2025 Deans Report

DEAN'S REPORT

WE ARE ACCELERATING EXCELLENCE

Accelerating Excellence: Breaking Ground on a Bold Future

GIVE NOW:

Dear Colleagues, The groundbreaking ceremony of Russell L. Agrusa Hall was a transformative moment in the history of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Last fall, elected officials traveled to our campus to celebrate the development of a building that will reshape the future of engineering and computing at UB. This new student-centered facility will be a hub where bold ideas take shape and where students gain the skills to become leaders in industry and academia.

Agrusa Hall is an embodiment of the immense growth within our school across all areas of our operation, which would not be possible without you. Your support has empowered our students, enabled us to attract top talent, and deepened our impact on the world. Agrusa Hall is not just a structure—it is a symbol of our collective commitment to excellence.

Thank you for being an essential part of this exciting chapter in our school’s history.

Together, we are building more than a school—we are building the future. Join us on this journey by supporting this transformational project with a donation of any amount.

Sincerely,

Kemper Lewis, PhD, MBA Dean, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

31

$113M

BY U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT

2024 FISCAL YEAR

RANKED NO.

AMONG PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN 2025

IN ANNUAL RESEARCH AND RISING

DEGREES AWARDED 2024 ACADEMIC YEAR GRADUATE

1,569 MASTER’S 87 PhD 1,043 UNDERGRADUATE

ENROLLMENT

DEGREE PROGRAMS

37 15

GRADUATE PROGRAMS UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS

WE WELCOME STUDENTS FROM

GRADUATE STUDENTS

79

UNDERGRADUATES

TO OUR INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

2025 ACADEMIC YEAR

2,981

4,896

COUNTRIES ACROSS THE GLOBE

New National Initiatives UB to Launch Department of AI and Society Our bold, new department will forge collaborations across disciplines in the sciences and humanities to tackle the world’s most pressing challenges using artificial intelligence.

Shared between our School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and UB’s College of Arts and Sciences, our department will empower students to explore how AI can accelerate meaningful change in more than half a dozen fields, including geography, health, public policy, communication and the arts.

ENROLLMENT SURGES IN AI MASTER’S PROGRAM

UB received $5 million from New York to support the formation of the department, continuing the state’s investment in UB as a pioneer in AI education and research. Chaired

by Professor Atri Rudra, this new department will reinforce our legacy of innovation in AI that spans nearly 50 years.

With AI at the forefront of public consciousness, more UB students than ever are studying the subject through our Engineering Science MS with a focus in AI, launched in 2020. Within five years, the program has grown from five to nearly 100 students.

Accelerating Artificial Intelligence Supercomputer, Supercharged Discovery EMPIRE AI POWERS ON SUPERCOMPUTING CENTER, AMONG WORLD’S MOST POWERFUL

Strengthening the Clean Energy Economy UB LAUNCHES CENTER FOR ACCELERATED INNOVATION THROUGH MATERIALS

The processing power of Empire AI, New York’s $400 million AI-research consortium, has begun accelerating tomorrow’s breakthroughs.

Its first stage, named “Alpha,” houses a GPU supercluster at UB that is among the most powerful computers in the world. Our faculty are using the supercomputing center to develop large language models that use AI to improve mental health care, help children with speech and language challenges, and more.

The new research center will tap into UB’s expertise in artificial intelligence, materials science and advanced manufacturing to propel New York’s transition to a clean energy economy.

Supported by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and championed by U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, the center will help develop infrastructure for hydrogen fuel, build energy-efficient microelectronics, and produce next-generation solar panels.

35 New Faculty Join Our Growing Team CIVIL, STRUCTURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING

Jonathan Boualavong Mary Canty

Assistant Professor of Teaching RESEARCH AREAS: Prevention of orthopedic implant infections

Filip Stefanovic Assistant Professor

RESEARCH AREAS: Computational neurorehabilitation; computer-assisted health care

Jungeun Won

Assistant Professor of Research RESEARCH AREAS: Developing biomedical optical imaging technologies

Lin Zhang

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Smart electronics for biomedical engineering

CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

Aurora del Carmen Munguía-López

Assistant Professor

RESEARCH AREAS: Optimization; process design; life cycle assessment

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Electrochemical separations for just climate interventions

Xudong Fan

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Intelligent urban water systems

Samantha Mehltretter

Assistant Professor of Teaching RESEARCH AREAS: Engineering within natural aquatic systems

Mark Voisinet

Associate Professor of Practice RESEARCH AREAS: Computer-aided design

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

Adekunle Afolabi Assistant Professor of Teaching

RESEARCH AREAS: AI-enabled robust software for health care

Bakr Albahri

Associate Professor of Teaching RESEARCH AREAS: Machine learning and computer architecture

Yorah Bosse

Assistant Professor of Teaching

Mostafa Mohammed

RESEARCH AREAS: Programming; education; misconceptions; patterns; difficulties

Assistant Professor of Teaching

RESEARCH AREAS: Computer science education

Haipeng Cai

Associate Professor

Maria Rodriguez

RESEARCH AREAS: Software/systems security; software engineering

Principal Research Scientist RESEARCH AREAS: Equity optimized algorithmic decision making

Xiangyu Guo

Assistant Professor of Teaching

Qianchuan Ye Assistant Professor

RESEARCH AREAS: Algorithm design for combinatorial optimization

Asif Imran

Assistant Professor of Teaching RESEARCH AREAS: Improving energy consumption and carbon footprint

Vishnu Lokhande Assistant Professor

RESEARCH AREAS: Machine learning; visionlanguage models

Xi Lu

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Human-computer interaction

RESEARCH AREAS: Interactive proof assistants; programming languages

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

Adedoyin Inaolaji Assistant Professor

RESEARCH AREAS: Optimization of renewablerich power systems

Barnard Onyenucheya

Assistant Professor of Teaching RESEARCH AREAS: Pulsed power; non-thermal plasma

Ming Shi

Assistant Professor

Naeem Maroof

Associate Professor of Teaching RESEARCH AREAS: Low-power memory and compute circuits

RESEARCH AREAS: Machine learning theory; network optimization

INDUSTRIAL AND SYSTEMS ENGINEERING

Yu Jin

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Analytics for advanced and smart manufacturing

Aanuoluwapo Ojelade

Distinguished Research Fellow RESEARCH AREAS: Occupational ergonomics and biomechanics

MATERIALS DESIGN AND INNOVATION

Hui Cao

Katharine Hunter Assistant Professor of Teaching

RESEARCH AREAS: Thermal and energy sciences; engineering education

Arnaldo RodriguezGonzalez Assistant Professor of Teaching

RESEARCH AREAS: Qualitative dynamical systems, transport phenomena

Assistant Professor of Research

Xin Yong

RESEARCH AREAS: Thin film synthesis and characterization

RESEARCH AREAS: Synthetic and biological soft matter

Soohyun Im

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Structure-property relationships in materials

MECHANICAL AND AEROSPACE ENGINEERING

Hyeongyun Cha Assistant Professor

RESEARCH AREAS: Addressing energy and water challenges

Chaozhe He

Assistant Professor RESEARCH AREAS: Building trustworthy robot companions

Associate Professor

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND APPLIED SCIENCES

Yulong Huang Process Engineer

RESEARCH AREAS: Materials science and engineering

Adithya Lakshmi Narayanan Assistant Professor of Teaching

RESEARCH AREAS: Data for/in social good

290+

FULL-TIME FACULTY AND GROWING FAST

28

NRC PRESTIGIOUS & HIGHLY PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS

AWARDED TO OUR FACULTY SINCE 2020

34

FACULTY NAMED FELLOWS OF PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES SINCE 2020

22

NSF CAREER AWARDS

AWARDED TO OUR FACULTY SINCE 2020

ACCELERATING EXCELLENCE THROUGH OUR PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM:

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Phone (716) 645-2771 | ub-seas@buffalo.edu | engineering.buffalo.edu

ONLINE GRADUATE ENGINEERING PROGRAMS Our engineering management program—designed for engineers who want to take leadership roles in their organizations—was ranked No. 9 in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best Online Master’s in Engineering Programs rankings.