program, a student exchange program with the University of Manchester (UK), a joint senior design program with Purdue University’s ECE Department, and a graduate certificate in Sustainable Energy.

As the IEEE Philadelphia Section Co-Chair, Dr. Singh introduced the section’s MicroMouse Competition and Student Paper Writing Contest. For six years, he also served as the Co-Chair of Student Activities. Dr. Singh has presented papers at and reviewed papers for several engineering education conferences and is an active member of the ECE Department Heads Association.

In addition to Dr. Singh, Dr. Stephen Mastro, an adjunct faculty who works full time at the Navy Yard, received the Benjamin Franklin Key Award. This award is given to recognize an electrical engineer in the Philadelphia Section for outstanding technical innovation and technological contributions that have had significant practical applications.

The IEEE is a nonprofit, technical professional association of more than 360,000 individual members in approximately 175 countries. Through its members, the IEEE is a leading authority in technical areas ranging from computer engineering, biomedical technology, and telecommunications to electric power, aerospace, and consumer electronics