Yale University Graduate School Information Session
<p> On Thursday, December 4<sup>th</sup>, Professor Michelle Nearon, of Yale University, will lead a graduate school information session on the campus of Old Dominion University, from 12:20-1:20 PM, in the Oceanography and Physics Building, Room 100. Professor Nearon is the Assistant Dean and Director of The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences <em>and</em> The Office for Diversity and Equal Opportunity.</p> <p> </p> <p> Born and raised in Queens, N.Y., Nearon earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees in aerospace engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brooklyn Polytechnic University, respectively. During her undergraduate years, she held summer internship positions at Grumman Aerospace Corporation and Battelle Columbus Laboratories. After completing her master’s degree, she devoted approximately eight years to both the aerospace and automotive industries, beginning as a research engineer and ultimately becoming a general manager. In 1991 she was featured in the November issue of Ebony Magazine in an article titled “Thirty Young Leaders of the Future.”</p> <p> </p> <p> Nearon earned her Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Stony Brook University in 2000, with a thesis titled “Single-Point Concentration Statistics for a Reacting Mixing Layer.” She remained at Stony Brook as a Turner Postdoctoral Fellow, studying turbulence modeling. She subsequently held an assistant professorship in the University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering while simultaneously serving as the Director of Recruitment and Diversification for the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Nearon taught courses in fluid mechanics, engineering design methodology and optimization, particle and rigid body mechanics and technical communication for mechanical engineers.</p> <p> </p> <p> In her administrative capacity at Stony Brook, Nearon was actively involved in recruitment, retention, outreach and diversification efforts. Her responsibilities included forming long-term relationships with high schools, especially magnet schools for high-achieving high school students and developing collaborative industrial and educational partnerships. Nearon participated in programs sponsored by Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) and Women for Women (a high school science mentoring network group) and served as a facilitator for several Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP) projects. STEP was designed to encourage and prepare underrepresented and low-income secondary school students for entry into math, science and engineering fields. In 2005 she began the “College of Engineering and Applied Sciences Summer Research Institute” to provide high-achieving high school sophomores and juniors with practical research experience. She was a faculty advisor and mentor to prospective graduate students, graduate students, WISE and STEP students (freshmen who participated in STEP). She included graduate students in several outreach and retention programs, enhancing their professional development.</p> <p> </p> <p> Nearon served as a Senior Research Scientist for a five-year National Science Foundation (NSF) Math, Science, and Technology Partnership (MSTP) grant to improve the curriculum at the 10 lowest-performing middle school districts in Long Island, New York. She has authored and co-authored several grant proposals in the area of engineering education reform, with an emphasis on developing inquiry-based, interdisciplinary curricula within a research culture and incorporating technical communication skills into engineering curricula without diminishing core content.</p> <p> </p> <p> Please RSVP to attend Professor Nearon’s graduate school information session at <a href="mailto:diversity-rsvp@odu.edu">diversity-rsvp@odu.edu</a> by Monday, December 1<sup>st</sup>. </p>
M.Nearon Event Flyer 120414.jpg (272.2 KB)
Posted By: SCOTT HARRISON
Date: Tue Oct 28 13:54:17 EDT 2014