TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers Inc. awarded Barbara Hattemer, a graduate student in mechanical engineering at The University of Alabama, a $7,500 grant.

Hattemer, a Prattville, Ala., resident, was one of 13 to receive the grant, which is based on grade point average, faculty recommendation and research, and ASHRAE individual and chapter membership and activities. It is awarded once a year to graduate students studying refrigeration and air-conditioning related technologies. Hattemer is the only student in the Southeast to receive this grant.

Dr. Steve Kavanaugh, professor of mechanical engineering at UA and ASHRAE Fellow, works with Hattemer in HVAC research. "Barbara is a wonderful student," he said. "She truly deserved this grant, and I look forward to continuing research with her."

ASHRAE’s objective is to advance -- through research, standards writing, publishing and continuing education -- the arts and sciences of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration to serve the evolving needs of the public.

In 1837, UA became the first university in the state to offer engineering classes and was one of the first five in the nation to do so. Today, the College of Engineering, with about 1,900 students and more than 90 faculty, is one of the three oldest continuously operating engineering programs in the country and has been fully accredited since accreditation standards were implemented in the 1930s.