The program mentors listed below will provide mentees with personalized career coaching, professional development modules, and a peer-to-peer Community of Practice. ASEE staff will collaborate with the Advisory Committee to optimize matchings between mentors and mentees.

Sreyoshi Bhaduri, Ph.D., researches at the intersection of people, the future of work, and emerging technology. Sreyoshi leverages AI for mixed-methods research related to people at work, ensuring that organizations intentionally center the human experience. Sreyoshi currently works at Amazon. She has previously led Global People Research at McGraw Hill – the learning sciences company. At and outside of work, Sreyoshi is a speaker passionate about demystifying AI and improving belonging in Engineering. She serves on the Advisory Board for the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech and was elected a Senator at the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). She has been honored as an Emerging Leader in Tech (ELiTE) and an Engaged Advocate by the Society of Women Engineers, and has been inducted to the Yale Bouchet Honor Society. In a gist, Sreyoshi is a maker of lists and itineraries, who loves responsible technology, and dabbles in writing. Learn more about her impact at – www.ThatStatsGirl.com

Indira Chatterjee, Ph.D., has been with the University of Nevada, Reno since 1988. She is a Professor of Electrical and Biomedical Engineering, and has served as Associate Dean of Engineering since 2010. Currently, Dr. Chatterjee oversees undergraduate and graduate education, including recruitment, retention and advising. She has won many awards including Foundation Professor, Tibbitts University Distinguished Teacher Award, the Hoeper Award for Excellence in Teaching and Advising, Society of Women Engineers Region A Service Award, the IEEE Student Section Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Nevada Women’s Fund “Women of Achievement” award and the Silver Compass Award for Extraordinary Commitment to Students. She has had over 7 million research funding in Bioelectromagnetics and engineering education. Dr. Chatterjee has served as a research mentor to postdoctoral fellows and many graduate students. She has been faculty advisor to the University of Nevada, Reno collegiate section of the Society of Women Engineers for the past 34 years.

Kelly J. Cross, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering  at Georgia Tech and Emory University, is a data-informed, transformational mission-focused culturally responsive practitioner, researcher, and educational leader. She is a member ASEE’s Leadership Virtual Community of Practice (LVCP) and has conducted online and in-person workshops on managing personal bias in STEM, and mitigating racialized power and privilege.  Her research includes diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM; intersectionality; teamwork and communication skills; assessment; and identity construction.  Dr. Cross received a NSF CAREER award to train STEM Faculty on implementing DEI concepts; awarded the national ITM Faculty Mentor of the Year; was named one of “1,000 Inspiring Black Scientists in America” by Cell Mentor; has delivered multiple distinguished invited lectures; and was lead Co-Editor of the book Queering Stem Culture in US Higher Education (2022). Dr. Cross’ complimentary professional activities promote inclusive excellence through collaboration.

Isabel Escobar, Ph.D., is the Chellgren Chair Endow Professor at the University of Kentucky. She teaches in the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering. Escobar holds a Ph.D degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, where she was an EPA STAR Fellow. Escobar joined the University of Kentucky in August of 2015, after spending fifteen years at The University of Toledo. She is Associate Editor of Environmental Progress and Sustainable Energy Journal. Isabel Escobar and her research group have published nearly 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals/book chapters and have made over 200 presentations at national/international conferences. In May of 2023, the North American Membrane Society made her a Fellow of the Society both for her commitment to the Society as well as for her contributions to membrane science and technology. Escobar is the Chair of the Governing Board of the Association for Women In Science (AWIS).

Oceana P. Francis, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Sea Grant Program at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa (UHM). Her research focuses on building resilient urban communities and infrastructure systems from hydrodynamic hazards. She is a licensed civil engineer in both Alaska and Hawaii. Some of her professional service currently includes serving as editor for American Meteorological Society’s Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology, faculty advisor for the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) student chapter, and founder and president of the Society of Native Hawaiian Engineers (SNHE). She received her Ph.D. from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and is a former scholar with the Sloan Indigenous Graduate Partnership.

Sonia Garcia, Ph.D., is currently the Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the University of Georgia’s College of Engineering. Dr. Garcia joined the University of Georgia College of Engineering in January 2022 as the College’s first Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. In this new position, she is responsible for advancing mentoring and support programs, with an emphasis on programs that support underrepresented students. Dr. Garcia has held several positions at Texas A&M University, including Senior Director of Access and Inclusion at the College of Engineering, Assistant Director at May Business School, and finally, Director of Recruitment for the College of Geosciences. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts at Boston in Political Science, a master’s degree from the University of Rhode Island in College Student Personnel, and a doctoral degree from Michigan State University in Higher Educational and Administration with cognates in Sociology and Labor Industrial Relations.

Rose Hu, Ph.D., is the Associate Dean for Research for the College of Engineering and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Utah State University. She also directs Communications Network Innovation Lab at Utah State University. Besides decades of academia research experience, she has more than 10 years industrial R&D experience with Nortel, Blackberry, and Intel, participating in industrial 4G/5G technology development and standardization. She is a Fellow of IEEE, National Institute of Standards and Technology Communication Technology Laboratory Innovator 2020, IEEE Communications Society (ComSoc) Distinguished Lecturer, IEEE Vehicular Technology Society Distinguished Lecturer.  She is also a member of ASEE Engineering Research Council board of directors, IEEE ComSoc Board of Governors. Her current research interests include wireless communications system and network design, Internet of Things, AI/ML, and wireless security. She has published 5 books, over 300 papers in leading IEEE journals and conferences, and holds 30 patents.

Brandi P. Jones, Ed.D., is Research Professor at the University of Southern California. She is a national thought leader in STEM diversity, equity, and inclusion. Her research centers on the experiences of minoritized and marginalized communities in science and engineering. In her previous role as Vice Dean for Diversity and Strategic Initiatives and Professor of Engineering Education at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, Dr. Jones provided strategic leadership for equity, diversity, inclusion, and access initiatives. Her equity-minded approach to leading, teaching, and training has achieved exciting results with education, corporate, and community leaders. For two decades, she has led STEM education efforts at top institutions including California Institute of Technology and Princeton University.

Tsu-Jae King Liu, Ph.D.  has been a faculty instructor at UC Berkeley in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences since 1996.  She was named Dean of the College of Engineering in July 2018. Dean Liu has 550 publications and 100 patents to her name.  She is a fellow of IEEE and the National Academy of Inventors, as well as an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering. Dean Liu serves on the Board of Directors for Intel and MaxLinear. Her research contributions include the DARPA Significant Technical Achievement Award for the development of the FinFET (used in all leading-edge computer chips today).  Dean Liu has been asked to serve on two committees serving the White House and the Chips and Science Act.  She earned her BS, MS, and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Stanford University. 

Janie McClurkin Moore, Ph.D. is an assistant professor in the biological and agricultural engineering department at Texas A&M University, where she leads the successful, externally funded, Post-Harvest Engineering and Education (PHEED) research program focused on post-harvest engineering needs of the food and agricultural industries. Throughout her career, Dr. Moore has led a number of efforts to improve diversity and inclusion in agricultural and biological engineering. She has mentored undergraduate summer researchers from underrepresented minority groups from North Carolina A&T State University and Prairie View A&M University. Dr. Moore pioneered the first ASABE networking group dedicated to black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC). She is the recipient of ASABE’s inaugural Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) award for her constant efforts and great accomplishments in inclusion, diversity, equity, and access.

Andrea M. Ogilvie, Ph.D., P.E., serves as Assistant Dean for Student Success and Assistant Professor of Instruction in the College of Engineering at Texas A&M University.  Dr. Ogilvie is an engineering education researcher and practitioner who draws on decades of experience in engineering and higher education.  Her research interests center on higher education policy issues, workforce development, and broadening participation in STEM.  Dr. Ogilvie holds multiple degrees in engineering and public affairs from The University of Texas at Austin (BS Civil Engineering, Master of Public Affairs) and Virginia Tech (MS Industrial and Systems Engineering, PhD Engineering Education).

Araceli Martinez Ortiz, Ph.D. is the Microsoft President’s Endowed Professor of Engineering Education at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). She directs the graduate engineering education programs in the College of Engineering and Integrated Design and holds a dual appointment with the College of Education and Human Development. As an engineer and a scholar in engineering education, Dr. Martinez Ortiz leads large-scale national intervention and research efforts that explore how integrated, engineering education can most effectively be designed and delivered and how women and other historically underrepresented students can navigate educational and societal challenges to develop motivation and strengthen their identity to study and succeed in engineering.  Araceli is also the Executive Director of the Dr. Manuel P. Berriozábal Prefreshman Engineering Program at UTSA, a highly respected K-12 STEM academic program serving thousands of students in the San Antonio Community since 1979.

Fay Cobb Payton, Ph.D., is a Professor of Information Systems/Technology at North Carolina State University in the College of Management. She is an editor for Health Systems, and an Associate Editor for Decision Sciences, DATABSE and Information Technology & People journals. She was named the 2016 North Carolina Technology Association Tech Educator of the Year. Dr. Payton was selected to participate in the 2016 White House Summit on the United State of Women. Dr. Payton received the 2013 National Coalition of Women in Information Technology (NCWIT) Undergraduate Mentoring Award. She is a member of the NC State University Women in Science and Engineering Advisory, and collaborates with several interdisciplinary groups at the institution. Dr. Payton has appeared on CBS Radio Network, Black Data Processing Association iRadio, Sunrise America, Financial Review, National Public Radio and others to discuss her research including health IT, tech leadership, diversity and inclusion in the technology industry, and under-representation of under-represented groups in STEM.

Nicole Pitterson, Ph.D., (she/her/hers) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia. She holds background degrees in Electrical and Electronics Engineering (BS, University of Technology, Jamaica), Manufacturing Engineering (MS, Western Illinois University) and Engineering Education (Ph.D., Purdue University). As leader of the Engineering Learning Identity and Transfer in Education (ELITE) research group, she advises a diverse group of researchers exploring issues associated with how engineering learning environments are designed to meet the needs of diverse populations, the role of language in connecting technical content with students’ backgrounds and prior experiences, as well as how engagement with disciplinary knowledge transforms students’ identity and sense of belonging. Dr. Pitterson serves as Director for Education Research Methods Division of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), and is also an engaged member in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) and the Multidisciplinary Engineering divisions.  She serves as a mentor in ASEE’s Archival Publication Authors for Engineering Educators Program.

Gisella Lamas Samanamud, Ph.D., is a Brazilian/Peruvian environmental engineer. She works as a Lecturer in Chemical Engineering at the University of Kentucky – Paducah. She is a visiting scholar at the graduate school of UNIFEI – Brazil. Her technical research experience focuses on water and wastewater treatment, statistical methods and biofilms applied to engineering. She also studies the application of SoTL to the chemical engineering curriculum. She is passionate about DEIB, outreach opportunities and mentoring. She has been awarded the 2022 Engaged advocate award. She has completed the Global Diplomacy Initiative course from UNITAR and she is a STEM PEER academy fellow 2023.

Denise R. Simmons, Ph.D., P.E. F.ASEE, PMP, LEED-AP, is the Associate Dean for Workforce Development in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering and a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering at the University of Florida. She is a uniquely original and accomplished scholar who pursues research at the intersection of engineering education, civil engineering workforce development, and ecosystems required to equip and sustain an inclusive, diverse, equitable, and healthy workforce. Her research is inspired by more than 10 years as a practicing engineer where she held numerous leadership positions and her nearly 20-year academic career with positions at for-profit, community, minority serving, and research-intensive institutions. Supported by approximately $8.7M in federal funding and with results disseminated across more than 100 refereed publications, she has made high-impact contributions to expanding the engineering workforce through the study of the professional preparation of engineers and the culture of engineering organizations. Dr. Simmons has mentored nearly 100 researchers at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral level. As director of the Simmons Research Lab, current interests include competency development via education and training; interactions between humans and technology; and conceptualization of leadership in engineering.

Idalis Villanueva Alarcón, Ph.D., is the Associate Chair for Research and Graduate Studies and Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering Education in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering at the University of Florida. She has led nationwide studies in hidden curriculum and multi-modal approaches in engineering education. In 2017, she received the NSF CAREER award for her work on hidden curriculum and in 2019, was awarded the White House Office of Science, Technology, and Policy Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) Award.  She has a B.S. degree is in Chemical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez and a M.S. and Ph.D. degree in Chemical and Biological Engineering from the University of Colorado-Boulder. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institutes of Health in Analytical Cell Biology in Bethesda, Maryland and worked as a lecturer for 2 years before transitioning to engineering education.

Bevlee A. Watford, Ph.D., is a Professor of Engineering Education, Associate Dean for Equity and Engagement, and the Founding Executive Director of the Center for the Enhancement of Engineering Diversity (CEED) for the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech. She has secured more than $17 million dollars in funding and support for CEED and other undergraduate initiatives. Her research activities have focused on the recruitment and retention of students in engineering, with a particular emphasis on under-represented students. CEED has implemented nationally recognized programs that have enhanced the success of all students. These include freshmen peer mentoring, a summer bridge for incoming freshman and residential living-learning communities that house nearly 600 freshman engineering students. In 2008, Dr. Watford received the WEPAN Founders Award in recognition of her service to WEPAN and her efforts to increase the participation of women in the engineering profession.  In 2023, she was nominated by President Biden to serve on the National Science Board. An active member of ASEE since 1986, Bevlee A. Watford has served the organization in several capacities. She chaired the Diversity Task Force that resulted in the creation of the ASEE Diversity Strategic Plan as well as the formation of the ASEE Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. She received her BS in Mining Engineering, and her MS and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research from Virginia Tech.

Priyantha Wijesinghe, Ph.D., is a Senior Lecturer in Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of Curricular Enrichment at the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences (CEMS) at the University of Vermont (UVM). She is a structural engineer and architect by education and an engineering education and assessment expert. Dr. Wijesinghe has been teaching sophomore to graduate-level civil and structural engineering courses since 2011 at UVM. She is also an active member of the Contemplative Practices Learning Community of the University’s Center for Teaching and Learning. As a female faculty of color, Dr. Wijesinghe is committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in CEMS and beyond. She also believes in the power of a growth mindset.