This month, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) announced its newly elected Class of 2026 Associate Fellows. In the class of 130, the University of Kentucky had the most fellows of any institution with four Pigman College of Engineering faculty being honored with the distinction.
The following Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering faculty were named 2026 AIAA Associate Fellows: Sean Bailey, Ph.D., professor, Jesse Hoagg, Ph.D., Clifford Cremers and Eric Cremers Department Chair and professor, Savio Poovathingal, assistant professor and Michael Renfro, associate dean for faculty affairs and facilities and Tennessee Valley Authority Professor.
The grade of Associate Fellow recognizes individuals “who have accomplished or been in charge of important engineering or scientific work, or who have done original work of outstanding merit, or who have otherwise made outstanding contributions to the arts, sciences, or technology of aeronautics or astronautics.” To be selected as an Associate Fellow an individual must be an AIAA Senior Member in good standing, with at least 12 years of professional experience, and be recommended by three AIAA members.
Bailey, Hoagg, Poovathingal and Renfro, along with the rest of the 2026 class, will be formally honored the at the AIAA Associate Fellows Induction Ceremony and Dinner in January, during the AIAA SciTech Forum in Orlando, Florida.
The AIAA is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space and defense.
Sean Bailey
Jesse Hoagg
Mike Renfro
