Chemical Engineering's Peachee Recognized as College of Engineering Staff Employee of Year

Michael McAllister

Dearl "Peach" Peachee, left, assisting chemical engineering graduate student Anelisse Claros with a piece of hollow fiber fabrication.

The College of Engineering is honored to recognize Dearl "Peach" Peachee as the College of Engineering Staff Employee of the Year. Peachee is the master scientific research technician for the Ralph E. Martin Department of Chemical Engineering. He had previously been awarded the college's Staff Employee of the Quarter for the second quarter, earning him eligibility for this award. 

Peachee's work, which includes being the machinist, carpenter and facilities coordinator for the department, supports undergraduate teaching labs, faculty research and an array of department projects. Multiple nominators recognized Peachee for his work ethic, quality of work and the positive energy he brings to the department.  

"I'm so proud of Dearl, and I'm amazed at the extensive list of duties he takes on in service to our faculty and students. He's a treasure, and we're lucky to have him," said Dean Kim Needy. 

"As a staff member for our department and college, Peach demonstrates excellence in his efforts and attitude. His support for our students, staff and faculty is greatly appreciated. We are thankful for the difference he makes at the university," said Keisha B. Walters, chemical engineering professor and department head. 

Supporting Teaching and Research

In their nomination letter for Peachee, University Professor Ed Clausen remarked that he had "never seen a more dedicated employee who was so easy to interact with." This quality stands out to Clausen and others, considering the varied way that projects are brought to Peachee. Time and again, those projects turn out exceptionally. Clausen recalled how Peachee once designed and built one new lab experiment based entirely on a single phone call. And how he produced the "Cadillac version" of another lab experiment more adaptive to the lab's needs than expected.  

Peachee lends his expertise to the undergraduate students working on the AIChE Chem E Car project. Instructor Karen Beitle highlighted how Peachee contributes to the students' success. "Peach goes a step further by teaching [the students] about the manufacturing of the parts and helping them to improve their design," all while creating "a positive learning experience," she said. 

Tom Smith, Robert E. "Buddy" Babcock Professor of Practice, also spoke to Peachee's contributions to the undergraduate experience by focusing on two recent honors experiments. Smith emphasized how Peachee "welcomes opportunities to let the students do as much as possible so that they learn new skills and extend their capabilities" when it comes to their projects' design, modification and assembly. He added that Peachee's "approachable and helpful attitude is a great benefit to myself, my students and the overall teaching mission."  

Praising Peachee as "irreplaceable," Bob Beitle, professor and senior associate vice chancellor for research and innovation, knows Peachee to be "more than willing to do whatever is in his power to make something work." The results Peachee delivers often extend past the initial goal. Bob Beitle noted that Peachee's "recent contribution to an industrial project not only insured the successful completion of the sponsored work, it also aided in developing a new educational opportunity."   

No Task Too Big 

Within the department, Peachee is known for taking on all jobs, big or small. "He looks out for the rest of us and has a great attitude!" shared Heather Walker, teaching assistant professor and associate department head for the undergraduate program.  

In addition to his projects in the research and teaching labs, Peachee played a big part in several facility improvements in the department. That includes renovating the walls of the chemical engineering lounge and installing infinity dry-erase boards and a large flatscreen monitor, updates that better serve the needs of current students. Similarly, he remodeled an existing storage and office area into a larger conference room space that fits all of the chemical engineering faculty for department-wide meetings and which also has been used for larger research group meetings and dissertation defenses. He also played a key role in the space improvements that supported the creation of the Turpin Advising Center. 

Emphasizing the reach that Peachee's work has throughout the department, Walters described how his "proactive approach can be seen in all of his efforts, from equipment builds and repairs to designing new apparatus for the teaching labs, from helping graduate students spec out equipment to helping them learn how to identify bottlenecks in their workflow, and the list goes on and on."  

Congratulations, Peachee, on being the college's Staff Employee of the Year! 

About the Department of Chemical Engineering: Chemical engineering has been a part of the University of Arkansas curriculum since 1903. Today, the Ralph E. Martin Department of Chemical Engineering has an enrollment of over 300 students in its undergraduate and graduate degree programs and houses five endowed chairs and eight endowed professorships to support its faculty. Faculty expertise includes cellular engineering, chemical process safety, advanced materials, computational modeling, and membrane separations. A wide range of fundamental and applied research is conducted in the areas of energy, health, sustainability, and computational chemical engineering. The department is also home to the Chemical Hazards Research Center and is one of three national sites for the Membrane Science, Engineering, & Technology (MAST) Center. The Department of Chemical Engineering is named for alumnus Ralph E. Martin (B.S.Ch.E.'58, M.S.Ch.E.'60) in recognition of his 2005 endowment gift.