May 12, 2025 The 2025 ME Golden Gear of Excellence Awards Written By: Caitlin Scott Departments: Mechanical Engineering Categories: Awards Congratulations to Arganthaël Berson and Kathryn Rasmussen for receiving the Department of Mechanical Engineering’s 2025 Golden Gear of Excellence Awards! This award was created in 2024 to recognize two non-tenure track members in the department, one non-tenure track instructor and one administrative staff member. The recipients are nominated and voted on by department faculty and staff to recognize their hard work and dedication to students and the department. The ‘Golden Gear of Excellence Award’ was fondly named to highlight individuals who are an integral ‘gear’ working towards making our department the best it can be! Non-Tenure Track Instructor Winner Arganthael Berson Arganthaël Berson is an Assistant Teaching Professor and has been with the department since 2015. When asked what he enjoys about his position, he shared, “I am very lucky to teach courses across the ME curriculum. I most enjoy seeing the growth of our students as they progress through their studies; from learning the foundations of thermal analysis in their Thermodynamics course, to applying this knowledge during the Energy Systems Laboratories or the Solar Energy Technology course that I teach. It is very rewarding to watch these students become fully-trained engineers who are ready to take on real-world challenges after graduation.” Administrative Staff Member Winner Kathryn Rasmussen Kathryn Rasmussen is an Accountant and focuses on improving the overall experience for undergrad, grad, and prospective students. She has been with the Department of Mechanical Engineering since spring of 2022. When asked what her favorite part of her job is, she stared, “I like getting to work with so many different people, including our faculty, instructors, staff, students, visitors, and others within the College of Engineering and the larger campus community. I have learned so much from everyone in my three years in ME and have gained a lot of experience—and have hopefully been able to carry that forward to others. Thank you everyone for the support!” Congrats again to these two exceptional members of our team! We appreciate all you do to keep us moving forward!