McGehee Wins UI Distinguished Research Professional Award

Transportation and Vehicle Safety Policy Program Director, Dan McGehee, was awarded the 2015 Distinguished Research Professional Award, last evening (April 28) at the Celebrating Excellence: The University of Iowa Discovery & Innovation Awards Ceremony.  The event highlights research and innovation achievements at the University of Iowa.

Criteria for the Distinguished Research Professional Award include: outstanding contributions that go beyond the ordinary fulfillment of the individual’s position duties, distinguished work that stands out as a set of exceptionally effective contributions to research, direct work experience with researchers that extend over several years (more than 5 years), and examples of outstanding contributions in pursuit of research goals (e.g. process improvements, program creation, substantive contributions to obtaining external funding, idea creation, innovation, etc.).

McGehee was nominated by PPC Director Peter Damiano.  Following are excerpts from his nomination:

“Dr. McGehee’s outstanding record of scholarship in the field of human factors and vehicle safety research, and autonomous vehicle policy has earned him a stellar national reputation in his field.  He is frequently invited to present at national meetings and speak to the media, and has been featured on NPR, the Huffington Post, and other national media outlets.  He is frequently consulted on driving safety matters by policy-makers, state and federal agencies, and private organizations such as the AAA Foundation. “

“ In 2013-14, Dan authored nine articles and reports published in journals such as the Annals of Advances in Automotive Medicine and the Journal of Pediatrics.  He delivers countless presentations on a variety of automotive safety topics and has been a featured speaker at national and international meetings. He also led an interdisciplinary team that developed the TraumaHawk. This groundbreaking program allows first responders to collect critical photos of a crashed vehicle and send them to hospital emergency personnel within 30 seconds, allowing them to better prepare for the type of injuries that may be heading their way.”

“One of Dan’s greatest strengths is his ability to work with people and establish interdisciplinary collaborations across campus, the country and the world. His research almost always involves an interdisciplinary team effort, including researchers from Engineering, Emergency Medicine, Public Health, etc. Of particular note are the new partnerships he is currently forging with national and international organizations, such as Leeds University in England, Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden and VOLVO.”

McGehee is an Associate Research Scientist and Director of the Transportation & Vehicle Safety Policy Research Program at the Public Policy Center (PPC). He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor in the departments of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering, Occupational Health, and Emergency Medicine. He has worked at the PPC for the past 19 years, and took directorship of the Vehicle Safety and Human Factors Policy Research Program in 1996, which merged with the Transportation Policy Research Program in 2014.