UC DAVIS COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING - Key Persons
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- Director, Student Startup Center
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- Social Media and Web Specialist / Marketing and Communications
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- Research & Graduate Studies Development Coordinator / Research and Graduate Studies
- Research & Graduate Studies Development Coordinator, Dean 's Office
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- External Relations Manager / Development and External Relations
Amit Kanvinde is responsible for the overall area of academic personnel and planning. In this role, he oversees academic merits and promotions for the College of Engineering. He is also responsible for new appointments and reappointments of academic personnel. Finally, he oversees planning and search processes for faculty hiring.
Kanvinde joined UC Davis in 2004 after earning his M.S. and Ph.D. from Stanford University. He led the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering as chair from 2015-2020 during a period of significant faculty hiring that resulted in greater diversity. He currently serves on the college's Faculty Executive Committee.
Kanvinde's research focuses on the seismic response of steel buildings, and recent projects have developed methods to assess the fracture risk of existing buildings along with technologies for highly deformable structural connections for new buildings. He is the author or co-author of more than 70 peer-reviewed articles and is well-recognized for his research. Kanvinde has been awarded the American Society of Civil Engineers' Norman Medal (2008), Walter Huber Research Prize (2016) and State of the Art of Civil Engineering Award (2018), as well as the American Institute of Steel Construction's Special Achievement (2017) and T.R. Higgins Lectureship (2022) awards. In 2017, Kanvinde was selected by the National Academy of Engineering as one of "the nation's brightest young engineers" to participate in their Frontiers of Engineering program.
Education and Degree(s)
Ph.D. (2004), MS (2000), Stanford University
Job Titles:
- Information Technology
- Systems Administrator / Information Technology
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- Distance Learning Coordinator / Research and Graduate Studies
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- Member of Awards Committee
- Civil and Environmental
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- Senior Editor, CEE / UC Pavement Research Center
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- Assistant Director of Communications and Culture / Marketing and Communications
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- Research & Development Engineer / Center for Nano - Micro Manufacturing
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- Associate Dean
- Research and Graduate Studies
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- Clinical Counselor / Student Health and Counseling Services
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- International Academic Advisor
Christina has been advising students at UC Davis in various programs for many years, ten of those years were with the Global Learning Center, Study Abroad office. She has also worked with international exchange students and with Services of International Students and Scholars (SISS) at UC Davis. Always interested in how the world works, Christina's academic studies are largely interdisciplinary with a focus on international relations and languages. She enjoys learning from her interlocuters' unique experiences. As a transplant to California, Christina remains constantly enamored with the cultural diversity and rich learning opportunities that the Davis area offers. She recognizes the immense contributions international students bring to the Davis community and welcomes all students to reach out for support with academic and cultural questions.
Education and Degree(s)
Ph.D., Political Science, Johns Hopkins University
Master of Arts, Latin American Studies, University of Texas at Austin
Bachelor of Arts, Government, University of Texas at Austin
UC Davis College of Engineering
Job Titles:
- College of Engineering As an Academic Advisor
Cindy Alvarenga recently joined the College of Engineering as an academic advisor in the College of Engineering Undergraduate Office.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Committee
- Co - Chair / Associate Professor of Teaching, Civil & Environmental
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- College of Engineering As the Director of Corporate Relations and Development
Daryl Fitzgerald joined the College of Engineering as the director of corporate relations and development in July. His role focuses on forging connections that create philanthropic opportunities and align the strategic priorities of the college with the interests and goals of corporate partners and other donors. Daryl brings over 15 years of experience from prior roles at Chico State's College of Engineering, Fresno State's College of Engineering and UC Merced.
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- Facilities Manager / Facilities and Capital Planning
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- Research & Development Engineer / Engineering Student Design Center
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- Administrator / Student Startup Center
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- Administrator of the Student Startup Center
Dawn Strickland is the administrator of the Student Startup Center, based in the College of Engineering, and is responsible for the center's operations, marketing and outreach. She also serves as lecturer for "Launching a Company" (ENG 080), a class in which students use modern startup-building methods to launch their own startups.
Job Titles:
- Application Developer / Information Technology
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- Dean
- Administrative Head of the College of Engineering and Oversees
- Ex - Officio / Engineering Dean
Dean Richard L. Corsi serves as the administrative head of the College of Engineering and oversees all its teaching, research and service activities, personnel, facilities and funding resources.
Job Titles:
- Executive Assistant Dean / Administration and Finance
Elissa Roeser leads staff for financial and administration and oversees financial operations, IT, HR and decision support with a focus on policy, budget models, resource allocation, capital budgets, organizational structure and liaison for campuswide administrative units (accounting, HR, budget, IT, sponsored programs and contracts and grants).
Job Titles:
- Associate Dean and Budget Support Assistant / Research and Graduate Studies / Dean
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- Information Technology
- Web Developer / Information Technology
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- Systems Administrator / Information Technology
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- Development and External Relations
- Director of Alumni Relations and Network Strategy / Development and External Relations
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- Assistant Director of Development / Development and External Relations
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- Director of Strategic Analysis and Decision Support / Administration and Finance
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- Associate Director, Engineering Research Development and Center for Neuroengineering & Medicine / Research and Graduate Studies
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- Assistant Director of Development / Development and External Relations
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- Assistant Professor of Teaching, Chemical
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- Student Advising Assistant
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- Purchasing / AP Specialist / Purchasing and Accounts Payable
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- Assistant Director of Advising & Policy
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- Member of Awards Committee
- Ex Officio
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- Master 's Thesis Excellence Award
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- Assistant Professor of Teaching, Biological and Agricultural
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- Member of Awards Committee
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- Content Specialist / Marketing and Communications
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- Finance Officer, AHMCT Research Center, Mechanical and Aerospace
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- Purchasing / AP Specialist / Purchasing and Accounts Payable
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- Unit IT Lead, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering / Information Technology
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- Manager, Engineering Student Design Center / Engineering Student Design Center
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- Systems Administrator / Information Technology
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- Associate Professional Researcher at UC Davis' Air Quality Research Center
Bein is an associate professional researcher at UC Davis' Air Quality Research Center. His work is helping us better understand the impacts of wildfire smoke on air quality and health. When a megafire takes hold in California, he loads up his mobile research lab and heads to the smoke, entering what can be at times the planet's worst air quality, so he can sample it.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director of Development / Development and External Relations
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- Lecturer, Computer Science
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- Graduate Program Coordinator, Civil and Environmental
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- Assistant Dean / Development and External Relations
Leigh Ann Hartman is responsible for building and fostering relationships with alumni and donors in an effort to strengthen the college's network, increase public awareness of its programs, and secure private financial support in order to meet its goals.
Job Titles:
- Director of Advising and Policy for the College
Letia currently serves as the Director of Advising and Policy for the College of Engineering. Prior to this, Letia served as the Assistant Director of International Academic Advising in the College of Letters and Science, as well as one of the International Academic Advisors. Letia also previously served as the Undergraduate Program Coordinator in the Department of Mathematics.
Education and Degree(s)
Bachelor of Arts, Communication and Professional Writing, Southern New Hampshire University
Master of Arts, Higher Education Leadership and Policy Studies, California State University - Sacramento
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director of Development / Development and External Relations
Meghan is committed to advising students on how to achieve and advance their educational engineering goals. She aims to support and advocate for students, as well as connect them to resources to best empower and prepare them all for success. Has held various roles in the realm of higher education with well over a decade of experience. Prior to joining the UC Davis Aggie community, she worked as the Assistant Director of Fellowship Advising and Study Abroad at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, CA.
Education and Degree(s)
B.A. Global Studies, UC Santa Barbara
M.S. Higher Education Administration, National University
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Certificate, Cornell University
Job Titles:
- Director of Budget and Shared Services Purchasing / Purchasing and Accounts Payable
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- Professor, Civil and Environmental
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- Business Technical Support Analyst / Information Technology
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- Member of Awards Committee
- Mechanical and Aerospace
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- Director of Communications and Strategic Priorities / Marketing and Communications
- Interim Director of Communications and Culture, Dean 's Office
- Marketing and Communications
Molly Bechtel provides vision, direction and strategic leadership for the college's internal and external communications, marketing and multimedia, events and organizational culture initiatives.
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- IT Service Desk Lead / Information Technology
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- Human Resources Analyst
- Administration and Finance
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- Purchasing / AP Specialist / Purchasing and Accounts Payable
- Purchasing and Accounts Payable
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- Research Administrator / Center for Nano - Micro Manufacturing
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- Human Resources Business Partner / Administration and Finance
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- Purchasing and AP Team Lead / Purchasing and Accounts Payable
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- Senior Research Administrator / Research Administration
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- Events Manager / Marketing and Communications
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- Development and External Relations
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- Associate Dean / Research
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- Executive Associate Dean and Associate Dean
Ralph Aldredge provides leadership and oversight for undergraduate enrollment management, academic advising, retention programs, the Student Startup Center and ABET degree-program accreditation, as well as oversees renovations, new construction and safety initiatives.
Job Titles:
- Unit IT Lead, Civil and Environmental Engineering / Information Technology
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- Member of Awards Committee
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- Manager, Center for Nano - MicroManufacturing / Center for Nano - Micro Manufacturing
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- Co - Chair
- Member of Awards Committee
- Academic Personnel Analyst
- Chairman of the Committee
- Staff Advisor / Engineering Dean
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- Faculty Advisor to the Dean for Diversity and Inclusion / Dean
- Professor
Sanjeevi Sivasankar, professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, has been appointed the College of Engineering's faculty advisor to the dean for diversity and inclusion, where he will champion initiatives that promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and support Dean Richard Corsi in attracting and retaining a diverse and inclusive college community.
Sara Mitchell recently joined the college as the executive assistant to the chair and academic personnel for the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor of Teaching, Computer Science
Job Titles:
- College of Engineering As the Coordinator for Strategic Initiatives
Sharon Knox recently joined the College of Engineering as the coordinator for strategic initiatives in the Dean's Office. In this role, Sharon will help coordinate special projects related to the college's strategic research and educational visioning processes and implementation of those visions thereafter.
Job Titles:
- Member of Awards Committee
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- Research & Development Engineer / Center for Nano - Micro Manufacturing
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- Executive Director of Information Technology / Information Technology
Steve Pigg provides leadership and oversight for information technology and cybersecurity services and serves as liaison to central campus and the university system for IT needs.
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- Director of Safety / Facilities and Capital Planning
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- Assistant Project Scientist, Biomedical
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- Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace
Bio
Vanessa has served in various academic advising capacities at UC Davis, she is currently working as one of the LEADR Program Advisors in the College of Engineering. In this role she provides holistic academic advising and mentorship to students in the program. She is committed to helping students achieve their highest potential.
Education and Degree(s)
Vanessa holds a B.A. degree from Saint Mary's College (CA) in Sociology with a Spanish Minor and an M.A. in Higher Education Leadership from California State University, Sacramento.
Job Titles:
- Research and Development Engineer
- Student Design Center
Job Titles:
- Member of Awards Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of Awards Committee
- Materials Science and
- Professor and Chair, Materials Science and
Job Titles:
- Director of Undergraduate Retention Programs, Dean 's Office