U-M Aerospace is proud to announce Ken Powell, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Aerospace as one of the faculty recipients of the 2021 North Campus Dean’s MLK Spirit Award. The North Campus Dean’s MLK Spirit Award honors students, student organizations, faculty, and staff in the North Campus schools at the University of Michigan who exemplify the leadership and vision of Dr. King by championing good throughout the U-M community. They seek community members with a commitment to social justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion with a special emphasis on the context of the pandemic and responses to the urgent issue of racial injustice this year.
Prof. Powell has been teaching aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan for over 30 years and has made a significant impact on increasing diversity awareness throughout the Aerospace community. As the previous chair of the Department of Aerospace Engineering’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, he cultivated a culture of equity and inclusion within the Department by supporting and celebrating the diversity of all its students, faculty, and staff. As part of his work in DEI, Prof. Powell has also served on the board of ADVANCE, the College of Engineering faculty representative to President Schlissel’s Sexual Misconduct Working Group. In addition, he’s worked as a board member of M-STEM academies and as a board member of STRIDE for five years where he provided strategies to identify diverse, well-qualified applicants for faculty positions at the University of Michigan.
