2017 Issue

11 UEC-Awards-8: From left to right: Robert Kesler, Heath Engineering (Sponsor); Tami Pandoff (E.G. King Elementary School, Davis School District), MESA Teacher of the Year Winner. UEC-Awards-21: From left to right: Robert Kesler, UEC Awards Committee Chair; Jake Merrell (Nano Composite Products, Inc.), Utah’s Fresh Face of Engineering Winner. MESA TEACHER OF THE YEAR Tami Pandoff Each year, the Utah State Office of Education receives numerous nominations for MESA Teacher of the Year. Upon selection by their committee, the Utah Engineers Council is pleased to recognize their accomplishments at our ban- quet with a cash gift of $500. Tami Pandoff is the Teacher Advisor of the Davis County E. G. King School MESA/STEM Club. She meets weekly after school with its 35 members to hold activities in math, engineering, science, and technol- ogy. For instance, her students have designed, built, and flown 5-foot hovercraft prototypes, mapped constellations, and identified the orbits of satellites in real time. She loves to see her students research, analyze, discuss, draw con- clusions, and make predictions across a wide array of areas from space exploration to agriculture. FRESH FACE IN ENGINEERING Jake Merrell The Utah Engineers Council is happy to announce their selection of Jake Merrell as Utah’s 2017 Fresh face in En- gineering. The Society for the Advancement of Material and Process Engineering (SAMPE) nominated Jake Merrell, President of Nano Composite Products, Inc., for Utah’s Fresh Face in Engineering for 2017. While working on his doctorate, Jake also is President of his own company, Nano Composite Products, Inc., which has patented a Self-sensing Nano-Composite Foam. His “XOnano” smartfoam has been featured in Sports Illustrated, IEEE, Popular Science and sev- eral local and national news shows. Jake has had tremendous success with focus on transitioning his nano-composite foam into football helmets, US Army soldier gait analysis, and Tae- kwondo protective scoring vests. He has a National Science Foundation grant supporting the Army product. He is also currently working with the bedding industry to implement the foam for use in a “smart bed.” His technology is creating waves in multiple industries.