Contact: Dr. A. H. Guenther, 277-7003 Media Contact: Michael Padilla, 277-1816

August 13, 2002 UNM research professor Guenther receives international award Research Professor Arthur H. Guenther of the University of New Mexico Center for High Technology Materials has been awarded the International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE) 2002 Director’s Award in recognition of his continued leadership and exemplary service to the society. Guenther served on the SPIE Board of Directors, chaired numerous committees and conferences, and is the 2002 International Commission on Optics president. A leader in efforts to improve optics education worldwide, Guenther is presently concentrating on the development of technical training programs. For the past 30 years, Guenther frequently represented SPIE as a liaison and participated on numerous optics-related boards and committees. He chaired the defense and manufacturing sections of the “Harnessing Light, Optical Science and Engineering for the 21st Century” report which brought optics and photonics to the forefront of national and global consciousness. Guenther has a long and distinguished career of service to New Mexico from optics to defense to education to technology-based economic development serving in the past as the first legislated science advisor to several governors. Guenther is the previous chief scientist of the Air Force Weapons Laboratory and held a similar position at Los Alamos National Laboratory. He was instrumental in the creation of the New Mexico Optics Industry Association in 1998. Guenther actively participated as an advisor in the formation of optics clusters throughout the world. In addition, he is a pioneer in laser activities and directed energy. ###

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