Ellen Cushman, David Lazer, Tommaso Melodia and Emily Zimmerman received the award for work that has national and international significance.
Four Northeastern University professors have won Excellence in Research and Creative Activity Awards, which recognize full-time faculty whose work has national and international significance.
Ellen Cushman is dean’s professor of civic sustainability and professor of English. Her recent work has focused on preserving and translating Cherokee language manuscripts and creating the Digital Archive of Indigenous Language Persistence (DAILP).
Cushman said in a written comment that the award didn’t just go to her, but “honors our tribal community members’ language persistence and our students’ exceptional achievements in experiential education. I’m honored and delighted to receive this award on their behalf.”
She also thanked the university for its “ongoing support for the DAILP project with Peak Awards and a Tier 1 grant in the earliest stages of our work to prove the concept of the DAILP interface.”
David Lazer, university distinguished professor of political science and computer science, received the award as one of the foremost global scholars on misinformation, who uses network science to adduce everything from falling trust in physicians to how misinformation spread on Facebook during the 2020 election.
Tommaso Melodia, William Lincoln Smith professor of electrical and computer engineering, has made a career studying, developing and inventing improvements to wireless networks and sensors. He is also the director of the Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things.
“This recognition,” Melodia wrote, “reflects the culmination of our collective work at the Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things, where we have been pioneering the future of AI-powered open cellular systems and network infrastructure in support of the AI revolution.”
Melodia praised experiential learning for its ability to combine theory and practice, experimentation and testing, creating “opportunities for the next generation of wireless and network engineering innovators.”
Finally, Melodia dedicated the award “to all the fantastic students and researchers who have worked with me — their creativity and dedication have been instrumental to every breakthrough we’ve achieved.”
Emily Zimmerman, professor and chair of the department of communication sciences and disorders, was recognized for her work in infant neurodevelopment, especially “multisensory interventions” that improve early infant feeding. Zimmerman also directs the Speech and Neurodevelopment Lab.
About the lab, Zimmerman wrote that she is “especially proud that the work we’re doing in the Speech and Neurodevelopment Lab is reshaping how we approach care in those earliest days of life.”
“It’s an incredible honor to be recognized with this award — it reflects my deep commitment to bridging scientific discovery and clinical impact,” she continued. “As a teacher and a researcher, this work allows me to train the next generation while pushing the boundaries of what we know about early brain development.”
These four Northeastern faculty innovators received their awards on April 16 at the 15th Academic Honors Convocation.