In addition to giving a William W. Hay Seminar on Friday 16 May, Paula Pienton, Chief Engineer Bridges & Structures with CN Railway, presented four RailTEC students with certificates awarding them CN Research Fellowships in Railroad Engineering. Paige Hardt and Xinhao Liu received awards for 2025 while Sadaf Shafie and Negin Shafie received ones for their fellowships awarded in 2024. A CN Research Fellowship in Railroad Engineering supports students affiliated with the Railroad Engineering Program in CEE at Illinois and was created as part of CN’s support for RailTEC’s educational programs.
The Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Department also recognized outstanding achievement and held its annual Student Awards Convocation on 25 April. RailTEC would like to congratulate the following 2025 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign rail scholarship recipients. They are:
Albert J. Reinschmidt Memorial Scholarship Fund
2025 – Alex Roskov
Michael W. and Jean D. Franke Railroad Engineering Scholarship
2025 – Sam Eberle
Norman and Mary Carlson Scholarship
2025 – Batu Alp
Union Pacific Scholarship
2025 – Cameron Taylor
More information about the scholarships can be found below.
Albert J. Reinschmidt Scholarship in Railway Engineering
This scholarship was founded and sponsored by friends and railroad industry colleagues of Dr. Albert J. Reinschmidt. Reinschmidt earned all of his degrees studying railway engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and went on to a successful career in railway research, engineering practice, and policy with the Association of American Railroads. The scholarship is intended to provide financial assistance to help any civil, electrical, industrial, and mechanical engineering student achieve their educational goals in rail transportation engineering and technology with the objective of supporting development of a new generation of engineers advancing rail safety, efficiency, and technological advancement.
Michael W. & Jean D. Franke Family Foundation Scholarship
The scholarship is awarded to an outstanding student interested in railroad transportation engineering, as evinced by coursework, participation in rail research, and other railway engineering and transport related activities. The objective of the scholarship is to encourage the candidate to continue railway engineering studies and ultimately pursue a career in the rail-related transportation industry.
Norman and Mary Carlson Scholarship Fund
Established in 2005, the Carlson Scholarship encourages students to pursue careers in the rail industry. Carlson graduated from the UIUC College of Commerce and Business Administration in 1964, has spent his career in service to the railroad industry, and has written and published extensively on the history and technology of railways.