News Briefs

Ben T. Yen, 88, professor emeritus in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, passed away on September 15, 2020, having led a prolific research career focused on structure and bridge evaluation and repair. 

Yen joined the engineering faculty in the mid-1960s after completing master’s and doctoral degrees at Lehigh. He continued his service as a mentor following his retirement in 2001, endowing the Yen Family Fellowship, which has supported numerous graduate students pursuing advanced research.

The following note was sent to Rossin College students and the extended Lehigh Engineering community by Steve DeWeerth, dean, Sabrina Jedlicka, associate dean, and Susan Perry, assistant dean, at the start of the Fall 2020 semester. 

Lehigh received the 2020 Inspiring Programs in STEM Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine for its Greer Scholars, RARE and Women in Engineering PreLUsion programs. The award honors colleges and universities that encourage and assist students from underrepresented groups to enter the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Rick Blum, Robert W. Wieseman Professor of Electrical and Computer engineering and former grad student Jake Perazzone '17G '20 PhD are members of a research team recently awarded a patent for "inventing a practical method for Army wireless devices to covertly authenticate and communicate," as announced by the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory.

According to the news release: 

The U.S.

In research published in Soft Matter, Lehigh rheologists mimic pH environment of GI tract to shed light on pharmaceutical potential of covalent adaptable hydrogels (CAHs)

On July 1, Sabrina Jedlicka will take on a new role as the Rossin College’s associate dean for academic affairs. In the latest episode of the Rossin Connection Podcast, she shares her perspective on the job, which includes coordinating all of the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs across the college.

Four Rossin College researchers have been awarded grants from the Manufacturing PA Innovation Program, an academic-industry partnership initiative, in support of projects designed to “spur new technologies and processes in the manufacturing sector.”

Vincent G. Grassi, a professor of practice in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering in the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science, passed away May 3 in The Villages, Fla., from esophageal cancer. He was 64.