UAH Honors College names Inaugural Honors Faculty Fellows

The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) Honors College is pleased to announce the inaugural class of Honors College Faculty Fellows. The 2018-19 UAH Honors College Faculty Fellows are Dr. Rolf Goebel, Distinguished Professor, World Languages and Cultures Department, and Dr. Paul D. Collopy, Professor, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and Engineering Management (ISEEM).

"We are very pleased to have such distinguished faculty serve as our first class of Fellows. Both Dr. Goebel and Dr. Collopy have much to offer, and have been very committed to Honors over their careers at UAH. It seems only fitting that they should pioneer our Fellows program," said Dr. William Wilkerson, Dean, UAH Honors College.

Wilkerson added that Faculty Fellows program like this are common in mature Honors Colleges. They help integrate faculty into the life of an Honors College. Goebel and Collopy will each serve a one year term as faculty Fellows beginning in fall 2018. The award is renewable for a second year. During their time as Fellows, Goebel and Collopy will lead special Honors Seminars in areas related to their research and teaching, and teach sections of Honors 101 (the Honors version of FYE). The Fellows will also undertake service commitments to the Honors College that develop from their unique skills and backgrounds. The award provides funding for professional development and a stipend for Goebel and Collopy.

The 2018-19 UAH Honors College Faculty Fellows:

• Dr. Paul D. Collopy — is a Professor in the ISEEM Department at UAH, where he leads research into the theoretical foundations of systems engineering. He came to UAH from a 34-year career in industry, working mainly for Procter & Gamble and GE Aircraft Engines. He has also worked for DARPA and the National Science Foundation and consulted for the Department of Energy, the FAA, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and the Executive Office of the President. Collopy earned his PhD in Engineering-Economic Systems from Stanford University.


• Dr. Rolf Goebel — holds degrees from Brown University (M.A. in English, 1977), the University of Kiel (Staatsexamen in German and English, 1979), and the University of Maryland (PhD in German Language and Literature, 1982). He has been a professor at UAH since 1982, and has served as Chair of the Department of Foreign Languages. In 2015, he was named a UAH Distinguished Professor. His research areas cover German modernism and contemporary literature, representations of metropolitan space, and numerous German literary and theoretical figures, such as Thomas Mann and Walter Benjamin. He has published four books and won multiple international accolades for his scholarly articles. Goebel is also active as an organist and has served as Dean and Sub-Dean of the Greater Huntsville Chapter of the American Guild of Organists.

UAH faculty members interested in becoming an Honors College Faculty Fellow may contact Dr. William Wilkerson: william.wilkerson@uah.edu.

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