News

The Wireless Networking and Communications Group is home to some of the brightest minds at The University of Texas at Austin. The Student Leadership Award is presented annually to the student or students who best embody WNCG’s mission and values: academic excellence, leadership, service, and a commitment to innovative and collaborative research. The 2023 award went to two very deserving graduates: Drs. Joshua Ebenezer and Ian Roberts.

Constantine Caramanis, professor in the Chandra Family Department of Electrical Engineering in the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, has been elevated to Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for 2023. Caramanis was honored "for contributions to robust statistics and optimization in high dimensions."

WNCG professors Alex Dimakis and Sriram Vishwanath have been elevated to Fellows of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for 2022. Prof. Alex Dimakis was honored for “contributions to distributed coding and learning."  Prof. Sriram Vishwanath was honored for “contributions to information theory and coding for wireless communication systems."

WNCG alumni Chan-Byoung Chae and Kaibin Huang have been elevated to Fellows of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for 2021. Elevation to Fellow is a prestigious distinction conferred upon select members of the institute whose “extraordinary accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest are deemed fitting” for the accolade. Chae was honored for contributions to MIMO design and prototypes for emerging communication systems; Huang for contributions to wirelessly powered communications and multi-antenna communications.

Each year, WNCG presents the Student Leadership Award to an outstanding student—or students—who not only displays excellence in research and academic activities, but also embodies the spirit of the group’s mission to create a collaborative research environment. This year, the award goes to two students: Ahmad AlAmmouri and Jessica Hoffmann.

As an interdisciplinary center for research and education, WNCG is home to many talented minds. The group has grown steadily since its inception over 15 years ago and now comprises 23 faculty members and over 150 students and research staff. The upward trends don’t stop simply at the number of group members. Over the years, WNCG has built an exceptional network of industry partners, increased the number of its sponsored research projects yielding groundbreaking results, and successfully graduated Masters and Ph.D. students who go on to a wide range of careers in industry and academia.

WNCG Prof. Lili Qiu has been named an IEEE Fellow. She is being recognized for “contributions to wireless network management.” The IEEE Grade of Fellow is conferred by the IEEE Board of Directors upon a person with an outstanding record of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. The total number selected in any one year cannot exceed one-tenth of one-percent of the total voting membership. IEEE Fellow is the highest grade of membership and is recognized by the technical community as a prestigious honor and an important career achievement.

Each year, WNCG faculty nominate one outstanding student to receive the WNCG Student Leadership Award. The award is presented to a student based on their cumulative contributions to the center, including their representation of WNCG to the greater community, their mentorship of fellow students, their research visibility and recognition from external organizations.

Every year, from the 100-plus graduate students that constitute WNCG, one or two students are recognized for their leadership: both contributions within WNCG and impact on the broader community. This year two students share this award: Omar and Tom. Omar, working towards his PhD with Prof. Robert Heath, has been a leading student contributor to several WNCG events: multiple open houses, board and WiCAT meetings, and TW Summits. He has also been a dependable resource for organizing student-led and student-oriented activities within WNCG. Omar has also represented WNCG at CTIA 2010.

Jubin Jose Wins 2001 Student Leadership Award' This year's winner of the WNCG student leadership award was Jubin Jose. Jubin has shown initiative and leadership in a number of areas important to WNCG, including student life, scholarship, and the WNCG organization itself. Perhaps most impressively, Jubin has been critical in revitalizing the WNCG student seminar series & a forum for our students to share ideas, and more importantly, to convey to one another the excitement for research, scholarship, and collegiality.