Daniel Mittleman earned his bachelor’s degree in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his doctorate in physics from the University of California, Berkeley. After two years at Bell Laboratories, he joined the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Rice University. In 2015, Mittleman moved to the School of Engineering at Brown University, where he leads a research group devoted to the science and technology of terahertz radiation. He is a fellow of Optica, the Antennas and Propagation Society, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and recently completed a three-year term as the chair of the International Society for Infrared Millimeter and Terahertz Waves.
Michelle L. Oyen is the inaugural director of the Center for Women’s Health Engineering, based in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. Oyen earned a bachelor’s degree in materials science and engineering, a master’s degree in engineering mechanics, and a doctorate in biophysical sciences. She has researched engineering approaches to pregnancy and women’s health for over 25 years, particularly in methods to prevent, diagnose, and intervene in preterm birth. Current research projects include multi-scale modeling of placenta function, microstructural fracture models for amniotic sac rupture, and physical properties of the healthy and pathological uterus.
Oyen will lead the thematic task force to structure the visioning event scope to ensure a clear focus on engineering research opportunities to transform women’s health.
Anita Shukla is the Elaine I. Savage Associate Professor of Engineering and a member of the Institute for Biology, Engineering, and Medicine at Brown University. Shukla's research focuses on designing responsive and targeted biomaterials for applications in drug delivery and regenerative medicine. She is particularly passionate about using these materials for treating bacterial and fungal infections. Shukla is the recipient of several national and university honors and awards for both her research and teaching, including a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, a National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development Program Award, an Office of Naval Research Director of Research Early Career Grant, and a Brown University Early Career Research Achievement Award and Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. She was also selected as a National Academy of Medicine Emerging Leaders in Health and Medicine Scholar in 2023. Prior to joining Brown in 2013, Shukla was a National Institutes of Health Ruth Kirschstein Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Bioengineering at Rice University. She earned her doctorate in chemical engineering as an NSF Graduate Research Fellow and a master’s degree in chemical engineering practice from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Carnegie Mellon University with majors in chemical engineering and biomedical engineering.
David Ott is a Senior Researcher at VMware Research and co-directs VMware’s Academic Program. VMAP is the external research arm of VMware, bringing together top academic researchers and company technical leaders to better understand areas of disruptive technology, and to explore new areas of innovation. David often works at the intersection of computer systems, security, communications, and software. Prior to joining VMware in 2016, David worked as a Research Director for Intel Labs where he led industry-university research collaborations as part of the University Research Office. David led initiatives in a wide array of topics including 5G, SDN, trusted computing, digital video, FPGAs, security and cryptography, and more. David is a Ph.D. graduate in Computer Science from UNC Chapel Hill.
Saurabh Amin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at MIT with he leads the Resilient Infrastructure Networks Lab (RESIL). He currently serves as Director of Henry L. Pierce Laboratory for Infrastructure Science and Engineering and CEE Undergraduate Officer. He is a member of the Laboratory of Information and Decision Systems (LIDS) and the Operations Research Center (ORC) at MIT. Since joining MIT in 2011, he has pursued research in the design of inspection and control algorithms for infrastructure systems. His work builds on foundations in control theory, game theory, and optimization in networks. His papers have addressed problems in resilient network control, information systems and incentive design, and optimal resource allocation in large-scale infrastructure systems.
By focusing on the domains of highway transportation, electric power distribution, and urban water networks, he develops new theory and design tools for improving the performance of critical infrastructure systems in the face of disruptions, both stochastic and adversarial. Amin received his Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from the University of California Berkeley in 2011. His mentees have secured tenure-track positions at major universities, including Cornell University, Georgia Tech, NYU, USMA West Point, and UT Austin.
Dr. Amy Heintz is the Technical Fellow in Materials Science at Battelle. She drives Battelle’s strategic efforts in materials S&T for National Security, Health, and Environment & Infrastructure markets. She works across Battelle and partner organizations to accelerate the application of transformative materials into systems. She is the steward of Battelle’s independent research and development (IR&D) portfolio. In this role, she is responsible for ensuring the success of Battelle’s research in hypersonics, perfluoroalkylsulfonate (PFAS) remediation, climate resilience, circular plastics economy, and synthetic-biology enabled systems. She is also responsible for ensuring the impact of Battelle’s research enterprise through intellectual property management. During her 18-year tenure at Battelle, she has developed new materials technologies, including HeatCoat™, lightweight sensors, thermal management systems, signature control coatings, cancer diagnostics, and wearable electrodes for neurostimulation. She has 23 issued U.S. patents. Dr. Heintz serves on the Board of Governors and S&T Council for UT-Battelle and the Scientific Advisory Board for Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Dr. Heintz has B.S. in Chemistry from University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and Ph.D. in Polymer Science and Engineering from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Dr. Jacob Beal is a Senior Scientist at Raytheon BBN Technologies, where he leads research on synthetic biology and distributed systems engineering. His work in synthetic biology includes development of standards for representation and communication of biological designs and experiments, signature-based detection of controlled pathogens, methods for calibrated flow cytometry, precision analysis and design of genetic regulatory networks, and engineering of biological information processing devices. Dr. Beal is also the Community Liaison for the SBOL Industrial Consortium and a member of the SBOL Steering Committee.
Cato T. Laurencin, M.D., Ph.D., FREng is the University Professor at the University of Connecticut (one of only two at the school). He is the Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Professor of Chemical Engineering, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at UConn. He serves as the Chief Executive Officer of The Connecticut Convergence Institute for Translation in Regenerative Engineering.
Dr. Laurencin earned a B.S.E. in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University, his Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he was named a Hugh Hampton Young Fellow and his M.D., Magna Cum Laude, from the Harvard Medical School, and received the Robinson Award for Surgery.
Dr. Laurencin is the pioneer of the field of Regenerative Engineering. He is an expert in biomaterials science, stem cell technology and nanotechnology and has worked in the Convergence of these areas of research. In receiving the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP, he was named as the world’s foremost engineer-physician-scientist. In recognition of his breakthrough achievements in Regenerative Engineering worldwide, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers created the Cato T. Laurencin Regenerative Engineering Founder’s Award.
Dr. Laurencin is an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine, and an elected fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. Renowned internationally, he is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, the Indian Academy of Sciences, the Indian National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Sciences, India, the African Academy of Sciences, The World Academy of Sciences, and is he an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
Dr. Laurencin is the first individual in history to receive both the oldest/highest award of the National Academy of Engineering (the Simon Ramo Founder’s Award) and one of the oldest/highest awards of the National Academy of Medicine (the Walsh McDermott Medal).
Dr. Laurencin is the recipient of the Spingarn Medal of the NAACP given for “the highest or noblest achievement by a living African American during the preceding year or years in any honorable field” for his work in regenerative engineering. He is the recipient of the Hoover Medal, America engineering’s principal honor for humanitarian work. Dr. Laurencin is the recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, America’s highest honor for technological achievement, awarded by President Barack Obama in ceremonies at the White House.
Professor Bruce E. Logan is an Evan Pugh University Professor in Engineering, the Stan & Flora Kappe Professor of Environmental Engineering, and Director of the Engineering Energy & Environmental Institute at Penn State University. His current research efforts are in renewable energy production and the development of an energy sustainable water infrastructure, with research topics that include bioelectricity generation using microbial fuel cells, water desalination, heat conversion to electricity using thermal batteries, and green hydrogen gas production using water electrolysis powered by renewable electricity and microbial electrochemical technologies fueled by waste biomass. Logan is also active in energy and climate education where he has written a new book on the subject that highlights daily energy use and carbon emissions spanning scales of individuals to global activities.
Logan is former member and a past chair of the National Science Foundation Advisory Committee on Environmental Research and Education (ACERE), and a former member of the NSF Engineering Advisory Committee. He has mentored over 140 graduate students and post docs and hosted over 40 international visitors to his laboratory. Logan is the author or co-author of several books and over 550 refereed publications (>98,500 citations, h-index=154; Google scholar), and the former founding editor of Environmental Science & Technology Letters. He a member of the US National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the International Water Association (IWA), the Water Environment Federation (WEF), and the Association of Environmental Engineering & Science Professors (AEESP). Logan is a visiting professor at several universities including Tsinghua University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Dalian University of Technology (China), and he has ties to several other universities in Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Belgium. He received his Ph.D. in 1986 from the University of California, Berkeley, and prior to joining Penn State in 1997 he was at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
Mary Juhas most recently served as the Associate Vice President in the Office of Research at The Ohio State University and is a former Program Director in the Engineering Directorate at the National Science Foundation. Juhas directed the development of REACH for Commercialization™, an innovation ecosystem for women faculty, staff, and postdoctoral inventors. Her initiatives focus on catalyzing innovation and the development of interdisciplinary women-led research teams.
Juhas co-chairs the Government Engagement Working Group of the NSF-funded Engineering Research Visioning Alliance, is a fellow of ASM International, and has served as a member of the ABET board and the Advisory Committees of the National Science Foundation’s Engineering Directorate and the SBIR/STTR Subcommittee. Her scholarly interests focused on improving performance of metallic-based structural materials.
Juhas earned a B.A. in Chemistry from Seton Hill University, a master’s degree in Metallurgy & Materials Science from Carnegie Mellon University and a Ph.D. in Materials Science & Engineering from The Ohio State University. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Paris and has previously held research and leadership positions at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Edison Welding Institute.
Jessica Molesworth is the Executive Director of the EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation. For more than 20 years, Mrs. Molesworth has worked with higher education coalitions and institutions with a focus on research, research infrastructure capacity, technology, and economic development. She has extensive knowledge of federally sponsored research programs in areas ranging from defense and energy to health, water quality, and science education curriculum development.
Dr. Mark Schmidt is the Associate Vice Chancellor of Partnerships for North Carolina State University. In his role, he is responsible for NC State’s strategy for engaging with corporate, government, and nonprofit partners including the 75 partnerships on Centennial Campus.
Prior to joining NC State, Mark was the Associate Director of Global University Relations for John Deere culminating a 22-year career at Deere. In this role, he was responsible for directing the global university relations strategy as well as a diverse range of external public and private stakeholder relationships and partnerships. As a recognized thought leader, he also provided internal and external technical leadership on science and technology policy as well as sustainability.
Mark holds over twelve United States and international design and utility patents relating to intelligent and autonomous vehicles and machine systems. Schmidt is the current chair of the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) and a past-chair of UIDP. He is a co-founder and President of the Landscape Stewardship Institute, a supporting nonprofit organization within the University of North Carolina System. He has served as a board director for several nonprofit organizations, professional societies, and advisory boards. Mark serves as an advisory panelist for the USDA Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) and National Science Foundation (NSF) review panelist. He has been quoted and cited in multiple media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Money, Bloomberg, Fox News, U.S. News and World Report, and others.
Mark holds Bachelor of Science degrees in landscape architecture and agronomy from Purdue University, a Master of Science in agronomy from Purdue University, and a Ph.D. in crop science from the University of Illinois. He is an Eagle Scout.