The member representing Oluyole Federal Constituency, Hon. Tolulope Akande-Sadipe, has congratulated two Nigerian-Americans: Oyekunle Olukotun and Oluwole Soboyejo, who have been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Engineering in the United States.
Speaking through her Special Assistant on Media, Olamilekan Olusada, the House of Representatives member expressed delight in the elections, describing it as another good sign that Nigerians in Diaspora are recognised in their various fields.
Akande-Sadipe, who chairs the House Committee on Diaspora, praised the Nigerian-Americans for their forthrightness in their chosen career, engineering.
Olukotun and Soboyejo were among the 104 members and 24 international members elected to the academy in March.
The new members bring the academy’s total US membership to 2,353 and the number of international members to 299.
The academy membership honours those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature” and to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.”
Individuals in the newly elected class will be formally inducted during the NAE’s annual meeting on October 3, 2021.
Olukotun is the Cadence Design Systems Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Stanford University.
Soboyejo is Senior vice president and provost, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Northborough.
Prior to joining WPI, Soboyejo was a Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University for approximately 17 years.
He is a materials scientist whose research focuses on biomaterials and the use of nanoparticles for the detection and treatment of disease, the mechanical properties of materials, and the use of materials science to promote global development.