CSLA Names Its Stars of 2024, Honors Mobile Tech Pioneer Daniel Henderson

While excitement builds toward Commencement 2024, celebrations have already begun at NJIT’s College of Science and Liberal Arts (CSLA), which recently hosted its annual awards ceremony honoring distinguished alumni, faculty, students and staff.

CSLA Dean Kevin Belfield welcomed guests at the Joel and Diane Bloom Wellness and Events Center, reflecting on another standout academic year for the college in which its external research expenditures reached a new high, its overall female student population grew to 52% and its faculty taught 98,711 student credit hours — more than any college at NJIT.

The event honored keynote speaker Daniel Henderson, who was awarded the Jay Kappraff Award for Excellence in Science and the Arts. Henderson is an artist and the pioneer of wireless picturephone technology that laid the groundwork for how pictures and video data are transmitted and displayed on cell phones today.

Henderson, who serves on NJIT’s Board of Directors and the Albert Dorman Honors College Board of Visitors, had two of his 1993 prototypes for wireless picture and video messaging accepted into the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian Institution’s permanent collection in 2007.

Henderson was recognized with the awards’ Jay Kappraff Award for Excellence in Science and the Arts.

Also an accomplished sculptor — influenced by renowned artists Sir Anthony Caro, Kenneth Snelson and Robert Cottingham — Henderson’s works are displayed throughout NJIT’s campus and have featured in museum collections and exhibitions internationally. His keynote address, delivered via video presentation, reflected on his career bridging art and science while discussing the need for collaboration across the STEAM disciplines.

“In his seminal 1990 textbook, Connections, Dr. Kappraff describes the grammar of space and the geometric bridge between art and science. … This distinct honor highlights the importance of interdisciplinary thinking in the STEAM disciplines, spanning the arts, architecture, mathematics, science and design,” said Henderson, a National Academy of Inventors fellow who holds 31 U.S. patents, and is featured on Lemelson-MIT’s online wall of inventors alongside Thomas Edison and Steve Jobs among others.

“I am proud to be influenced by great inventors, scientists and artists alike, and to be recognized with this award. The College of Science and Liberal Arts represents a crown jewel at NJIT, and exemplifies the power of collaboration to address the challenges of our world. As NJIT’s star continues to rise, I look forward to working across disciplines with others to continue our regional, national and international impact.”

The event also saw the much-anticipated return of CSLA’s star alumni from graduating classes spanning four decades, each on hand to accept Distinguished Alumni and Rising Star Alumni awards at the ceremony.

While some traveled in from out of state to reconnect with their alma mater, others needed only to walk across campus to receive their recognition.

Among the list of honorees was Mathew Deek (B.S. Biology ’11), now an assistant professor in radiation oncology at Rutgers University, as well as NJIT Provost John A. Pelesko ’97, who was the first person to graduate from NJIT with a Ph.D. in applied mathematics.

 

Pelesko expressed appreciation for CSLA’s faculty members, some of whom in attendance shaped his academic career, likening them to "giants" who loomed large in his consciousness long after his time as a student. “I’m truly honored to receive an award like this from my alma mater,” said Pelesko. “I have the rare perspective of coming back to NJIT after having been away for 27 years and getting to know the faculty now in a different way. … I will say you are all still giants."

 

Rising Star Alumni award winners (Left to right). Audrey Biondi Kellogg (M.S. Biology ’19, Ph.D. Biology ’23), now a research scientist in at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport, RI. Diana Hernandez ’16 (dual major in Science Technology, Society and Business Information Systems), now works in financial services at the music streaming platform TIDAL. Alana Dudley ’17 is now an associate in the Portfolio Analysis Group at PGIM Fixed Income.

A special moment was given to honor Nancy Steffen-Fluhr, associate professor in the Department of Humanities & Social Sciences and director of the Murray Center for Women in Technology, who began her career at NJIT in 1971.

Above: Belfield congratulates Steffen-Fluhr, who was recognized with the ceremony’s Excellence in Service Award to honor her outstanding contributions to advancing women faculty and students at NJIT, notably through her work at the Murray Center.

"It means a lot because I've been here a long time, and a lot of the work that I've done comes into the category of service,” said Steffen-Fluhr. “Although, because I've always done that with other people in a collaborative way, it's also been very sustaining and a real a pleasure for me. It's lovely to get a reward for something you love to do and that gives you back so much."

By the end of the afternoon, more than 30 awards, listed below, were presented recognizing this year’s top performers across CSLA’s eight departments.

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARDS

Tomlee L. Abraham
B.S. Science, Technology, and Society '99, NJIT
M.S. Management '00, NJIT

Mary Albani
M.S. Environmental Policy Studies '04, NJIT

Corina Bot
Ph.D. Applied Physics '10, NJIT

Matthew Deek
B.S. Biology '11, NJIT
M.D. '16, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson

Jeffrey Harvey
B.S. Applied Physics '99, NJIT

John Pelesko
Ph.D. Applied Mathematics '97, NJIT

RISING STAR ALUMNI AWARDS

Audrey Biondi Kellogg
Ph.D. Biology '23, NJIT

Alana Dudley
B.S. Mathematical Sciences '17, NJIT

Diana Hernandez
B.S. Business Information Systems & Science, Technology, and Society '16, NJIT

DISTINGUISHED RESEARCH AWARD

Linda Cummings
Department of Mathematical Sciences

RISING STAR RESEARCH AWARD

Rebekah Rutkoff
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN UNDERGRADUATE EDUCATION AWARD

Yelda Semizer
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN GRADUATE EDUCATION AWARD

Sundar Subramanian
Department of Mathematical Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD – UNIVERSITY LECTURER

Peter Ward
Department of Mathematical Sciences 

EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD – SENIOR UNIVERSITY LECTURER

Jon Curley
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING AWARD – ADJUNCT FACULTY

Scott Kent
Federated Department of History

EXCELLENCE IN SCHOLARSHIP AWARD

Theresa Hunt
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

EXCELLENCE IN SERVICE AWARD

Nancy Steffen-Fluhr
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

OUTSTANDING STAFF AWARD

Karen Roach
Department of Biological Sciences

Chaudhery Mustansar Hussain
Department of Chemistry & Environmental Science

OUTSTANDING UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS

Nolan Rollison
Department of Aerospace Studies/AFROTC

Isaiah Rejouis
Department of Biological Sciences

Mira Sapozhnikov
Department of Chemistry & Environmental Science

Gabriella Zalot
Federated Department of History

Madeline Miller
Department of Humanities & Social Sciences

Emily Corcoran
Department of Mathematical Sciences

Anneliese Schmidt
Department of Physics

OUTSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS

Smita More-Potdar
Department of Biological Sciences

Md. Tanim-Al Hassan
Department of Chemistry & Environmental Science

Erin Paige Trapnell
Federated Department of History

Jake Brusca
Department of Mathematical Sciences

Hameedullah Farooki
Department of Physics