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May 2020
PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ENGINEERING & REMOTE SENSING
industry and as a consultant for many U.S. and international agencies.
Among the many awards bestowed upon him, Dr. Colwell had the
distinction of being one of the 25 Honorary Members of ASPRS.
Purpose: Established in 2006 to encourage and commend college/
university graduate students or post-doctoral researchers who display
exceptional interest, desire, ability, and aptitude in the field of remote
sensing or other related geospatial information technologies, and who
have a special interest in developing practical uses of these technologies.
Donor: The ASPRS Foundation, from funds donated by students, associates,
colleagues and friends of Robert N. Colwell.
The Award consists of a grant of $7,000 and a one-year student or associate
membership (new or renewal) in ASPRS.
William A. Fischer Memorial Scholarship
2020 recipient: Bo Peng
Bo Peng, currently a graduate student in the Department of Geography
at the University ofWisconsin, Madison has been selected to receive the
2020William A. Fischer Memorial Scholarship. Peng is being presented
this award in recognition of his impressive research accomplishments
and publications, superior analytical skills, and outstanding academic
record. Peng has clearly demonstrated the ability to combine his signif-
icant research experience and geospatial data science skills to help us
address real world problems and inform decision making.
Peng’s research is focused on remote sensing and image understand-
ing for near real-time flood extent mapping and depth estimation.
Peng will be developing advanced deep-learning and computer vision
techniques utilizing an unsupervised learning method based on
generative adversarial networks (GAN), which can learn the underlying
hidden object structure in an unsupervised manner. While GAN has
been used for image classification, anomaly detection, and object
detection, it has not been applied to change detection of flooded areas
using remotely sensed multispectral or SAR imagery. Peng will also be
developing a novel flood depth estimation framework with very high
resolution aerial remote sensing data. The committee hopes that the
results of his work will be shared with water and natural resource man-
agers who will face ever increasing climate variability and the growing
threat of flooding.
Purpose: The William A. Fischer Scholarship facilitates graduate studies
and career goals of a worthy student adjudged to address new and innova-
tive uses of remote sensing data and techniques that relate to the natural,
cultural, or agricultural resources of the Earth. It was established in 1984.
Donor: the ASPRS Foundation through individual and corporate contri-
butions in memory of William A. Fischer.
The William A. Fischer Memorial Scholarship consists of a $2,000 check
and a hand-engrossed certificate.
Francis H. Moffitt Memorial Scholarship
2020 recipient: Wenhao Liu
The 2020 Francis H. Moffitt Memorial Scholarship is awarded toWenhao
Liu. Liu is currently a student at the University of Florida pursuing a
Master of Science degree in Geomatics specializing in Bathymetric
Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. Liu received a Bachelor of
Engineering degree from Shandong Agricultural University in China. His
research plan is to combine computer vision and deep learning methods
in oblique photogrammetry to improve image matching accuracy and
apply it to coastal and underwater studies. Following graduation, he
plans to pursue a Ph.D. degree and then to work as a research scientist
or professor at a university.
Purpose: The award was first presented in 2008 with the purpose of
encouraging upper-division, undergraduate-level and graduate-level
college students to pursue a course of study in surveying and photo-
grammetry leading to a career in the geospatial mapping profession.
Donor: The ASPRS Foundation from funds donated to the Foundation from
former students, associates, colleagues and friends of Francis Moffitt.
The award consists of a certificate and a check in the amount of $7,000
and a renewal membership in ASPRS.
The Kenneth J. Osborn Memorial Scholarship
2020 recipient: Trenton Holyfield
The 2020 Kenneth J. Osborn Memorial Scholarship is awarded to Trenton
Holyfield. Holyfield is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Survey-
ing Engineering from Ferris State University and plans to graduate in
May of 2021. Following his BS, he plans to pursue his professional land
surveyor license in Michigan, and to continue to promote the geospatial
information technology profession in the Region. Trenton exemplified
the Osborn qualities of communication and collaboration through
participation in activities within the Ferris State University campus
community by serving in leadership positions in student organizations
such as Lambda Sigma, the land surveying honor society, and of Burt
and Mullet, the student chapter of the National Society of Professional
Surveyors. He is also an active student member of ASPRS, American
Association of Geodetic Surveyors (AAGS), The Hydrographic Society of
America (THSOA), and the United States Geospatial Intelligence Foun-
dation (USGIF). In addition to his campus leadership activities, Holyfield
also serves as a high school wrestling coach. Holyfield’s faculty advisor is
Professor Khadendra Thapa, PhD.
Purpose: to encourage and commend college students who display
exceptional interest, desire, ability, and aptitude to enter the profession
of surveying, mapping, photogrammetry, or geospatial information and
technology. In addition, the Award recognizes students who excel at
an aspect of the profession that Ken demonstrated so very well, that of
communications and collaboration.
