Georgia Tech’s College of Engineering held its annual Alumni Awards Induction Ceremony on March 21. The College of Engineering Alumni Awards were created in 1994 to recognize outstanding engineering alumni from the College.
“Tonight, we celebrate the tenacity, creativity, and enduring impact of engineering, and the leadership and fearlessness of being a Georgia Tech engineer,” said Interim Dean Doug Williams. “We’re here to recognize alumni who embody the spirit of our College — who anticipate and engineer the future and don’t flinch at ‘impossible.’”
Honorees are annually nominated by committees within each of the College’s eight schools and formally submitted for selection. This year’s group of 32 alumni graduated from 1969 to 2022. They included 10 new members of the Engineering Hall of Fame, the College’s highest honor.
This year's inductees from Georgia Tech's School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering are:
Gail Panarello Smith used her Hall of Fame induction speech to thank the unsung heroes in her life who helped her in college, her career, and life. Pictured with Jim Borders (left), ME 1983, President and CEO Novare Group; and College of Engineering Interim Dean Doug Williams.
Gail Panarello Smith, ChE 1978 (Engineering Hall of Fame)
Global Associate Director (Retired), Procter & Gamble
Gail joined the Procter & Gamble Company immediately after graduation and remained with the company for 40 years. During her career, she resided in three different countries and had multiple positions that led her to travel and work in over 20 countries.
Gail is known for developing and leading Procter & Gamble’s first Global Customer Service and Logistics Leadership Council. She also led the company’s Global Manufacturing Excellence Program, setting and assessing excellence standards for every Procter and Gamble manufacturing plant in the world. Gail also was responsible for the development and implementation of the company’s Executive Training and Development Program. She finished her career by being honored with Procter & Gamble’s Global Innovation Award after implementing a revolutionary method to digitally assess diaper quality.
In her retirement, Gail wanted to give back to Georgia Tech for giving her the skills to achieve career success. She currently serves on the ChBE Advisory Board and the Alexander-Tharpe Fund Board of Directors.
Gail and her husband, David, believe in the power of education excellence. They have established endowments to fund scholarships, faculty, and directorships at Georgia Tech as well as other universities and secondary schools.
Steven K. Hall, ChBE 1988 (Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni)
Managing Partner, EHF Capital LLC
Steve followed in the footsteps of his father, Ken, and uncle, Max, to attend Georgia Tech. He was inspired by late-night tales of adventures with their fraternities and stories of “getting out” and couldn’t resist scratching the family itch.
After a short stint in the true engineering world, Steve earned an MBA from Emory University and started to build businesses in the financial world. His 13-year career with Goldman Sachs and Citigroup on Wall Street gave him the tools and confidence to launch his own private equity business, EHF Capital, in Charlotte in 2011.
Steve enjoys building small businesses and coaching founders to realize their dreams. They range from binding agents for polymers to advanced composites to protein water … even professional ultimate frisbee! Steve passionately follows Georgia Tech sports and enjoys riding the emotional rollercoaster each week with student-athletes.
He and his wife, Christy, have two children, Ian and Connor, and are excited to split their time between Charlotte and Vail. Go Jackets!
Steven K. Hall (center)
Meha Rungta (center)
Meha Rungta, MS ChE 2011, PhD ChE 2012 (Council of Outstanding Young Engineering Alumni)
Global Technology Portfolio Manager, ExxonMobil
Meha manages the technology portfolio for ExxonMobil’s polypropylene and specialty polymers businesses, leading a global team of 80 scientists across five technology centers that develop and deploy new polymer products and applications. Meha has held various technical, commercial, and leadership roles over her 13 years at ExxonMobil, and is passionate about working at the interface of business and technology. She sponsors ExxonMobil’s Baytown-area Asian Connection for Excellence and serves on the Industrial Advisory Board for Chemical Engineering at the University of Houston.
Meha grew up in Kolkata, India, and earned her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from National Institute of Technology, India. At Georgia Tech, Meha worked with ChBE Professor Bill Koros on membrane separations. She received the Society of Women Engineers patent award in 2023. She met her husband, Praveen (ChBE 2013), at Tech and they now live in Houston.
Outside of work, Meha is an active dancer and has performed at several shows, including during halftime at Houston Texans and Houston Rockets games.
Student Speaker
Karissa Dawn, a Dean's Scholar and major in ChBE@GT, was the featured student speaker at the awards ceremony.
As the first in her family to pursue a career in engineering, Karissa is passionate about encouraging young people to explore their options and blaze their own paths. Both in her hometown of Peachtree City, Georgia, and throughout the Atlanta area, Karissa finds joy in supporting children and their families while fostering curiosity in future generations.
Now in her second year of studying chemical engineering, Karissa aspires to a career that uses her education and skills to serve people and the world thoughtfully, setting a pattern for others to do the same. She is grateful to Georgia Tech for the opportunity to engage in meaningful research that helps ensure the world’s well-being as humanity continues to advance. During her time at Georgia Tech, she has found communities that have shaped her, providing meaningful connections and opportunities that have encouraged her to grow relentlessly while making it easy to find joy and fun along the way. This is a tradition she values and is grateful to help carry forward.
Student speaker Karissa Dahn