Outstanding Cyclone Engineers honored with 2025 college alumni awards

Ick-Jhin Rick Yoon – Marston Medal

Ick-Jhin Rick Yoon (MS Ceramics Engineering, ‘72; PhD Materials Science and Engineering, ‘77) is an acclaimed engineer, entrepreneur, and leading expert in the ceramics manufacturing industry.

In 1988, Yoon founded Southern California-based IJ (Intelligent Joining) Research, Inc., which grew into a multi-million-dollar enterprise and leading manufacturer and supplier of sapphire-to-metal seals and bonds. These are used in microwave windows, biomedical electrical connectors, optical lenses, as well as components for nuclear facilities, X-ray machines and X-band radars. The company served the medical, aerospace, defense, oil, and telecommunications industries. Yoon successfully exited the company after it was acquired by St. Albans, Vermont-based Superior Technical Ceramics in 2020.

In 2021, Yoon and his wife, Hyohi Sandy Yoon, provided a gift to establish the Dr. Thomas D. McGee and Dr. Ick-Jhin Rick Yoon Department Chair in Materials Science and Engineering at Iowa State University. McGee, professor emeritus, was a presence and staple of the university for more than 70 years and a cherished mentor to many students including Ick-Jhin Rick Yoon.

McGee supervised both of Yoon’s Iowa State degrees. “A mentor like none other,” McGee encouraged Yoon “to take on challenges in life I never thought were possible before walking onto the Iowa State University campus,” Yoon said.

Yoon has continued his research into new cutting-edge ceramic engineering.

In 2023, Yoon was inducted to the Materials Science and Engineering Hall of Fame for his outstanding achievement and contributions to the discipline.

Yoon and his wife have two sons, two daughters-in-law, and two grandchildren. He belongs to the Order of the Knoll W.M. Bearshear Society.

Brenda Mann – PACE Award

Brenda Mann, (BS Chemical Engineering, ‘91) is a successful chemical engineer whose impactful career spans entrepreneurship, research, invention, and education — and whose innovative products have been sold worldwide.

Mann is the founder and president of Marinda Therapeutics, which develops biomaterials for treating vaginal health disorders including post-radiation vaginal stenosis, bacterial vaginosis, and dryness. She is also the vice president for pre-clinical research at TMClear Therapeutics, developing novel ophthalmic therapeutics for glaucoma and ocular neuroprotection.

Previously, she was senior vice president for research and development at EyeGate (now Kiora) Pharmaceuticals, developing novel polymer and iontophoretic-based drug delivery systems for the eye. She was a co-founder and vice president of research and development for SentrX Animal Care Inc., where she developed and commercialized biopolymer-based veterinary products for corneal and skin wound healing, post-surgical adhesion prevention, and tendon repair. Several of these product lines continue to be sold worldwide and have been used to treat millions of animals. SentrX was acquired by Domes Pharma in 2023.

Deeply committed to investing in the future of the profession, Mann has spent nearly 20 years as director of the University of Utah Science and Engineering Fair, a regional competition where about 700 budding scientists and engineers present their projects each year. She has also served as adjunct faculty, taught courses, and served on committees in the university’s Department of Bioengineering, advancing research and mentoring students.

Mann’s many honors include election to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows in 2022. She is a registered patent agent, holds nine patents, and has an extensive list of publications and presentations to her name.

She is married to Jordan Gerton; they have two children — Marina and Kai.

Swami Sivasubramanian – PACE Award

Swami Sivasubramanian (MS Computer Engineering, ’02) is a highly accomplished tech industry leader who continues to shape the future with impactful contributions to cloud computing, AI, and machine learning, alongside cutting-edge research.

Sivasubramanian has nearly 20 years of high-level leadership at Amazon, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Amazon AI, including roles of founding vice president of Amazon AI, General Manager of NoSQL and Analytics at AWS, and his current role of Vice President for Database, Analytics and Machine Learning at AWS.

In that time, he has made transformative impacts including: shaping the foundation of AWS to serve users with tools to harness data and drive innovation; being on the team that built several AWS services including the original Amazon Dynamo
(“the technology that reimagined databases, and today powers massive workloads at Amazon and many of AWS’s customers,” according to Amazon); and moving forward Amazon initiatives across health AI, financial services, enterprise search and more. He also led many other pioneering cloud computing services like SageMaker (“the technology that is used by leading AI companies to build
their machine learning models”) and Bedrock (“the technology that makes it easy to build GenAI applications for all companies”). Many of these systems are used by millions of customers using AWS (and in turn powers the experiences of billions of end users).

The company calls him a “pioneer of cloud computing” and points to his leadership role “in the development of some of the IT industry’s most significant innovations.”

His innovations are vast, with more than 250 awarded patents across many domains. He continually contributes knowledge to the field, having authored 40 referenced scientific papers and journals, and regularly participating in conferences and academic circles.

He lends his expertise to the fast-growing AI field as a recently appointed member of the prestigious National AI Advisory Committee.

Owen Berg – Young Alumni Award

Owen Berg (BS Civil Engineering, ‘08; MS Civil/Structural Engineering, ‘10) is an influential young engineer who, in just 15 years at Kiewit Infrastructure Engineers, has advanced quickly and played a role in several major infrastructure projects across North America. Recently promoted to Discipline Area Manager, Owen previously served as the director of temporary works where he led a 160-person team covering structural, marine, and heavy lift/transport temporary works for the Kiewit companies.

During his time as temporary works director Berg served an important role in the startup of the Francis Scott Key Bridge replacement project in Baltimore, Maryland after the original was struck by a container ship in 2024. Owen helped build and mobilize the right Temporary Works team to execute the fast-paced design as well as sponsoring the team responsible for Temporary Works design.

Other notable high-profile projects of Berg’s include: The Hebron Offshore Platform in Jeanne d’Arc Basin, Newfoundland and Labrador; the Big Bar Fish Passage Facility, an emergency Salmon passage in British Columbia; and the G3 Grain Terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia. Owen also serves as a design sponsor for the P-381 Multi-Mission Drydock for the U.S. Navy in Kittery, Maine.

Berg is dedicated to developing future engineers. He gives his time generously to Iowa State, staying involved with the Cyclone Engineering community through the Civil & Environmental Engineering External Advisory Council and by visiting campus to share career insights, leadership principles and real-world engineering experiences.

Owen lives in Calgary, Alberta with his partner Mina and her three children, William, Carolyn, and Henry and spends time at his cabin in Twin Lakes, Iowa during the summer.

Anne Stockdale – Young Alumni Award

Anne Stockdale (BS Materials Engineering, ‘09) is a proven leader in the materials and aerospace fields who has successfully created new technologies for Northrop Grumman. Over 10 years, she has progressed to chief engineer in the company’s aeronautics systems sector, where she leads a team of more than 50 engineers in developing and implementing technologies.

Among notable achievements in that time is her leadership of the firebird program, an optionally piloted vehicle, during which she developed and executed both lab and flight test procedures for mission planning, control segment, and communications systems.

She and five colleagues were awarded the Distinguished Engineering Project Achievement Award from The Engineers’ Council for their work on the firebird program, and she was honored as a finalist for Northrop Grumman Engineer’s Choice Award in 2019 for Technical Leadership Excellence for her work on the project.

She has continued to grow her expertise in material science and beyond, including work in software development, data center management, aircraft systems and integration, aircraft system troubleshooting and more.

In previous positions, she developed a characterization lab at Rolls Royce, and managed the technical side of a material certification effort, implementing new testing standards at General Atomics.

She gives back to the engineering field in myriad ways, including by serving on the Department of Materials Science Engineering’s External Advisory Committee from 2016 to 2024, including a period as chair.

She is married to Brian Williams, a diver in the United States Navy. Together, they enjoy traveling and spending time with their families.