Sophie Henschel Medal to Berthold Scholtes

Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Berthold Scholtes has been awarded the Sophie Henschel Medal. In their laudations, both his successor as head of the Department of Metallic Materials Prof. Thomas Niendorf and the current director of the institute Prof. Hans-Peter Heim emphasized in particular his scientific and human services to the institute.

Prof. Scholtes made a significant contribution to the establishment of the institute during his time at the University of Kassel from 1993. Prof. Heim emphasized: "He showed himself tirelessly in supervising students, conveying enthusiasm for his field. At the same time, he was able to advance research and make it, and thus the University of Kassel as a research location as a whole, visible to a broad international audience." Prof. Niendorf added: "This broad and fruitful networking was already evident at the farewell colloquium in 2018, for which many internationally renowned scientists traveled from all over the world. The high quality of his scientific work led, above all, to the German Research Foundation funding a large number of his projects, the results and contents of which were published in many prestigious journals."

His commitment to the department and the university, which went beyond the norm, was expressed in his involvement in various levels of leadership at the university in order to realize his ideas and concepts. For example, during his time as dean and as vice president, he was able to play a significant role in shaping developments and steering them in a future-oriented direction. In these activities, too, the welfare of students and young academics was always close to his heart.

The handover of the departmental leadership in the phase from 2015 to 2018 to Prof. Niendorf took place harmoniously and in an exemplary constructive manner. Today, Prof. Scholtes continues to contribute to the life of the institute as a respected scientist. Thus, his expertise in the assessment of journal articles and dissertations is always in demand and very welcome.

Prof. Heim emphasized, "Prof. Scholtes is a worthy recipient of the Sophie Henschel Medal and thus joins the list of personalities who have rendered outstanding services to teaching and research at the Institute of Materials Engineering."

Like the institute building, the medal is named after Sophie Henschel (1841-1915), who headed the Henschel und Sohn company for more than 16 years and was strongly committed to the social interests of the city of Kassel.