January 10, 2023 Blum takes not one, but two awards home: McGuire and Terry Peshia Written By: Stephanies Vang Departments: Civil & Environmental Engineering Categories: Awards|Faculty Hannah Blum, an assistant professor and the Alain H. Peyrot fellow in structural engineering within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, has been awarded both the 2022 McGuire Award for Junior Researchers and the 2023 Terry Peshia Early Career Faculty Award. Blum’s research spans the design and analysis of steel and stainless-steel members and systems; structural stability; structural reliability; data-driven design methodologies; mixed reality in structural steel fabrication; and virtual and augmented realities in structural engineering education. Through this work, she aims to strengthen design guidelines that support the creation of resilient infrastructure. Augmented and virtual reality learning tools help students visualize their work as future engineers. During a recent Steel Structures I class, pictured here, Blum assists a team of students with engineering calculations using data gathered with the HoloLens mixed reality headset. The Structural Stability Research Council (SSRC) presents the McGuire Award to a junior researcher who has taken part in stability-related research projects. The award honors the late SSRC member Professor William “Bill” McGuire, a champion of cutting-edge research to improve stability design. Blum will receive the 2022 MAJR Medal at the 2023 SSRC Annual Stability Conference, where she will also present on her most recent research endeavors. The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) presents the Terry Peshia Early Career Faculty Award to professors in the fields of civil engineering, architectural engineering, architecture construction, or construction management who have demonstrated promise in the areas of structural steel research, teaching, and/or other contributions to the fabricated structural steel industry. Blum will receive the award at the 2023 North American Steel Construction Conference (NASCC) in April. These awards are the latest in Blum’s noteworthy career, which also includes the Yoon Duk Kim Young Researcher award (2021) and the Vinnakota award (2016), among others.