Christine Mecklenborg, Department of Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. student, and winner of a Rudd Mayer Fellowship, is seated second from the right at the awards banquet. Back row L-R: Kendra Van Buren, Joni Harshman, Shana Patadia and Anika Leerssen. Front row L-R: Loma Roggenkamp, Aaron Nicole Batchman, Christine Mecklenborg and Meredith Blaydes Lilley. Photo courtesy of Kristen Graf.
Christine Mecklenborg, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, was recently selected as recipient of theRudd Mayer Memorial Fellowhip, granted by Women of Wind Energy. This fellowship sent Christine to WINDPOWER 2010, the premier networking and educational conference for the US wind industry.
Rudd Mayer and the Rudd Mayer Fellowship
The fellowship honors wind industry pioneer Rudd Mayer of Boulder, Colorado, who passed away in 2002. In 1992, she joined the LAW Fund (now called Western Resource Advocates) as an assistant with the energy project and quickly evolved into a leading advocate for wind power. She became the marketing director for the Land & Water Fund, and through her innovative marketing efforts to bring wind energy to Colorado, she is responsible for much of Colorado's expansion into wind energy. Read more about her on the government site, Wind Powering America, from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The fellowship is awarded on a competitive basis. Current women students or recent graduates of college, university, or technical certificate programs, interested in pursuing a career in the United States wind energy industry, are eligible to apply. Selection is based on commitment to renewable energy development, academic achievement, and potential for future contributions to the U.S. wind energy community.
Christine's Bio
Christine is in the Dynamic Systems and Controls group, working on dynamic modeling and stability control of deep-water offshore wind turbines. She is also working on predictive modeling and networked control systems to improve energy capture and reduce blade fatigue in both onshore and offshore wind farms. Her work in offshore stability control will be presented in a paper at the 2010 ASME Dynamic Systems and Controls Conference.
Christine received her bachelor's degree from Texas Tech University and her master's degree from The University of New Mexico. She began her current studies at The University of Texas at Austin in the fall of 2009. She is advised by Assistant Professor Dongmei (Maggie) Chen and expects to graduate in 2012.
