Linda Schadler
Linda Schadler, vice provost and dean for undergraduate education and the Russell Sage Professor, has been elected to the Class of 2016 Materials Research Society (MRS) Fellows.
The MRS will honor Schadler at the 2016 MRS Spring Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, for her “seminal research in the field of polymer nanocomposites and for leadership in materials education.” The recognition honors MRS members who are notable for their distinguished research accomplishments and their outstanding contributions to the advancement of materials research, worldwide. The honor is highly selective with no more than 0.2 percent of the membership being honored each year.
Active in materials research for over 23 years, Schadler is an experimentalist and her research has focused on the mechanical, electrical, and optical properties of two-phase systems, primarily polymer composites. She is the author or co-author of more than 140 journal publications, several book chapters, and one book, Nanocomposite Science and Technology.
Additionally, Schadler is one of the three executive producers of the Molecularium Project. Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and others, the Molecularium team has created two animated movies to teach young children about the world of atoms and molecules. The movies, Riding Snowflakes and Molecules to the Max! have garnered many awards and both movies have been translated into several languages, playing in educational theaters around the world. The project’s NanoSpace website, an online science “theme park” featuring games, videos, and educational resources, won a “2013 Best of the Web” award from the Center for Digital Education.
Schadler received an NSF Young Investigator award in 1994 and the Bradley Stoughton Award for Teaching from ASM International in 1997. Among her many other awards are the Dow Outstanding New Faculty Award from the American Society of Engineering Education in 1998 and the 2008 Outstanding Professor Award from the Rensselaer School of Engineering. Schadler is a fellow of ASM International, a former member of the National Materials Advisory Board of the National Research Council, and a former member of ASM International’s Board of Trustees. In 2011, she was named one of the “Top 100 Materials Scientists” of 2000-10 by Thomson Reuters.
Schadler graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in materials science and engineering and received a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. She joined Rensselaer in 1996.