George Stafford Whitby Award

Recent Recipients

Dr. Frank N. Kelley -- 2008

Dr. Frank N. Kelley, Dean Emeritus for the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering and Professor Emeritus with The University of Akron, was born in Akron, OH, attended the University of Akron, where he earned a B.S. in chemistry, an M.S. and a Ph.D. (1961) in polymer chemistry. Additionally, he was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters degree, honorus causa, from The University of Akron in 2006. While attending the university, he was employed by Goodyear Tire & Rubber and later the Institute of Polymer Science. After graduating, he was employed by Union Carbide until entering active duty with the United States Air Force.

He was assigned to the Air Force Rocket Propulsion Laboratory, Edwards AFB, CA, and at the completion of his military tour, in July 1964, he was employed as a civilian. He conducted research and managed technical programs associated with solid-propellant mechanical properties. He rose though the ranks and in 1971 was named Chief Scientist. In September 1973, Kelley transferred to the Air Force Materials Laboratory at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH, to occupy a similar position as Chief Scientist.

In September 1976, he was promoted to Director of the laboratory. In September 1978, he returned to his alma mater to serve as a professor and Director of the Institute of Polymer Science. He was appointed to the position of Dean when the College was formed in July 1988. As Professor of Polymer Science, he has supervised the research of 18 Ph.D. and six masters degree graduates.

As Dean, Kelley was the Chief Administrator of the largest academic polymer program in the United States. The college serves approximately 250 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. In addition to two academic departments and two research institutes, the college houses several research centers, an applied research services lab supporting the polymer industry, a training center for plastics and rubber technologists, and hosts the headquarters of the Rubber Division of the American Chemical Society Inc.. He has been a member of the Rubber Division for 29 years.

He served on the boards of the Great Lakes Science Center and Ohio Polymer Enterprise Development Corporation. He served for 13 years as a director of Premix Inc., an Ohio based polymer composites company, and currently serves on the board of Romeo RIM, Inc., a Michigan based composites company. He is a senior corporate advisor to The Reserve Group, a management company based in Akron, OH.
 Kelley has received the Rubber Age Award, the AIAA Outstanding Technical Contribution Award, the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Civilian Meritorious Service Medal twice (in 1967 and 1978) and the Exceptional Civilian Service Award from the Secretary of the Air Force. He received the Distinguished Award of Council from the Akron Council of Engineering and Scientific Societies, and the Distinguished Sales and Marketing Award from Sales and Marketing Executives International. He has been awarded the Society of Plastics Engineers Education Award and was a recipient of the Northern Ohio Live Special Award of Honor. An active researcher, teacher and consultant, his publications have focused on the relationship of molecular structure to mechanical properties of polymeric materials and composites.

Dr. Burak Erman - 2007

Dr. Erman received his BS and MS in Civil Engineering at Robert College in Istanbul. He completed his PhD at Istanbul Technical University in the field of Materials Science where he investigated the viscoelastic properties of fiber reinforced epoxy composites. He served on the faculty of Robert College School of Engineering. He later served on the faculty of Bogazici University from 1971 to 1998, as an Assistant, Associate and Full Prof. of materials science, mechanics and polymer science courses. He founded the now well-known Center for Polymer Research at Bogazici University. In 1998, Erman moved to Sabanci University, where he designed and started the Materials Science and Chemistry program in the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences. He is currently a Professor at the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Koc University. Erman joined the research group of Prof. Paul J. Flory at Stanford University in 1976 as a Post-Doctoral fellow where their collaboration continued until 1985 as a visiting Research Scholar both at Stanford University and at IBM Research Center. His other scientific collaborations include the Max-Planck Institute für Polymerforschung in Mainz, and ESPCI, Laboratoire de Physico-Chimie Structurale et Macromoleculaire, He has been collaborating with Prof. J.E. Mark at Cincinnati University on rubber elasticity since 1987. Erman has over 200 scientific papers in refereed journals, two books and three edited books. Burak Erman is a member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences. He served on the Science Board of the Turkish Science Foundation TUBITAK, on the editorial boards of Computational Polymer Science and Polymer Gels and Networks. He received the Simavi Science Award and the TUBITAK Science Award.

Past Recipients

1. 2007 - Burak Erman - Can We Build Intelligent Polymer Networks?
2. 2006 - Gregory G. McKenna
3. 2005 - Richard J. Farris
4. 2004 - Roderick P. Quirk
5. 2003 - Sadhan K. De - RC&T Vol. 76 (2)
6. 2002 - Liliane Bokobza - RC&T Vol. 75 (2)
7. 2001 - Gary Hamed - RC&T Vol. 74 (3)
8. 1998 - Jean-Maurice Vergnaud - RC&T Vol. 71 (3)
9. 1997 - Anil K. Bhowmick - RC&T Vol. 70 (3)
10. 1996 - Joseph P. Kennedy - RC&T Vol. 69 (3)
11. 1995 - Harry L. Frisch - RC&T Vol. 68 (3)
12. 1994 - Jack L. Koenig - RC&T Vol. 67 (3)
13. 1993 - Donald J. Plazek - RC&T Vol. 66 (3)
14. 1992 - Raymond B. Seymour - RC&T Vol. 65 (3)
15. 1991 - James E. Mark - RC&T Vol. 64 (3)
16. 1990 - Howard L. Stephens - RC&T Vol. 63 (3)
17. 1989 - Jean-Baptiste Donnet - RC&T Vol. 62 (3)
18. 1988 - Leo Mandelkern - RC&T Vol. 61 (3)
19. 1987 - Alan N. Gent - RC&T Vol. 60 (3)