Fall 2022 I3@USD Engineering Magazine

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I 3 @ USD

SHILEY-MARCOS
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
University of San Diego, Fall 2022

A Decade of Transformation

As we enter the 10th year since the founding of USD’s Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, it is a nostalgic time to take a reflective look over the many accomplishments and triumphs our school, students, faculty and alumni have achieved since 2013.

During my 33-year academic career, I have witnessed significant changes in engineering and computing education.

Decades ago, faculty were dedicated to studying how people learn — the con cept of teaching effectiveness began to enter engineering schools. This caused some angst over the nature of engineer ing education as most faculty then, and now, focus on technical problem-solving and the design of engineered devices. It is a good angst because it causes us to question the nature of our vocation.

This change infused the social sciences into engineering education, bringing forth faculty that study the identity, nature and social impacts of engineering and computing. Deans and academy leaders within the fields began to include that "engineering is sociotechnical." This infusion resulted in efforts to change curriculum — teaching students not only to solve problems, but to reflect on who is im pacted and how. And with this shift, USD engineering and computing is be coming more diverse and attractive to a broader group of students and faculty.

In this issue, we look at some of the evolution in USD engineering since our founding. Delve into the critical research and grants that are trans forming the engineering and comput ing culture at USD. Take a glimpse into the sociotechnical perspective of USD engineering and how it fits with our contemporary Catholic identity. Meet some of our trailblazing women leaders, explore some of the impactful outreach taking place and discover ways our partners are helping us become even better.

The Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering is a nationally recognized undergraduate school and is an incred ible place to get an education. I hope you enjoy reading about our transfor mation. We can’t wait to celebrate the 10th anniversary with you!

For over 30 years,
USD ENGINEERING
I have been immersed in the vocation of education. It chose me — like a wand chooses a wizard, - Chell Roberts
1 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE 01 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE USD’s Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering Founding Dean Chell Roberts, PhD Director of Development/ Alumni Relations Elisa Lurkis elurkis@sandiego.edu Editor/Communications Manager Michelle Sztupkay michelles@sandiego.edu Senior Creative Director Barbara Ferguson barbaraf@sandiego.edu Writers Andrew Faught Karen Gross Elisa Lurkis Matthew Piechalak Darlene Marcos Shiley Michelle Sztupkay Contact University of San Diego Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering 5998 Alcalá Park San Diego, CA 92110 (619) 260-4627 Email Alumni Notes to: elurkis@sandiego.edu Website: sandiego.edu/ engineering Instagram: @usdengineering Facebook: @usdEngineering LinkedIn: @usd-engineering Twitter: @DeanRobertsUSD FEATURE STORIES GRANT IMPACTS Grants play a crucial role in the School of Engineering’s charge to redefine and transform engineering in the 21st century. SHATTERING THE GLASS CEILING A spotlight on five women leaders who are paving the way as role models and mentors for the next generation of female engineers. NATIONAL CENTER FOR ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE USD joins select group of California schools when the CyberSecurity Engineering graduate program receives national award. ON THE COVER Shattering the Glass Ceiling Meet some of our female engineering visionaries who are taking on and excelling in leadership roles. 02 | Young Echelon 04 | Shiley’s Legacy 05 | Honoring Don De Sanctis 16 | Faculty Achievements 17 | News Briefs 18 | Alumni Notes 22 | 2022 Showcase Innovators 23 | Employment Outcomes 24 | Class of 2022 Contents 24 06 06 08 14 02 I 3 @ USD

Young Echelon Empowers Youth

Robotics STEAM Camp Seeks to Develop Next Generation of Black Leaders

The beaming smiles on their faces and the spark in their eyes communicate a powerful message: I can do anything. More than a dozen San Diego area teens took part in Young Echelon's inaugural Robotics STEAM Camp last month inside USD's Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering. The overall goal was to develop young Black leaders and help them see their potential, says USD alumnus Joshua Williams '16 (ME), founder of Young Echelon, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to "empower the next generation of Black leaders."

"It's giving them opp ortunities to see themselves in spaces that they might not have seen themselves in before," says Williams. "When you build a robot and you actually have something tangible that you've constructed, now you realize that you can do this."

02 USD ENGINEERING
The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great at whatever they want to do.
ALÉ DELGADO
— Kobe Bryant

The weeklong camp, held from July 18 to 22, 2022, was for students in grades 8 through 11. Throughout the camp, the students learned about programming and coding and the week culminated in a robotics competition.

Williams founded Young Echelon in 2020. The organization offers a STEAM-focused cohort-style pro gram for high school-aged students.

STEAM is an educational acronym that stands for science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.

"We start with eighth and ninth grade students and we walk with them throughout their high school career. Each year has a leadership focus — self, others, world and

ambition and how you claim it."

To Williams — who grew up in Inglewood, California, the youngest of four sons to a single mother — exposure and access is everything.

"My mind and my abilities ad justed as I was exposed to different things," Williams says.

Williams started the USD chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) in 2015 while earning his mechanical engineering degree, and the lessons he and oth er Black engineering students learned about career preparedness are the same lessons he hopes to impart on younger generations.

"What if we knew these things

earlier? How does your potential change?” asks Williams. "When you actually have the opportunity to learn and digest content or have a worldly experience, your perspective broadens."

The summer camp is intended to expose new students to Young Echelon and the mission the nonprofit seeks to attain in the community.

"That little bit of inkling might inspire them to be a tech giant or an engineer. Or it might tell them they don’t want to do that," Williams says. "Realizing they have the potential to do these things and make that choice for their future lives is everything."

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ALÉ DELGADO

Shiley’s Legacy

by Darlene Marcos Shiley

Engineering … the lifeblood of civilization! Where would we be without big ideas, innovation and creation to advance the wellbeing of humankind with all its colors and denominations? Life in general is about building blocks. And there lies the importance of the gifts engineers bring to us: from the size and strength of buildings and bridges to the smallest medical devices like heart valves.

As we enter the 10th anniversary year of the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, we recall that the University of San Diego had a wellfunctioning engineering department. Yet we needed more. To further that field of study and to honor the accomplishments of my late husband, Donald Shiley, I agreed we needed a School of Engineering — to show we valued this education, the talent (God given and learned) these power ful students had.

Donald was the perfect example of all those talents. So, who was he? As a child, his family moved around the Northwest, picking fruit wherever they could; his right hand was severely burned in a home cooking accident; he started college (working several jobs along the way) but couldn’t afford to continue; became a master machinist; joined the Navy in a specialized program; returned to a Catholic university on a chemistry scholarship and the G.I. Bill funding;

Benefactress Reflects on 10th Anniversary

graduated with honors in mechanical engineering; ultimately became a biomedical engineer, formed his own company and invented a state-ofthe-art artificial tilting disc heart valve that saved over 400,000 lives!

When we announced the gift that would establish the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, one of the students came up to me, glowing with excitement, and thanked us for giving her the opportunity to be in the first class that would graduate from a named school that recognized tomorrow’s engineers could come from anywhere to USD and have the opportunity to grow our world. Did that make my day? Absolutely!

Find the gift

that God gave you, sharpen it, hone it and train it, and then go use it.

Since the official launch of USD's Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering in 2013, under the stellar leadership of Dean Chell Roberts, we have grown our total number of under graduate engineering students from approximately 200 to 800. We have added computer science and inte grated engineering as new majors, along with an initiative in entrepre neurship. We have increased our full-time faculty members from 16 to more than 40. And we have added five new graduate degree programs. Our facilities were renovated and now include innovative spaces such as the Ideation Space, the machine shop, and, of course, Donald's Garage.

We are all Shiley proud!

04 USD ENGINEERING
TIM MANTOANI

The Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering mourns the loss of Dominick De Sanctis, busi nessman, philanthropist and mentor, who passed away on June 10, 2022.

Before the pandemic caused the USD campus to shut down, students in the Shiley-Marcos School of Engi neering got used to seeing a familiar visitor who showed up relatively frequently and seemed to hold court with a number of students. Wherever Dominick (Don) De Sanctis appeared, he stood out — in part because of his stature and booming voice, but also because he conveyed a certain pres ence. De Sanctis was not a faculty member nor a parent of a current student. He was a mentor in the truest sense of the word. He made a gener ous gift to establish the Dominick and Karen De Sanctis Professorship in Engineering and Entrepreneurship — the first named professorship in engineering. He also invested in USD student-led startups and spent count less hours mentoring them on how to be better business leaders. It is very hard to grasp that he is gone.

De Sanctis was a very successful businessman who built SDI (Systems Design, Inc.), a multi-million-dollar company that designed and built distribution systems for major retail ers. Don launched SDI in 1977 and built it from the ground up, using his

Honoring Don De Sanctis

grit and fierce determination. He saw academia as frustrating and discon nected from the way things were done in "the real world." Despite this, he stayed involved with USD, and em phasized the importance of integrat ing business-oriented learning oppor tunities for engineering students within the program.

In fact, initially he only agreed to pay USD a visit as a favor to an old friend, David Cohn, another success ful, retired businessman who helped launch USD's Etrack program in engineering and entrepreneurship. But what De Sanctis encountered at USD surprised him. As he spent more time on the campus meeting with engineering students, he realized that his business prowess could be very valuable to young engineering stu dents looking to launch a business. He would share colorful stories about past experiences, which were both entertaining and conveyed important business lessons.

He became invaluable to two partic ular student-led projects, Agrishield, LLC, and Darroch Medical Solutions, Inc. With De Sanctis' guidance and personal financial investment, Agrish ield has become a successful vineyard and orchard equipment company, and Darroch is well on its way to improving patient care in hospitals and reducing adverse events during recovery.

When De Sanctis’ wife, Karen, no

Mentoring Better Business Leaders

ticed how rejuvenated he was after spending time on campus, she sug gested that he could make a gift to support the school and leave a legacy. Thanks to her suggestion and his generosity, the professorship in their names was born.

"Don invested in USD student-led startups and spent time mentoring them to be better business leaders and on how to create customer value," notes Venkat Shastri, De Sanctis professor of engineering and entrepreneurship.

"Don was instrumental in helping our Etrack program grow," says Dean Chell Roberts. "His generosity created the first named professorship in our school, allowing us to hire a top-notch faculty member to run the program. He gave his time and his treasure and he did it in his own unique way. He was one of a kind and we will miss him a lot."

Gareth De Sanctis, Don's youngest son who has become a mentor in USD's Etrack program, summed up his father's connection to USD and what it meant to him.

"My father's passion in life was to grow his company and make a differ ence in the world. He loved sharing his experiences and helping others trying to do the same. USD allowed him to get close to and help mentor so many young entrepreneurial minds. This gave him a great sense of purpose after his retirement."

05 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE
(1932-2022)

Grant Impacts

Transforming Engineering Education

As founding dean of the USD Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering (SMSE), Chell Roberts reflects on a period over two decades ago when the emerging engineering program graduated roughly 10 students per year.

Today, with Roberts setting new standards, hiring new faculty members and promoting external funding in the school's culture, USD's Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering is leading the charge to redefine and transform engineering in the 21st century.

SMSE now offers five new graduate degrees and confers more than 160 undergraduate degrees in engineering and computer science. Many of those who matriculated were lured by the

program's commitment to hands-on experiences, entrepreneurship and social justice — often made possible by grants.

"At one point, engineering was mostly about math and science, and engineers didn’t leave the comfortable domain of numbers and solving things," Roberts says. "You were hired to de sign a gear or a box, and somebody told you what to do, and you did it well."

"Those days have changed," he adds. "It's no longer the person that tells you what to design, but the engi neers themselves who engage with communities and users to evaluate how a design impacts the community. There's a social solution that goes with the technical component."

The school's evolution has a pivotal

moment. In 2015, it secured a $2 mil lion National Science Foundation (NSF) grant dubbed Revolutionizing Engineering Departments (RED). The grant had a singular purpose: develop Changemaking Engineers who were not only technically deep, but also dedicated to social justice, humanitarian development and sustainability on a global scale.

Prior to the RED grant, there were few SMSE faculty members that applied for NSF grants and it was rare for anyone to address the emerging sociotechnical foundations. The NSF award made an enormous impact on the direction and the future of the school and the students who are drawn to SMSE. Today, grants are critical to the SMSE ethos.

Since receiving the RED grant, the school continues to secure additional grant funding, much of that focused on emerging sociotechnical issues, and some of that coming from hiring faculty members who now bring research funds to SMSE. The benefits are felt directly by students, who get to assist in timely and cutting-edge scholarship with real-world impacts and experience innovative curricula to better prepare them for the workforce.

The RED grant has facilitated the hiring of most of the new faculty members over the last five years who are ushering in a more holistic, userdefined, sociotechnical approach — something not typically seen in American engineering schools.

They include Professor of Integrat ed Engineering Caroline Baillie, who joined SMSE in 2017. She’s been thinking about engineering as a tool for social change since the early 2000s, when she launched an organization called Engineering, Social Justice and Peace (ESJP). The group's annual con ference was held at USD in 2018. There, engineers discussed how to "work to support and enhance social

06 USD ENGINEERING

and environmental justice, rather than the other way around."

"When I launched ESJP in 2004, I started asking lots of questions of people from political science, social science and environmental science," Baillie says. "How can we as engineers position ourselves to put people and the environment first?"

While the journey to transform the definition of what constitutes an engi neer, how we affect the world and how we teach students about this has not been an easy one, Baillie chose to con tinue her life’s work at USD because the institution is open to pushing the field into new directions. ESJP was foundational in the work which in formed the RED grant scheme that ultimately supported SMSE’s transfor mation — so it made complete sense for her to cross the world to join the team. "I wouldn’t be here if this wasn’t groundbreaking work."

When Daniel Codd began teaching mechanical engineering at USD in 2012, he brought with him a handful of research grants from the Depart ment of Energy. His work focuses on renewable energy systems, advanced manufacturing and precision mechanical design.

Students get to research so-called energy machines — specifically, solar conversion and storage devices meant to supplant fossil fuels as energy sources. "Students have a richer experience when they're actually building real devices to solve a real need," Codd says.

Grant funding, meantime, has helped SMSE develop its Integrated Engineering program, which empha sizes big-picture solutions. The disci pline nurtures an understanding of the profound impact engineers have on society.

"Engineering is unable to solve complex modern challenges with math and science alone," says Susan Lord, chair and professor of integrat ed engineering. "There has always been a tension in engineering about how practical we should be, versus how theoretical we should be. Rather than just be purely technical, we want our students to see connections."

What's clear is that SMSE grant funders are taking an expansive view of engineering and its potential to create exciting solutions. But funders also are looking for ways to broaden who practices engineering, long dominated by males.

SMSE’s Integrated Engineering department has recently received several NSF grants, some of which have allowed Lord and her team to conduct research promoting gender and racial diversity.

Associate Professor Gordon Hoople was awarded a grant to re imagine how energy is taught to engineering students with a focus on broadening what "counts" as engineering. Associate Professor Diana Chen is the lead on a $691,000 NSF grant funded by the Racial Equity in STEM Education program that will support engineering faculty in the critical movement to promote racial equity in engineering education.

Lord has a grant with Purdue Uni versity that uses a large multi-institu tional longitudinal dataset to study the experiences of students in engineering and aims to identify successes and provide suggestions on how to increase the number of women in the field.

"Women are maybe 18 percent, if we’re lucky, of engineers nationwide," Lord says. "Research is moving toward 'assets.' That is, what women and peo ple of color from underserved commu nities can bring to engineering. How can we recognize those assets rather than devalue them? Our Integrated Engineering program is making strides in these areas. During this last academic year, my classes were 36 to 78 percent women and about 50 percent White, much more diverse than a typical engineering classroom.”

The increase in external funding secured by SMSE faculty members has enabled exciting research oppor tunities for students, as well as inno vative curricular development, which is helping students see engineering’s connections to real-world problems and social issues. These ideas tie well to the mission of USD and its holistic education and have promise for wel coming more students to the field.

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Shattering the GLASS CEILING

The gender gap in engineering is very real. Women continue to be vastly underrepresented in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. According to the Census Bureau, women working in engi neering occupations increased from a mere 3 percent in 1970 to only 15 percent in 2019. Fortunately, there are many influential women who are not only breaking the stereotype, but also shattering the glass ceiling.

At USD’s Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, more than 40 percent of the full-time, tenure-track faculty members are women — many of whom are increasingly taking on and excelling in leadership roles in the undergraduate and gradu ate programs offered, within the school’s growing centers and across the USD campus.

Here we spotlight five women in leadership roles at the University of San Diego who are paving the way for other women in STEM to follow in their footsteps. Driven by their passion for technology, engagement and empowerment, these visionaries are part of the revolution that is altering society's perception of what women can or cannot do — serving as role models and mentors for the next generation of female engineers.

— photography by Zachary Barron

Imane Khalil, PhD, was born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon, during that country’s violent civil war. She immigrated to the United States in 1989. "I remember living in base ments, sometimes for days, waiting for the Red Cross to deliver us bread. That made me who I am today," recalls Khalil. "When I came to the United States, I was hungry for learn ing and I grabbed the opportunity."

She studied mechanical engineer ing (ME) at the University of Califor nia at San Diego, where she earned

Khalil introduced the commercial soft ware, FLUENT, to the ME department's curriculum. "By teaching our students one of industry's most highly used com putational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes, they have the benefit of another power ful tool for their capstone design proj ects while getting the training compa nies seek from new hires."

Khalil created her own materials to teach the CFD class. In response to a gap in the market, she and colleague Dr. Issam Lakkis from the American University of Beirut wrote the first

undergraduate textbook on CFD, Computational Fluid Dynamics: An Introduction to Modeling and Applications, which McGraw Hill will publish in December 2022.

In July of 2022, Khalil was promoted to associate dean of graduate pro grams, overseeing five "high demand area" online master's programs. "I witnessed the growth of the under graduate engineering school at USD and I enjoyed being part of it. I am very proud to be part of the growing graduate programs."

Leading Through Excellence

her bachelor's, master's and a doctor ate in fluid and gas dynamics. Khalil received offers from Harvey Mudd and Sandia National Laboratories after receiving her PhD. She accepted Sandia's offer, working first as a scientist and then as a manager.

"Sandia was a great place for learn ing and doing science. They supported my involvement with the University of New Mexico where I taught as an adjunct faculty." Khalil had "flutters" when she would leave the classroom. Those three short hours of her work week gave her the most satisfaction.

After 10 successful years with Sandia, she joined USD as a full-time assistant professor of mechanical engineering. She continues her research in numeri cal methods applied to reactor safety and uncertainty quantification appli cations and collaborates with Sandia to study the thermal-hydraulic re sponse of dry storage cask simulators for spent nuclear fuel. In 2018, Khalil was named fellow member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering and was promoted to associate professor in 2019.

From her experience at Sandia,

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Having begun her journey at the University of San Diego nearly 15 years ago, Truc Ngo, PhD, has been on an upward trajectory from the moment she earned her BChE and PhD in chemical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

She started her career in industry working as a senior process engineer at Intel Corporation, developing cutting-edge fabrication processes to manufacture microchips for com puters and mobile devices.

associate's degree program. In 2008, Ngo joined USD as a part-time adjunct faculty member, followed by a tenure-track faculty appointment in 2009. She was promoted to full professor and served as chair of the industrial and systems engineering department 2018 to 2022.

Ngo has been active in collaborative

associate provost for research admin istration at USD. In this role, she serves as chief research compliance officer, working in partnership with all academic units to implement strategic priorities in the Academic Affairs portfolio. She also received the 2022-23 University Professorship Award, which is the highest academic

Leading Through Impact

"It was here that I found my own leadership style, creating the kind of environment that encourages hard work while providing motivation and support within a team."

Ngo took her experience and moved into academia. As an associate profes sor, she taught in the Engineering and Technologies Department at San Di ego City College for five years, where she founded and established the Man ufacturing Engineering Technology

undergraduate research, mentoring stu dents and partnering with colleagues across USD, other institutions, interna tional scholars, external research labs, industry and community partners. She continues to publish in high-impact, peer-reviewed journals with students and her research collaborators.

Since 2014, Ngo has led multiple humanitarian engineering servicelearning trips with undergraduate students to the Dominican Republic, developing sustainable solutions in the areas of water, energy and waste to help improve local living conditions.

In Fall 2022, she was promoted to

honor for faculty members at USD.

"My goal is to promote and strengthen USD's unique research profile and reputation. A collaborative network connecting academic units, departments and faculty would help foster productive research agendas at USD and beyond."

Throughout her career, Ngo has been laying the groundwork for suc cess. "Changes and challenges help you grow; it rounds out your perspec tive and brings you to a new level. All of this helps motivate me to seek new opportunities, strive for the best outcomes and become a better leader."

Associate Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering

Odesma Dalrymple, PhD, is no stranger to attaining success in her role as an educator and as a humani tarian. In recent years alone, she was awarded the universitywide Educa tional Excellence in the Community Award, the San Diego County Engi neering Council Dr. Thomas Ken neman Outstanding Service Award, and the Fostering Black Educational Excellence Award.

Equity and Access committee.

As the faculty lead of SMSE's Engi neering Exchange for Social Justice, she engages with students, colleagues, engineering professionals and diverse community groups to co-create alter native solutions to sociotechnical problems — both locally and abroad.

The global-reaching impact of Dalrymple’s influence has not gone unnoticed, earning her a recent ap pointment by the Karen and Tom Mulvaney Center for Community, Awareness and Social Action to serve as one of three faculty advisors for the

Mulvaney Center. Her leadership responsibilities include advising faculty on how to effectively design and implement course-based community engagement, while providing national visibility for the ways in which SMSE faculty and students are facilitating solutions to humanity’s most urgent challenges.

"Engineering is part of my identity and I am excited to broaden that connectivity beyond the scope of engineering. This new platform helps showcase what engineering diversity can look like to a broader audience."

Leading Through Passion

And that is just the tip of the iceberg. In early 2022, Dalrymple was honored at the inaugural Diversity and Inclusion Impact Awards ceremony recognizing outstanding faculty mem bers who have made it their mission to create a more inclusive and diverse campus climate.

"Those who engage in the necessary and at times uncomfortable work that often goes along with seeking diversity, inclusion and equity are not driven by a desire for recognition," explains Dalrymple. "However, this award does elevate the work and signals a commit ment by the institution to recognize and provide more resources to support these endeavors."

Dalrymple channels her passion for engineering to make a positive impact on real lives — introducing science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics principles to people of color, those who are underserved and marginalized and those who may not otherwise have had the opportuni ty to explore these fields. One of many ways Dalrymple serves these commu nities is through her work on the executive leadership team of the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineer ing’s (SMSE) Inclusion, Diversity,

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Kathleen Kramer, PhD, began her career as a founding mem ber of USD’s engineering faculty when the program was in its infancy. The young engineering de partment was nested within the Col lege of Arts and Sciences and offered one program — electrical engineering.

"At the time, I was the only female tenure-track faculty member in the IEEE (Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers) fields of inter est among the then-three San Diego universities," recalls Kramer.

Starting her academic career just

after completing her PhD from Caltech and beginning at USD in time for its first graduating class of engineers, Kramer worked her way up through the ranks. In 2003, she became chair of electrical engineering. The follow ing year, Kramer was elevated to di rector of engineering, providing aca demic leadership for all of the university’s engineering programs.

2013 marked a critical shift for the thriving department. Student enroll ment had tripled, the department launched its Mechanical Engineering program and USD received a generous

gift from Darlene Marcos Shiley to launch the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering.

"Chell [Roberts] was brought in as founding dean. It did not seem like a leadership challenge to go back from the role I was already in," says Kramer. "I got a call from the Society of Women Engineers and they did a two-page profile on me as a woman dean — a lot of people saw it."

Kramer received a call asking her to run for the position of director of the Western USA for the IEEE — a global organization with 350,000 members.

Leading Through Empowerment

Over a span of nearly a decade, she has made high-level leadership contribu tions to advance the mission of IEEE. She served as IEEE secretary and led governance globally, including contrib uting to major changes in the IEEE Code of Ethics, transparency and on diversity and inclusion. She has led technical activities as vice president of the IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society and for IEEE commu nities, including Women in Engineer ing and Young Professionals.

Kramer has also been a leader in engineering accreditation criteria activ ities for IEEE and ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology). As a member of the Engineering Accreditation Commission, she has contributed to significant advance ments in the criteria. In June 2022, Kramer was named a fellow of ABET.

"I want to apply myself where heavy lifting is needed and to move in signif icant directions. I feel a real joy in col laborating with people because in the end, we are doing something positive, advancing ourselves as we advance an important project."

12 USD ENGINEERING

Leading Through Engagement

Audacious. Resourceful. Invincible. Meet Rhonda Harley, PhD. With an uncan ny ability to live out loud, Harley has blazed a nontraditional career trajec tory over the last 10 years — carving out a niche for herself in higher education and landing her latest role as the inaugural assistant dean of student engagement and inclusive excellence at USD’s Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering (SMSE).

Harley has passionately worked her way up through the career devel opment ranks as an administrator, supporting students in the STEM disciplines — focusing particularly on those who are women, racially diverse, financially disadvantaged and/or first-generation students.

"With a proven ability to foster a culture of care through celebrating the true value of diversity and

developing meaningful programs and services that exude institutional pride and outstanding student outcomes, I believe SMSE can ensure all members of this community have equal access to the Torero experience," says Harley.

She channels her vivacious energy into her role as advisor to the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and on the executive leadership teams for the SMSE Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Action committee and Black Employee Alliance. "As a Black woman scholar, practitioner and researcher, my career in higher education has been grounded in diversity, equity, inclusion and access."

Harley has been recognized for her work in promoting a more inclu sive campus climate. She was award ed the Diversity and Inclusion Im pact Award, the Woman of Impact Award and the Fostering Black

Educational Excellence Award.

Harley earned her PhD in leadership studies from USD in Spring 2022. Her dissertation focused on identifying how Black engineering students within USD’s NSBE access and cultivate com munity cultural wealth among them selves and peers. "It was really meaning ful to watch NSBE students support me through participating in my PhD jour ney. That is the power of community."

As the assistant dean, Harley part ners with senior leadership to develop strategy, policies and programming in support of student engagement and implementing efforts to recruit and maintain a more diverse and inclusive campus community.

"By cultivating a collaborative envi ronment, SMSE can inspire a commu nity of colleagues who are prepared to make the greatest contributions to the lives of our outstanding students."

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Accelerating Cyber Careers

The University of San Diego recently joined a select group of schools in California when the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering's CyberSecurity Engineering graduate program was designated as a National Center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense (NCAE-CD) by the National Security Agency's (NSA) National Cryptologic School and federal partners. The rigorous, year-long application process was spearheaded by Chuck Bane, who revamped the Master of Science in Cyber-Security Engineering curriculum and serves as its director and a professor of practice. He had the help and support of Mark Heckman, PhD, also a professor of practice, and Mark Castellano, who manages community engagement for the school's engineering and technology programs.

"It's a two-step process. The first was validating the curriculum itself and the credentials of all the instructors," Bane says. "The second was the re quirement to show proof that we ac tually practice what we teach. And that we have an outreach program that works with other curriculums across campus." The group also had to submit evidence of outreach efforts outside the university, such as sum mer camps and corporate training events, and to solicit input from university faculty and students, as well as an advisory council, whose members are key players in San Diego’s cyber community.

"This is a designation that anyone who has a cybersecurity program desires," says Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering Dean Chell Roberts. "It means you have arrived. That the program has been vetted not only by us and the community, but by security agencies of the United States federal government." It also opens the door to valuable scholarships and enhances job opportunities that otherwise would not be accessible to students.

"When students are looking at schools, how do they judge the quality of a program? There's no national or international standard for deciding whether one school is better than another," says Heckman. "So, the designation is one way of differentiat ing us. The NCAE designation means

14 USD ENGINEERING

that our program has been certified by the NSA and a long list of federal partners as meeting a certain level of rigor in our curriculum. That helps us with recruitment and it helps students find jobs afterwards."

Ch'ree Hagens '22 (MSCSE) had already found a job before the desig nation was awarded but she says she knew it was coming and is richly deserved. A former Marine who worked in systems administration and security, she now has a job as a navigational systems engineer with a DOD contractor in Anaheim.

"USD has an excellent cyber engi neering program. This will help put us out there at the forefront. The cybersecurity field is hurting and we need more good people." Even with out the NCAE designation, Hagens says the master’s definitely eased her path to employment in a demanding and competitive area. "I'm working a lot with systems that support DOD and one of our key responsibilities is to make sure that classified informa tion isn’t spilled."

In order to prepare people like Hagens for the real world, Bane de signed a program that can be attend ed online or on campus. Classes are held with full-time workers in mind, because a good number of students are looking to change careers or acquire new skills that can help them move ahead in their current jobs. A technical background is a big plus, but it's not an absolute requirement. "When I interview people who don’t have technical backgrounds, I tell them yeah, they can do the work, but they've got to go out and do a lot of it on their own," Bane says.

Shaswati Das, a full-time business analyst and parent, learned that from personal experience. She wanted to move from finance into a more tech nical sphere and, because she lacked the necessary background, she spent

a full semester taking an online fun damentals prerequisite. Now she's on campus and Das says although the work has been very challenging, she remains confident she made the right choice. "The classes are small, the professors and students have a good connection," she says. "I'm learning a lot." But she also has some advice for prospective students. "Try to get as much prior knowledge of the basic tools as you can. If it takes you an extra six months, it's worth it."

Those who do enroll are treated to a carefully crafted learning experi ence that's available at few — if any — other schools in the country. "Too many master's programs simply train students to pass certification examina tions," Heckman says. "But then they won't know all the places that weak nesses can creep into a system at every stage of the system develop

ment life cycle." That's where this sys tems engineering-oriented program stands out. "From the time you think of building it to the time you actually build it. How do you test it? How do you monitor it to make sure it main tains security? These concepts were explicitly built into our program."

To showcase what they've learned and test their knowledge just prior to graduation, students confront and address thorny business IT security scenarios as part of a cap stone course. It's another aspect of the program that sets it apart.

"They’ve put a lot of time and effort into reinventing the program," says Anthony Wilkinson '19 (MSCSE), who completed his degree before Bane redesigned things. "The NCAE designation gives them validity. It says they have good content that’s going to accelerate your career."

15 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE

Faculty Achievements

Diana Chen, PhD, an associate profes sor of integrated engineering, was promoted and awarded tenure in Fall 2022. She is serving as a visiting associ ate scholar at the University of Denver during her sabbatical. Dr. Chen won the Education Sciences 2020 Best Paper Award for her work with first author Dr. Laura Gelles and colleagues, she won the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from Clemson University and stepped in as the interim department chair during the 2021-22 academic year.

Daniel Codd, PhD, an associate profes sor of mechanical engineering, taught Alternative Energy Systems in Spring 2022. He and his colleagues' research was highlighted in the scientific jour nal Nature, spotlighting their solarpowered prototype that converts nearly two-thirds of incoming energy into usable outputs. Dr. Codd had several

new patents issued, including solar conversion technologies and wearable drug delivery infusion pumps.

Garry Frocklage, electronics techni cian, joined USD in 1989 and was the fourth employee hired into the engineering program. He was a significant contributor to the evolu tion of engineering at the University of San Diego and retired in September 2022. We thank him for more than three decades of service and dedica tion to USD and the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering.

Gordon Hoople, PhD, associate profes sor of integrated engineering, was pro moted and awarded tenure in Fall 2022. He was named the 2021-22 Outstand ing Undergraduate Research Mentor Award for junior faculty. Additionally, Dr. Hoople and his fellow ArtBuilds

collective faculty members received a contract from the City of San Diego for Park Social for their large-format in stallation project named Reflexion.

Zella Kahn-Jetter, PhD, PE, professor of practice, was promoted from ad junct full professor in Fall 2022. She was nominated for the 2021 Women of Impact award and is serving as the faculty advisor for the Society of Women Engineers. Dr. Kahn-Jetter has also taken on a leadership role with the Kern Entrepreneurial Engi neering Network (KEEN) and received the Kern Family Foundation KEEN Annual Support Award.

Frank Jacobitz, PhD, chair and profes sor of mechanical engineering, led the successful ABET reaccreditation of the ME program. He published a paper on acceleration properties of turbulent flows with relevance to the geophysical environment and engi neering applications with Kai Schnei der and submitted a paper on xylem filtration for point-of-use water filtra tion in developing countries in collab oration with engineering students and colleagues at USD, Israel and Uganda. Dr. Jacobitz taught the Water in California and Israel: Challenges and Solutions course with a summer trip to Israel, and welcomed our Israeli partners at USD in 2021 and 2022.

Eric Jianng, PhD, professor of computer science, received the USD

16 USD ENGINEERING

Mortar Board Faculty Award and con tinued his research in data mining and machine learning. He submitted two journal papers on imbalanced classifi cation approaches and applications and both have been reviewed and accepted for publication in 2022.

Jae Kim, PhD, chair and associate professor of industrial and systems engineering, stepped into his new role as department chair in Fall 2022.

Jennifer Olsen, PhD, assistant profes sor of computer science, was instru mental in the launch of the new humancomputer interaction concentration now offered within the computer sci ence degree program. She also served as the keynote speaker for the "Reimag ining and redesigning digital learning and teaching in the post-pandemic world" ForBiLD International KickOff-Symposium at the University of Duisburg-Essen in the summer of 2022.

NEWS BRIEFS

All USD Engineering Programs are ABET Accredited

The University of San Diego's BS/BA in Engineering degree program — housed within the Integrated Engineering department at the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering — is the latest program to join the school’s accredited engineering programs, including electrical engineering, industrial and systems engineering and mechanical engineering. With this noteworthy achievement taking effect for the 2021-2022 accreditation cycle criteria, all undergraduate engineering degrees offered at the University of San Diego are now ABET accredited.

Fall 2022 New Hires

The Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering successfully onboarded a cluster hire of four tenure-track faculty members who are working in support of USD's vision as teacher-scholars to develop the next generation of Change making Engineers. We are excited to introduce our newest engineering faculty members: Paulina Diaz-Montiel, PhD, assistant professor of mechanical engineering; Marissa Forbes, PhD, assistant professor of mechanical engi neering; Vahraz Honary, PhD, assistant professor of electrical engineering; and Nadieh Moghadam, PhD, assistant professor of electrical engineering.

Chandra Family Endowed Scholarship

We are extremely grateful to Ravi and Suman Chandra for establishing the Chandra Family Endowed Scholarship to support undergraduate women students studying computer science at USD, with a preference for African-American and/or Latina women. The Chandra family has committed to $125,000 in funding, to be matched by USD’s Horizon Project. Ravi and Suman are the parents of Surya Chandra, a current undergraduate student at USD, and the late Nila Chandra. As a senior VP at Cisco, Ravi recognizes the importance of recruiting diverse women to the field of computer science.

NASA Astronaut Matthew Dominick ’05

Leonard Perry, PhD, associate professor of industrial and systems engineering, continues to serve as the faculty lead and completed the fifth cohort of Indus try Scholars. In his Lean Six Sigma Course (ISyE 335), students collaborated with facilities management to apply concepts learned in their classroom on 10 process-improvement projects. Ultimately, all of the project teams came together to share their best practices to make their processes more efficient.

In his first official visit back to his alma mater, NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick '05 (EE) was the special guest of Toreros in Space, a homecoming event hosted by the ShileyMarcos School of Engineering that featured a meet-and-greet brunch and a live one-on-one interview with Dean Chell Roberts, PhD. Dominick also made a halftime appearance at the homecoming football game with USD President James T. Harris III, DEd.

17 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE
MATTHEW PIECHALAK

Alumni Notes

1994

Derek Kranig (EE) is in his 17th year with IPG Photonics (formerly Inno vative Laser Technologies) in Minne apolis, Minn. as a principal electrical engineer in the Standard Products Group. He and his wife Brianne welcomed their fourth child Kynlee on April 12, 2022. Kynlee joins her older sisters Kendall (6) and Kenzie (4) and big brother Kallum (3) in a very chaotic household!

Undergraduate Engineering and Computer Science Alumni Updates

Diego. Tushaus runs a family business and Julia counsels teenagers at a local Catholic high school. Away from work, they are active in giving back to the community but enjoy a good night out imagining what the '80s must have been like. He currently leads the ShileyMarcos School of Engineering and Computer Science Alumni Council and sits on USD’s Alumni Board as their philanthropy task force chair. After giving in to Julia's wish for a dog, he now has an inseparable bond with his Carolina dog, Gouda.

2003

Joshua Sample (EE) manages a sales firm and real estate investment company in San Jose, Calif. He and his amazing wife, Jodi, provide shuttle services to tae kwon do, swim team and church events for their children Jacob (7) and Abigail (5).

2010

Matt Leigh (ME) continues to work as a freelance music producer in Nashville, Tenn. He recently married his best friend, Katy, on April 2, 2022.

Rachael McKay (ISyE) is a senior manager of Strategy (Global Opera tions, Logistics & Distribution) at Levi Strauss & Co. She was married in Kas, Turkey September 2022.

2011

Josh Lubawy (EE) works as principal engineer at Cue Health. He and his wife Ashley were thrilled to welcome their first child, Isaac John Lubawy, on February 26, 2021.

Emmett Perl (EE) is a process development engineer at Antora Energy, a company working on renewable energy storage using thermal batteries. Antora recently completed its Series A funding round of over $30 million led by Bill Gates' Breakthrough Ener gy Ventures and Chris Sacca's LowerCarbon Capital. He and his fiancé were married in September 2022.

Chase Tushaus (ISyE) and his wife Julia continue to love living in San

2012

Chayne Johnson (ISyE) works as a senior vendor manager at Autodesk. She married a fellow USD grad, Kyle DeNuccio, in August 2019 and currently lives in San Francisco by the beach.

Jenna Rohrbacker (ME) was recently appointed manager of systems engi neering at Northrop Grumman Space Systems. She is a manager of the Path ways Rotational Program, which allows junior level engineers the opportunity to rotate through different engineering disciplines every year. She works out of the Azusa campus and currently resides in Orange, Calif.

2014

Sophie Fallon (ME) works as a director of project development with Onyx Renewables developing large

18 USD ENGINEERING
DEREK KRANIG MATT LEIGH CHASE TUSHAUS

scale solar and battery storage energy projects. She and her fiance (Evan Karkazis, '13 applied mathematics) were married Fall 2022.

Philip Hoskinson (ME) recently broke-ground on his 6th rental property in the greater San Diego area.

2016

Mike Bagian (ME) is pursuing an MBA from Ohio State's Fisher Col lege of Business and is expected to graduate in Spring 2023. He began his career in consulting this summer as a summer associate for McKinsey and Company. Bagian recently married fellow Torero Lauren Riley (class of 2017) and they are looking forward to their future together.

about 7,000 vertical feet of rock climb ing and miles of hiking in between climbing points. The team became the seventh team in the history of the Triple Crown to complete the challenge.

Chris Szczur (ME) currently lives with fellow alum Sean Shrag-Toso '14 (ME) in Encinitas and is working as a senior mechanical engineer at NOVO Engineering in Vista, Calif. In his free time, he typically enjoys the outdoors, surfing, rock climbing or working on projects in the garage. This past year he rebuilt a 1970s Honda CB450 motorcycle, built a small camper van and has started a surfboard-shaping business.

2017

Jasmine Garcia (ISyE) recently celebrated four years at Abbott Vascular. In the last few months, she transitioned from an R&D quality role to an industrial engi neer position within the Business Excellence group supporting divi sional continuous improvement efforts. On the side, she continues to work as a freelance music, wedding and portrait photographer through Jasmine Denisse Photo.

Pierce Salamack (EE) and Christine Keane (ISyE) are engaged to be married at the Immaculata in Spring 2023. Keane is a manufacturing planner II at General Atomics. Salamack is an electrical estimator for Rudolph and Sletten Construc tion and is a licensed Professional Electrical Engineer.

Nicholas (Nick) Watson (ME) graduated with his MSE in Biomedical Engineering from UT Austin in December 2021. He has accepted a remote technical sales position at MKS Instruments/Spectra-Physics and resides in Austin, Texas.

2018

Andrew Booth (EE) works as an electrical engineer III at Inovio Pharmaceuticals. He and his wife were thrilled to welcome their first child, Waverly Drew Booth, on February 16, 2021.

Devyn Bryant (ME) is pursuing an entrepreneurial opportunity with Chick fil-A. He and his wife were overjoyed to welcome their first child, Eva Joy Bryant, on Sept. 12, 2021.

Danford Jooste (EE) and climbing partner Nick Ehman completed a oneday linkup of El Capitan and Half Dome in Yosemite, then decided to go for the Triple Crown — a challenge involving

Mia Kim (CS) works as a solutions engineer for IntelligenceBank Ltd. in Irvine, Calif. She is enjoying the Southern California sun and looks forward to her professional growth every day.

Rachel Lloyd (ISyE) works as an associate consultant at ZS Associates.

Brandon Prussak (EE) works as manager, Operations Program Management, at Viasat. He has since completed his MS in engineering from Purdue University and is completing an MBA from Indiana University Bloomington in 2022.

Michelle Fabian (ME) is currently working as a root cause analysis engi neer at ASML. She has just purchased her first home in Pacific Beach and is now finally trying to learn how to surf.

19 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE
MIKE BAGIAN
BRYANT
DANFORD JOOSTE DEVYN

Sam Lange (ME) started a new job in early 2022 as an unmanned aircraft systems engineer, supporting the Federal Aviation Administration.

2019

Rafael Brennand (ME) works as a technical analyst at Google. He recently moved to the Bay Area for work and is restoring a 1972 MG B in his spare time.

Jeffrey Webb (ME) is an engineering project manager for Hartman Engineering in Visalia, Calif. He and his wife welcomed their first child in April 2022.

2020

Arica Christensen (ISyE) works as a senior data scientist at Booz Allen Hamilton in San Diego. She volun teers for The Animal Pad as a vet ting coordinator, where she adopted her first dog, Theo! Christensen remains involved at USD where she is a chapter advisor for her sorority Gamma Phi Beta.

Matteo Hernandez (ME) is a prod uct manager at iCIMS. He relocated to New York City to work more closely with his team and take in the art and culture.

Brandon DalPorto (CS) is pursuing a master's in computer science engineering at UC San Diego, conducting research on computer security topics such as side effect modeling in Google Chrome's JIT Compiler and Ransomware prevention.

Abdulaziz Ghuloum (EE) is currently completing an MSc degree in materials science and engineering at Queen Mary University of London, focusing on renewable energy, energy storage and nanotechnology.

Alexander Ramirez (EE and Physics) has been working at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory as a graduate engineering intern. He is thrilled to begin his pursuit of a PhD in physics in Fall 2022 at the California Institute of Technology.

Maaron Tesfaye (ME) recently pivot ed into the technology sector after working in the biomedical industry for three years. She currently works as a technical product manager at Branded Research, a software company and emerging leader in the market research and consumer insights space. She and fellow USD alumnus, Nick Bea ('17 real estate), got married this fall in Coronado.

Andrew Jones (EE) works as an electrical design engineer at Boeing. He is pursuing a Master’s degree in Space Operations from EmbryRiddle Aeronautical University.

2021

Patrick Bonner (ME) started graduate school at UC San Diego in Fall 2022. He owns a small business, Pat's Puzzles, where he makes laser cut wooden gifts and other items.

Daniella Walter (ME) is a PhD student in the Mechanical Engi neering Department at UC Santa Barbara. She is an NSF NRT fellow in the Data Driven Biology pro gram, and her research interests are focused within mechanobiology and aiming to understand the ef fects of mechanical forces within biological systems.

20 USD ENGINEERING RAFAEL BRENNAND MAARON TESFAYE
DANIELLA WALTER
MATTEO HERNANDEZ

Graduate Alumni Updates

2018

Abimbola "Boe" Esan (MS cyberse curity engineering) is an instructional support analyst for the Learning Design Center at the University of San Diego.

Richard Rositas (MS Cybersecurity Engineering) is a fellow cybersecu rity engineer at Cubic Corporation, and since graduating has held posi tions as a director, IT and cyberse curity for Emolbi, an Aerospace Defense company, Satellite Com munications Architect for the Naval Intelligence Warfare Center (NIWC), and as lead cybersecurity engineer for the Enterprise Ground Corps, U.S. Space Force. Rositas is a recent addition to the cadre at USD as an adjunct professor. He is one of 1,354 people in the world to have accomplished the pinnacle of ISC2 certifications with the CISSP-ISSMP.

2022

Rania Bota (MS cybersecurity engineering) continues to work in Global Village Language and Cultural Solutions. After graduation from USD, she is applying for new job opportunities and also planning to enroll in a PhD program.

Birindwa Lunja (MS Cybersecurity Engineering) is the CEO of BLD Forensics, LLC, a company that provides forensic services based in California.

To submit Alumni Notes for I 3@USD , which is published every fall, please email elurkis@sandiego.edu.

Making Connections

Connecting to our Gulf Coast Country Alumni

What was challenging for you while you were at USD and how did you manage that challenge?

Stretching myself to meet my professors’ expectations. Everyone at USD expects students to show their best in every assignment, project, etc.

With all the resources that were given to me by the school, I was able to accomplish what was expected of me, and I am thankful to my professors for teaching me how to think creatively and step out of my comfort zone.

— Mae Al Shanafey, ISyE '21, MBA '23, Saudi Arabia

What did you like best about your time at USD?

While there are many things I liked about my time at USD, one of the things I appreciated the most was the sense of community. Even though I was far from my actual hometown, the small class sizes where I got to know my professors and classmates well helped me feel at home. I also liked how USD focused a lot on extracurricular activity. One of my favorite experiences was when we got to go on a Torero Trek that was organized by the Career Development Center at USD to visit Solar Turbines and gain insight into the company’s operations. Additionally, there were activities organized by the Outdoors Adventure Club where we got to go on group hikes and explore San Diego over the weekend. Finally, I like how the university made a conscious effort to be inclusive when promoting religious toler ance by recognizing various religious celebrations.

— Fakhera Al Memari, EE '22, United Arab Emirates

21 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE

2022 Showcase Innovators

Engineering and computer science seniors from USD's Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering gathered with faculty, industry partners, mentors, alumni, family and friends to show off their capstone design projects — innovations that inspire and create solutions to any number of society's pressing challenges.

22 USD ENGINEERING
PHOTOS BY ZACHARY BARRON
23 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE The 2021 first destination survey provides
career
up
six
77.6 percent
80.2% $ 77,108 95.2% ARE EMPLOYED, IN GRADUATE SCHOOL, IN THE MILITARY OR PARTICIPATING IN FULL-TIME VOLUNTEER SERVICE. OF RESPONDENTS REPORTED THAT THEY RECEIVED THEIR FIRST JOB OFFER WITHIN THREE MONTHS OF GRADUATING. Amazon Booz Allen Hamilton Clarity Design, Inc. Dell Technologies G2Ops General Atomics Illumina Lockheed Martin Microsoft Northrop Grumman San Diego Gas & Electric Qualcomm Graduation Outcomes Average Starting Salary Timing of First Job Offer Employment by Industry Sample of Employers Employment Outcomes 38.1% Technology 33.3% Engineering and design 14.2% Health and medical 4.8% Real estate 4.8% Marketing, sales and consumer products 45.9% Average Signing Bonus
a snapshot of
outcomes for 156 undergraduate students at USD's Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering from July 2020 to July 2021. The survey responses and data below were collected
to
months after graduation and reflect
of the class of 2021.

Valedictorian

Matthew Soares '22 (ISyE) received an impressive three job offers prior to graduating from the Shiley-Mar cos School of Engineering's Indus trial and Systems Engineering pro gram at USD. He is now serving as an industrial engineer I at Nordson ASYMTEK in Carlsbad, Calif.

The Graduating Class of 2022

Proud to Present ...

Computer Science

Kanan Boubion is working as a soft ware engineer at Microsoft in Red mond, Wash.

Rylee Bers is at Dell in Round Rock, Texas working as an intern.

Daniel Moran secured a position as an internship systems engineer at Cubic Transportation in San Diego, Calif.

Salina Tekele received four impressive offers and started with Boeing as a systems engineer in Mesa, Ariz. Tekele found the career opportunity through the Society of National Black Engineers (NSBE).

Nicholas Wilder is now a software engineer associate for Lockheed Martin in San Diego, Calif.

Electrical Engineering Gustavo Castaneda Florez received

two job offers and serves as an electri cal engineer at Northrop Grumman.

Narayan Gossai received three job offers and is now working as an RF en gineer at Raytheon in El Segundo, Calif.

Ryan Grazko is working for Booz Al len Hamilton as a systems engineer in San Diego, Calif. Grazko had two job offers and found this position through USD’s engineering fall career fair.

Sydney Lew is serving as an R&D engineer for Abbott in Burlington, Mass. Lew connected with Abbott through the Society of Women Engineer's (SWE) national conference.

Yesenia Ponce Medrano is stationed in San Diego, Calif. for the Naval In formation Warfare Command, Pacific.

Luke Noeldechen is an applications engineer RF for Advantest located in San Diego, Calif. Noeldechen had received three job offers and secured this position through SWE's Evening with Industry career fair.

Meghan Pipitone received two job offers and through an internship is now working as an electrical design engineer for the International Space Station at Honeywell in Glendale, Ariz.

Negahr Rastguiy received three job offers and elected to work as a manu facturing engineer for Clarity Design based in San Diego, Calif.

Kylie Rios was given three job offers and elected to work at Honeywell as a manufacturing engineer in Phoenix, Ariz. Rios secured the position through SWE’s Evening with Industry career fair.

Industrial and Systems Engineering Taylor Brown secured her position

24 USD ENGINEERING
USD engineering and computer science graduates are leading the way in innovation and are prepared to enter critical and emerging technical fields with in a global workforce. We invite you to take a look at some of the exciting careers our Changemakers have embarked upon since graduation.

through USD's engineering fall career fair and is now serving as a cost analyst at Booz Allen Hamilton, San Diego, Calif.

Lauren Hammack is a manufactur ing engineer at Form Factor locally in Carlsbad, Calif.

Matthew Koebel was commissioned as a Naval Officer in the United States Navy.

Integrated Engineering

Quinn Bigane worked an internship for Alvarez and Marsal while at USD and is now an associate for the company in Chicago, Ill.

Rosie Pham received two job offers prior to graduation and is now work ing for Seaspine in Carlsbad, Calif. Pham secured the position at USD’s spring career fair.

Kevin McDonald secured a position through the SWE’s Evening with Indus try career fair as an applications engi neer for Advantest in San Diego, Calif.

Eric McGaw is a sales and operations trainee in Encinitas, Calif. for Flock Freight. McGaw connected with Flock Freight through USD’s engineering fall career fair.

Colton Landaiche is a mechanical design engineer at Primo Energy in San Diego, Calif.

Jane Kim is a pilot for the United States Air Force based in Randolph, Texas.

Austin Peters started pursuing a PhD in engineering education at Purdue University in Fall 2022.

Mechanical Engineering Alex Schmidt serves as a submarine officer for the United States Navy in Washington, D.C.

Nicholas Menz is a field service engi neer for Copia Scientific in Taunton, Mass. Menz worked as an intern with the firm while attending USD.

Colin Hastings received two offers and is now working as a GIS technician

for CAC Americorps for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Gatlinburg, Tenn.

Alder Young is an associate engineer for the Center for Transportation and the Environment in Berkeley, Calif. He also received two job offers before graduating.

Leonard Leau works as a rotational engineer for Boeing in North Charles ton, South Carolina. He secured the position after attending the NSBE national convention.

Rhett Gavson is a mechanical engineer I for BSE Engineering in San Diego, Calif.

Ivan Fernandez received two offers prior to graduating and is now a project engineer intern for Pacific Rim Mechanical here in San Diego, Calif.

Meghan Rotter is a rotational engi neer for Enterprise Products out of Houston, Texas. Rotter interned for the company while at USD.

25 IMAGINE•INNOVATE•INSPIRE

Belanich Engineering Center

5998 Alcalá Park San Diego, CA 92110-2492

SAVE THE DATE

December 8, 2022

Engineering and Computing Expo

March 25, 2023 Twilight Blues April 2023 Research Month

May 12, 2023

Engineering and Computing Showcase

May 27, 2023

Graduate Commencement Ceremony

May 28, 2023

Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony

NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID SAN DIEGO,
PERMIT NO. 365
CA

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