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Women in Science & Engineering
Women in STEM at UTSA
Dr. Fatma Arslan
Senior Lecturer, Electrical and Computer Engineering
"I was amazed by Math in my early ages probably because both my parents were math teachers and loved math. And my amazement by math reached maximum when I see it is applied thru my pre engineering courses in high school."
Research Interests:
- Signal and Image Processing
- Fourier Analysis
- Applied Mathematics
http://engineering.utsa.edu/electrical-computer/team/fatma-arslan/
Dr. JoAnn Browning
Dean, College of Engineering
"I became a civil engineer because I wanted to create great works that solved problems important to our society."
Research Interests
- Structural Engineering
- Earthquake Engineering
- Engineering Materials
- Reinforced Concrete Design and Analysis
http://engineering.utsa.edu/electrical-computer/team/fatma-arslan/
Dr. Valerie Sponsel
Professor, Department of Biology
"What's not to love about plants? They feed, clothe and heal us. I like to watch my students grow as scientists as they discover the complexity and intricacies of plant development."
Research Interests:
- Medicinal plants
- Plant growth and development
- Plant hormones
Dr. Gwen Young
Lecturer II, Department of Environmental Science and Ecology
"I was born and raised in Utah surrounded by public land and natural beauty which in and of itself is inspirational."
"I was inspired by my grandmother – a naturalist if there ever was one – who instilled in me an outdoor spirit and an awe for the cottonwoods that surrounded her house, the spiders that wove webs in her windowsills, the birds we fed when the ground was covered in snow, and the night crawlers we caught and used to catch rainbow trout. "
Research Interests:
- Conservation Biology
- Environmental Systems
- Survey Topics
- Technical Writing
Dr. Susan Dalterio
Senior Lecturer, Department of Biology
Research Interests:
- Drugs and Society
- Introductory Biology
- Pharmacology and Toxicology
Dr. Terri Matiella
Senior Lecturer, Department of Environmental Science and Ecology
Research Interests:
- Environmental Systems
- Survey Topics
Cindy Roberts
Lecturer I, Department of Mathematics
"Once I found out 2 + 2 wasn't 5, I was hooked!"
Research Interests:
- Online Instruction
- Mathematics
- Statistics
- Programming
http://math.utsa.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Resume-Cindy-Roberts-2019.pdf
Carolyn Luna
Lecturer, Department of Mathematics
"Be Power-ful not Power-less."
"Remember that 90% of success in life is attitude - this means viewing difficulties as challenges to be overcome and not obstacles to your achievement."
"Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you are right."
Research Interests:
- Geometric Transformations
- Instruction
Dr. Kelly Nash
Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Research Interests:
- Nanoparticles as Remote Optical Transducers for Biomedical Applications
- Elucidating Combinatorial Effects of Nanoparticles and Electromagnetic Stimulation
- Light (Laser) Assisted Synthesis of Nanoparticles & Applications in Medicine and Energy
- Photoacoustic (Optoacoustic) Characterization and Signatures of Nanomaterials for Biomedical Applications
- All Optical Photoacoustic Spectroscopy and Imaging
- Polymeric Nanoparticles for Immunological Drug Delivery Applications
Dr. Lindsey Macpherson
Assistant Professor, Department of Biology
Research Interests:
- Investigating the sense of taste and the molecules, cells, and circuits involved in chemosensation from the tongue and gut to the brain.
Kirsten Hanson
Assistant Professor, Department of Biology
Research Interests:
- Identification of desirable compounds for liver stage-directed chemoprotection (malaria control) novel assay development
- Chemical biology approaches to interrogating the unique cell biology that supports syncytial growth during the Plasmodium liver stage
Dr. Heather Shipley
Senior Vice Provost of Academic Affairs and Dean of University College, College of Engineering
"I love the field of environmental engineering and the impact it makes in people’s daily lives. My advice for others would be follow and purse your passion whatever STEM field that may be. You should do something that excites you and you want to get up each day and do again."
Research Interests:
- Water quality monitoring
- Fate and Transport of pollutants
- Water Conservation, recycling and Sustainability
- Nanomaterials and composites for water treatment
http://engineering.utsa.edu/civil-environmental/team/heather-shipley-ph-d/
Dr. Krystel K. Castillo
GreenStar Endowed Associate Professor in Energy, Department of Mechanical Engineering
"When I was in high-school I learned that the word “engineer” has its roots in the Latin words ingeniare ("to devise") and ingenium ("cleverness"). I was immediately attracted to this field because I wanted to contribute to the invention of technological solutions."
Research Interests:
- Mathematical modeling of supply chains
- Logistics
- Optimization of large-scale scenarios (meta-heuristics)
- Statistical quality control and reliability.
http://engineering.utsa.edu/mechanical/team/krystel-k-castillo-ph-d/
Dr. Laura Gaviria
Senior Lecturer, Department of Biomedical Engineering
"I’m passionate about Biomedical Engineering because it is the perfect combination between biology and engineering with the purpose of improving quality of life for healthcare professionals and patients."
Research Interests:
- Spatio-temporal delivery of growth factors for vascularized bone tissue regeneration
- Drug delivery and microencapsulation
- Synthetic biomaterials for bone regeneration
- Vascular regeneration in bone healing
http://engineering.utsa.edu/biomedical/team/laura-gaviria-ph-d/
Dr. Gabriela Uribe Romero
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering
Research Interests:
- Macromolecular Bio-Interfaces for cell manipulation
- Biologically inspired drug delivery systems
- Soft biomedical materials
- Stimuli-responsive macromolecules
http://engineering.utsa.edu/guribe/team/gabriela-romero-uribe-phd/
Astrid Cardona
Associate Professor, Department of Biology
Research Interests:
- Immune-modulation during neurocysticercosis
- Immunopathogenesis of neuronal damage in multiple sclerosis
- Neuroinflammation, chemokines and microglial function
Dr. Chiung-Yu Hung
Assistant Professor, Department of Biology
"The defining characteristics of feminine traits vary among societies and cultures. Among some of the stereotypical feminine traits, sensitivity, kindness, helpfulness, devotedness, understanding, cooperativeness, and expressiveness are also important scientist characteristics. We are sensitive so we have strong observation skills and curiosity. We devote to create new knowledge. We also can logically and objectively evaluate data. Women are naturally made to become great scientists."
Research Interests:
- Flow cytometry
- Host-pathogen interaction
- Medical mycology
- Vaccine development against microbial infections
Dr. Kathryn Mayer
Assistant Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy
"The thing I love most about my field is that there is physics in everything. From galaxies to biological systems to atoms, you can study them all using the principles and tools of physics."
Research Interests:
- Biophysics
- Optical techniques
- Plasmonics
- Single molecule studies
Tina Vega
Lecturer II, Department of Mathematics
“I want to empower others to deeply understand and use mathematics, carrying on the legacy of other women mathematician educators that have influenced my life.”
Research Interests:
- Pedagogy
- Mathematics
Dr. Jennifer Smith
Assistant Professor, Department of Environmental Science and Ecology
Research Interests:
- Conservation Biology
- Field Ecology
- Ornithology
- Wildlife Biology
https://www.utsa.edu/ecology/EnvSci/faculty/JenniferSmith.html
Dr. Dina Drozdov
Senior Lecturer, Department of Physics and Astronomy
"At the age of 4, I asked a family friend, deeply concerned, "but what happens when a star dies?" And now, that is exactly what I study in my research."
Research Interests:
- Interstellar medium
- Supernovae
Sue Ann Pemberton-Haugh
Assistant Professor in Practice, College of Architecture, Construction, and Planning
Research Interests:
- Historic Preservation
- Design
- Materials research and technology
Dr. Sedef Doganer
Associate Professor, Department Chair, College of Architecture, Construction, and Planning
Research Interests:
- Innovative, multi-disciplinary research on development in heritage zones that respects the continuity of existing heritage.
Dr. Angela Lombardi
Associate Professor, Historic Preservation Program Coordinator, College of Architecture, Construction, and Planning
Research Interests:
- Management of historic built heritage and archeology within contemporary urban landscapes in an international context.
Dr. Neda Norouzi
Assistant Professor, College of Architecture, Construction, and Planning
“I love the challenge of solving a math problem, the anticipation of waiting for a science project result, and the equanimity of imagination through art. Architecture combines all three and that’s why I chose it”
Research:
- Intergenerational architecture
- Healthcare architecture
- Urban Planning
- Regional planning
Dr. Judy Haschenburger
Professor, Department of Geological Sciences
"My fascination with natural landscapes inspired me to pursue geoscience."
Research Interests:
- Sediment transfers in gravel-bed rivers
- Modeling sediment transport processes
- Channel-floodplain sediment exchanges
- Geomorphology
- Freshwater Ecology
- River Science
Dr. Elizabeth Sooby-Wood
Assistant Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy
“People often say that babies don’t come with manuals. The same can be said for women navigating a career in STEM. A select few have the opportunity to watch their parents or close family succeed in their field, others find great mentors and some of us wander around for a bit until we figure out which road we are supposed to be on—then we find great mentors. Independent of the path, a common theme is support.
I wandered onto my career path. A NASA engineer took the time to mentor me. I played soccer with his niece in college, and he heard that I was majoring in physics. He encouraged me to apply for an internship opportunity that set me on a path I never anticipated, and it led me to the career I have now. Several mentors along the way have impacted my life and career in immeasurable ways, and that is a vital part of the effort to increase female representation in STEM.”
Research Interests:
- Corrosion
- High-temperature materials synthesis
- Materials physics
- Nuclear materials
- Reaction kinetics
- Thermal analysis
https://www.utsa.edu/physics/faculty/ElizabethSoobyWood.html