Former UAB engineering student of the Year named Engineer of the Year by ECB

Raymond Thompson, right, accepts the Engineer of the Year Award from Engineering Council of Birmingham President Cliff Fleming. Raymond Thompson, Ph.D., was named the Engineering Council of Birmingham’s Engineer of the Year at the organization’s 55th annual awards banquet.

Thompson earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the UAB School of Engineering. While he was a student at UAB, he won the Engineering Council of Birmingham’s Undergraduate Student of the Year and the Graduate Student of the Year awards. After completing his Ph.D. at Vanderbilt University, Thompson returned to UAB, where he taught engineering for nearly 20 years.

In 1998, Thompson founded Vista Engineering, a research, development and consulting firm specializing in materials design and application. In addition to managing Vista Engineering, Thompson also works as a consultant in materials science and engineering. He is a licensed professional engineer in four states, and is a fellow of the National Academy of Forensic Engineers, the American Society of Materials and the American Welding Society. He holds three patents and is the author of numerous papers and a book. Thompson is one of five siblings to receive degrees from UAB.

UAB undergraduate and graduate engineering students were also honored at the banquet. Kathryn Sheibley was named UAB’s Undergraduate Student Engineer of the Year, and Carrie Schindler was named Graduate Student of the Year. School of Engineering Dean Iwan Alexander, Ph.D., was on hand at the event to present the student awards.