Juan Hinestroza named Educator of the Year in Higher Education by Hispanic engineering society

Juan Hinestroza, Cornell assistant professor of fiber science and apparel design in the College of Human Ecology, has been awarded the 2007 Educator of the Year in Higher Education honor from the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE).

The award will be presented at the 2007 SHPE conference in Philadelphia, Oct. 31-Nov. 4.

Hinestroza, who early this year was awarded a Faculty Early CAREER Development grant from the National Science Foundation to explore novel ways to control the positioning of nanoparticles on fibrous substrates, seeks to improve the understanding of complex phenomena at the nanoscale that are of fundamental relevance to fiber and polymer science. In 2005, he received the James D. Watson Young Investigator Award from the New York State Foundation for Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR).

The Hinestroza research group specializes in three main areas: manipulation of self-assembly phenomena to tailor the properties of conventional fiber-based materials; creation of nanofibers from nonfiber-forming polymers using external fields; and implementation of novel scanning probe microscopy techniques to assess the properties of nanodomains. While fundamental in nature, his research may create a new avenue for the development of smart and interactive textiles.

SHPE Inc., an organization of Hispanic engineers, is committed to enhancing America's position in math, science, engineering and technology with a strong and talented Hispanic workforce.

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