The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC), a leading not-for-profit association serving textile professionals, will honor S. Kay Obendorf, Ph.D. '76, professor of fiber science and apparel design in Cornell's College of Human Ecology, with the Olney Medal for outstanding achievements in the field of textile chemistry May 19 in Atlanta, where she will deliver the Olney Medal Address. Her topic is "Improving Personal Protection Through Novel Materials."

"A nationally and internationally renowned scholar, Obendorf is known as a dedicated educator and outstanding researcher of incredible breadth," said AATCC's announcement. "Her scholarly work provided critical advances in textile chemistry and fiber science and contributed toward a better understanding of the surface chemistry of fibers and films and their performance. She made outstanding contributions in the areas of pesticide protective clothing, fiber morphology, detergency and functional textiles.

"She did groundbreaking work in the area of the underlying chemistry of soils and their interactions with fibers that furthered the basic understanding of the methods and processes of fabric care -- because of Kay Obendorf's work, your clothes get cleaner and resist stains better today than they did before her discoveries."

The announcement also noted her work in better understanding how textile fibers absorb and retain odor. "Because of Obendorf's work, your clothes may smell fresher, for longer."

Obendorf, who joined the Cornell faculty in 1966 until 1971 and returned to the faculty in 1978, was inducted into the National Textile Center Circle of Excellence in 2005 and has received numerous awards.