Alfred University Inamori School of Engineering

05/28/2026

ALFRED UNIVERSITY’S ANVIL CLUB MAKES THE PODIUM at FIERF

Alfred Anvil brought home a 3rd place finish at the 2026 FIERF American Felling Axe Forging Competition — competing against 22 forging teams from across the country.

What makes this even more impressive? Our students forged the axe almost entirely by hand, using power tools only for finishing work. This project pushed the limits of our skills, teamwork, and equipment, building on the momentum started with last year’s Blacksmith’s Hammer project.

Competitions like this are more than just awards — they’re hands-on experiences that bring our team together through hard work, problem solving, and making. Every strike of the hammer reflects the passion and dedication of the students behind it.

Over the past five years, this club has grown into something truly special, and the future is bright with a new generation of student leaders ready to take on what’s next.

Alfred Anvil is “all grit, no quit” says former VP Sam Gross — and they’re already looking ahead to FIERF 2027.

05/26/2026

Read our newly-minted graduate, Lina Young’s story.

Changing directions can be intimidating—but for Lina Young, it led to a future in engineering. Hear how Lina switched majors, challenged herself, and found her path. 🎓 Read more: [Link] https://www.alfred.edu/blog/blog-posts/alumni-spotlight-lina-young.cfm

Congrats to our newest alum as she begins her career in the advanced ceramics industry!

05/26/2026

Prof. Caio Bragatto visited his international collaborator Prof. Marcio Nascimento at the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), where they discussed future plans on their research of the fundamentals behind ionic conductivity in glasses, as well as talks to the first-year Chemical Engineering students on career in Materials Science and on Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy for Engineering graduate students.

05/14/2026

Alfred University Engineering Open House:

The day includes:
Campus and engineering facility tours
Interactive demonstrations
Shadow a research undergrad
Student, faculty, and staff panels
Lunch on campus

Register here:
https://connect.alfred.edu/register/eng-open-house-6-2-26

05/11/2026

Several Alfred University students recently attended Ceramics Expo in Cleveland, OH. Preston Guynup, Ben Rondeau and Roque Santiago shared their research with industry leaders at The Student Poster Pitch Competition.

Roque Santiago took home first place with his poster titled: Structural Optimization Enables Fast Lithiation of Wadsley-Roth Shear Phases

His work looks at optimizing next-generation battery anode materials by purposefully introducing defects into their structure that boost performance, pushing these materials towards commercial viability.

04/30/2026

Alfred University is introducing a new Pre-College Class this summer. Forge the Future, taught by one of our MFA candidates, Bran Latcham.

Listen to Bran talk about what this class will entail.

Link to class description and registration:
https://www.alfred.edu/about/summers-at-alfred/summer-camps/forge-the-future.cfm

04/29/2026

Dr. Mario Affatigato, physics faculty at Coe College, presented the 2026 Scholes Lecture at Alfred University last week.

Dr Affatigato’s presentation covered traditional thermodynamic methods (roller and splat quenching, spray cooling), levitation techniques of various kinds, chemical methods, and mechanical/optical strategies for creating disorder in the solid state. Methods used by living organisms (such as sponges and diatoms) were also discussed.

A poster session honoring James Shelby was also held. Shelby joined the faculty of the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University in May 1982 as an associate professor of glass science. He was promoted to professor in 1985 and was named the McMahon Professor of Ceramic Engineering in 1998. He received the G.W. Morey Award for his research on gas diffusion in glasses in 1975, chaired the Gordon Conference on Glass in 1985, and was named a Fellow of the ACerS in 1986.

04/29/2026

Alfred University Engineering Goes Global 🌎🔬

Students and faculty from Alfred University recently visited the Sirius Synchrotron in Campinas, Brazil—one of the most advanced research facilities in the world.

As part of the 4th São Carlos School on Glass and Glass-Ceramics, Prof. Doris Möncke, Dr. Ben Moulton, Dan Kutzik, Marce Peccorini, Zephyr Ramsey, and Zander Jonsson explored this 4th-generation synchrotron, a cutting-edge tool capable of revealing the atomic structure of materials with incredible precision.

This visit gave students a firsthand look at some of the most advanced experiments possible in materials science today—connecting classroom learning to real-world discovery at the highest level.

04/27/2026

Assistant Dean of Engineering Matt Lake with Matthew Bittel ‘26 at the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence in Albany, where Matthew was recognized today for his outstanding achievements from Chancellor John King.

Congratulations Matthew!

04/23/2026

This week the Space Materials Institute with Dr Holly Shulman and Dr Matthew Creed gave a talk titled: “What’s new at NASA Now?”

04/23/2026

Happy Earth Day!

Today, Luke and Zion—two of our Renewable Energy Engineering students—had the opportunity to showcase their waterwheel at Alfred-Almond Central School. They interacted with Pre-K through 6th grade students and their families, demonstrating how the power of water can be harnessed to generate electricity.

Look closely at the last photo you’ll see an LED light glowing, powered entirely by the energy produced from the waterwheel! Inspiring the next generation, one turn of the wheel at a time. ♻️