U-M HFES Student Chapter and Na Du Awarded at HFES Annual Meeting

HFES awards the U-M Student Chapter with the Outstanding Student Chapter Gold Award. Na Du, a U-M IOE PhD candidate, was also recognized individually with two awards and a scholarship.

The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) has awarded the U-M Student Chapter with the Outstanding Student Chapter Gold Award. Na Du, a PhD candidate in U-M Industrial and Operations Engineering (IOE), was also recognized individually with two awards and a scholarship.

For over 60 years, HFES has strived for a future in which systems can work for humans by design and be grounded in science. As a Federated Society of the International Ergonomics Association, the mission of HFES is centered around knowledge exchange, collaboration and advocacy. There are 3,500 members of HFES across various industries from 58 countries, and about 525 of these members are students.

HFES at U-M wins the Outstanding Student Chapter Gold Award

The U-M Student Chapter of HFES was awarded the 2020 Outstanding Student Chapter Gold Award. This award was established in 1999 to acknowledge student chapters that have made significant contributions to HFES, their campus, or their community in a particular year. During the 2019-2020 school year, the HFES Student Chapter at U-M hosted and engaged in a wide variety of events, including guest speakers, outreach with local high schools and industries, recruitment, social activities including team bonding, information dissemination and mentorship. The U-M Student Chapter has previously been recognized with the 2019 Outstanding Student Chapter Silver Award.

“We are honored to receive this award and for the continued support of our chapter members, the Center for Ergonomics and U-M IOE,” said Karanvir Panesar, president of the Chapter. “We hope to continue to engage with the community and serve the field of human factors and ergonomics.”

“We are honored to receive this award and for the continued support of our chapter members, the Center for Ergonomics and U-M IOE. We hope to continue to engage with the community and serve the field of human factors and ergonomics.”

Karanvir Panesar
PhD Student and U-M HFES Student Chapter President, U-M Industrial & Operations Engineering

Na Du, U-M IOE PhD candidate, receives several honors from HFES

U-M IOE PhD candidate Na Du also received individual honors from HFES. She received both the Student Member with Honors Award and the HFE WOMAN Rising Star award, as well as the HFES Aging Technical Group Scholarship.

The Student Member With Honors Award was established in 1999, alongside the Outstanding Student Chapter Award, to acknowledge individual students who have made outstanding contributions to the discipline and/or HFES during their tenure as students. The HFE WOMAN Rising Star award recognizes graduate students whose achievements and contributions mark them as the future leaders of the HFE community.

“I am honored and humbled to receive the HFES Student Member with Honors Award and HFE WOMEN Rising Star award!” said Du. “I really appreciate the support of my advisor, mentors and everyone who helps me. I look forward to building on this success and contributing to the HFE community through my research, teaching and service.”

“I am honored and humbled to receive the HFES Student Member with Honors Award and HFE WOMEN Rising Star award! I really appreciate the support of my advisor, mentors and everyone who helps me. I look forward to building on this success and contributing to the HFE community through my research, teaching and service.”

Na Du
PhD Candidate and Past U-M HFES Student Chapter President, U-M Industrial & Operations Engineering

In addition to these awards, Du also received a scholarship from HFES. The HFES Aging Technical Group Scholarship provides scholarships of $500 to help students continue conducting their research on topics revolving around aging.

Na Du is a PhD candidate in U-M IOE and a past president of the U-M Student Chapter of HFES. She currently works in the Interaction and Interaction & Collaboration Research Lab under the advisement of Professor Jessie Yang. She is working on predicting driver takeover performance and designing an adaptive in-vehicle alert system in conditionally automated driving. Her other research interests include human factors in automated vehicles, trust-driven human-automation interaction and computational modeling of human behaviors.