The Department of Industrial Engineering is thrilled to welcome five new faculty members to its esteemed team. These fresh faces bring a wide range of skills and expertise that will undoubtedly enhance the department’s academic offerings and further its commitment to innovation and knowledge advancement in the field.
Haoming Shen, a new assistant professor, holds a Ph.D. in industrial and operations engineering, a Master’s in mathematics, and another Master’s in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He also earned a Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Xi’an Jiaotong University. Shen is deeply involved in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, and his research revolves around data-driven decision-making under uncertainty. His work has applications in power grids, transportation systems, and robotics – all areas of interest to those in the electronics industry. Shen’s research methodology involves leveraging limited data information using tools from stochastic optimization and integer programming.
Rob Curry, an alumnus of the department, returns as an assistant professor. He earned his Ph.D. in industrial engineering from Clemson University, his Master’s in industrial and systems engineering from the University of Florida, and his Bachelor’s in industrial engineering from the U of A. Before rejoining the U of A, he served as an assistant professor in the Mathematics Department at the United States Naval Academy for five years. Curry’s research focuses on modeling and solving large-scale network optimization models with applications in defense settings, sensor networks, and cyber-physical infrastructure settings. His work is particularly relevant to those interested in computers and programming languages.
Alice Squires has been part of the department since May as a teaching professor contributing to the Master of Science in Engineering Management and Operations Management programs. She earned her Ph.D. from Stevens Institute of Technology, holds an MBA from George Mason University, and a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland. Squires has an impressive 40 years of combined experience in industry and academia. She is also the founder of the INCOSE’s Empowering Women Leaders in Systems Engineering Initiative.
Kerry Melton joined the department as a teaching associate professor. He received his Ph.D. in industrial engineering and management from Oklahoma State University. Before joining the U of A, he worked in industry for 25 years at companies like J.B. Hunt Transport, Walmart Inc., and FM Corporation. Melton’s teaching experience spans operations management, forecasting and inventory analytics, supply chain and transportation strategies, engineering economic analysis, engineering statistics, manufacturing processes, and data analytics. His research focuses on improving transportation and logistics systems within supply chain management.
Lastly, David Paulus joins the department as a professor of practice. For nine years, he was a clinical associate professor in engineering and technology management at Washington State University. Before that, he was an associate professor in mechanical engineering at the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith for 10 years. Paulus earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Colorado State University and both an M.S. in industrial engineering and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Tennessee.
These five new faculty members bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Department of Industrial Engineering. Their diverse backgrounds and research interests will undoubtedly enrich the department’s academic offerings and provide valuable insights for students interested in electronics, computers, programming languages, and coding.