"It is an honor for me to have been selected as a Distinguished Women Scholar from Purdue University," Browning said. "I owe a great deal to my advisor and professors at Purdue, and so it is very gratifying to know that the Institution will honor my work as a reflection of what I learned during my time in West Lafayette."

The awards program, led by Purdue's Office of the Provost in partnership with the University's Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Leadership Excellence, honors alumnae who hold Purdue doctorates and have made significant scholarly contributions to their academic communities. Annually, each college dean at Purdue is permitted to nominate two women for the honor, and a committee within the Office of the Provost selects the recipients. A campus ceremony for the four recipients will be held on March 9.

"These four women who epitomize the mission of the Butler Center serve as an inspiration to our campus community, and we are proud to celebrate their success," said Alyssa Panitch, vice provost for faculty affairs. Patrice Buzzanell, newly appointed Susan Bulkeley Butler Chair for Leadership Excellence, said, "The 2015 Distinguished Women Scholars are incredibly inspiring role models for women and men in academe. We are proud and honored to showcase their careers and look forward to their insights on how to integrate discovery, learning and engagement to accomplish such impressive scholarly impact."

Before joining UTSA, Browning served as the associate dean of administration and professor of civil engineering in the School of Engineering at the University of Kansas. Her career at KU included service on the University Senate, as a member of the Campus Historic Preservation Board and Bay View Alliance KU Leadership Group, among numerous department, college and university committees. She was awarded the university's Miller Award for Distinguished Professional Service in both 2004 and 2011, and was the 2012 recipient of the Henry E. Gould Award for Distinguished Service to Undergraduate Education.