Dave Freeman, Professor and Chair of Marietta College’s Petroleum Engineering and Geology Department, was recognized with the “Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty,” at the Eastern Regional meeting of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) on October 5th in Lexington, Kentucky.
The SPE Regional Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty recognizes superiority in classroom teaching, excellence in research, significant contributions to the petroleum engineering profession and/or special effectiveness in advising and guiding students.
Zachary Evans, a graduate of West Virginia University who works for TransCanada in Charleston, West Virginia, and serves as the President of the SPE Appalachian Basin Section nominated Freeman.
Evans has worked with Freeman through SPE for several years and makes two to three trips to Marietta College each year to interact with students in a variety of ways. During those visits, he can pay witness to the relationships Freeman develops with his students.
“We have conversations about our approach to teaching at Marietta, and how it differs perhaps from some of the practices at WVU, so he has an understanding of how we go about our business here.”
Such an understanding was vital for Evans when he set out to nominate Freeman, as he had to describe specific examples of Freeman’s work that support the award criteria and provide a statement of the significant reason why Freeman should be selected for the award.
While SPE recognizes professionals for a variety of specialties, Freeman is grateful for the recognition of his work at Marietta.
“I am honored to be recognized by the SPE in this manner,” said Freeman. “SPE recognizes individuals from across the industry in a variety of discipline-specific areas. In this particular case, the award reflects achievement in the area of education.”