Professor Steven Skerlos has received the Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award from the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). The award recognizes and honors younger engineering educators who are training students to address societal challenges.
Skerlos directs the Environmental and Sustainable Technologies (EAST) laboratory at U-M, where he and his research group develop theory and technology that enable the design of sustainable systems. He co-founded the local company Accuri Instruments that now employs over twenty people and is currently launching another company in the field of green lubrication technology.
With faculty in the School of Natural Resources and Environment, Skerlos spearheaded a dual master’s degree program in Engineering Sustainable Systems. The novel degree program teaches engineers to integrate principles of sustainability into professional engineering design work.
Skerlos also co-directs a $2 million National Science Foundation project on developing optimal greenhouse gas policies for the automotive industry, while also serving as faculty advisor to BLUElab. According to Skerlos, “the BLUElab is a student organization that works to find sustainable solutions to advance standard of living both at home and abroad. We consider technical challenges in the context of the often greater cultural, political and economic forces that surround issues of design implementation.”
The Ralph R. Teetor Award offers opportunities for teachers to interact with thousands of practicing engineers. Recipients participate in the organization’s World Congress & Exposition and are invited to attend SAE technical committee meetings and visit industrial and research facilities. The award was established in 1963. Since then it has been granted to more than 800 engineering educators from some 200 universities.
