Dr. Andrea Brickey of the Department of Mining & Engineering Management
has been awarded the $300,000 2016 Freeport-McMoRan Career Development Grant,
which focuses on rebuilding the faculty pipeline in U.S. mining schools through
research.
The award is worth $100,000 per year
for three years and will primarily fund two graduate students to assist in her
research. Brickey is developing a holistic mine schedule by incorporating
additional aspects of the mine’s operation, such as ventilation. The research
project, “Production Schedule Optimization for Underground Mining,” addresses
processes, efficiencies and safety of mining projects.
Additionally, the award will fund
several undergraduate students and pay for travel for professional development opportunities,
all of which is intended to support tenure and promotion.
Brickey earned her bachelor’s degree
from South Dakota Mines in 1999 and worked for 15 years before returning to
academia, earning her doctorate from Colorado School of Mines and then joining
the SD Mines faculty ranks last fall. Her industry experience has focused
primarily on mining operations and consulting projects in Africa and North and
South America, mining copper, gold, silver, nickel, phosphate and coal.
The grant is part of the Academic
Career Development initiative of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy &
Exploration Inc. (SME) and the SME Foundation to boost viable tenure-track
candidates in mining engineering, mineral processing or extractive metallurgy.