Mentoring Approach
Alumni Team Mentors
UCEM Alumni Team Mentors (ATM) Thrust
Mentoring has been described as “the process of transferring knowledge from a person with more experience and expertise in a field (mentor) to a less experienced person (protégé or mentee) to help them grow personally and professionally”. - Lesia Crumpton-Young, 2010 Recipient of an US Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM)
Overview
Steven Spielberg on Mentoring
“The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image,
but giving them the opportunity to create themselves.”
The aim of the UCEM Alumni Team Mentoring (ATM) Program is to connect Sloan scholars with USF URM PhD graduates in the workplace who can provide guidance on PhD expectations, professional networking and career development. Alumni can offer insight on lessons learned, share knowledge of their career paths, and help empower current scholars to join their ranks as research innovators, thought-leaders, and problem-solvers within the global STEM workforce.
Program Goals
The Alumni Team Mentoring (ATM) thrust is intended to meet the following goals:
- Connect URM students with STEM professional role models from similar backgrounds
- Broaden awareness of academic, industry, and nontraditional career paths available to PhD graduates
- Provide a safe zone and supportive community for frank discussions on PhD expectations and professional goals
- Foster new professional networks for current students
- Facilitate new mentoring and leadership opportunities for PhD alumni
Mentee Responsibilities
As a UCEM Scholar you are responsible for the following:
- Engage your alumni mentor virtually (email, MS Teams/Zoom/Go To Meeting) or by phone at least twice each semester (Fall, Spring, Summer).
- Join the Sloan/FGLSAMP BD LinkedIn page
- Complete the UCEM Professional Development Certificate Program as scheduled (refer to your signed agreement)
- Participate in the Annual UCEM Student/Faculty Mentoring Retreat in May/June
Mentor Responsibilities
As an UCEM Alumni Team Mentor, your service would involve the following:
- Commit to a minimum of 2 contacts either virtually (email, MS Teams/Zoom/Go To Meeting) or by phone with your mentee each semester (Fall, Spring, Summer).
- Serve on at least one Alumni Panel session or provide one Career/Research talk during the calendar year (Fall, Spring, Summer)
- Join the Sloan/FGLSAMP BD LinkedIn page
Time Commitment
A minimum of two (2) contacts per semester initiated by the mentee. Additional interactions
will depend upon the dynamics of the mentee-mentorship relationship.
How Will Does It Works?
Step 1: Mentee will identify 1-2 potential PhD Alumni mentors
Step 2: Mentors will provide via email the USF Sloan UCEM (bbatson@usf.edu) the names of their selected mentors.
Step 3: The Sloan UCEM will make an official introduction via email to connect mentees and mentors.
| Alumni Mentor Graduation Year | Graduate Department | Current Position |
|---|---|---|
| Olukemi Akintewe 2015 |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Instructor, USF Medical Engineering Department |
| Electrical Engineering |
Research Scientist, The Geneva Foundation |
|
| Veronica Aponte-Morales 2015 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Chemist, US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) |
| Kathryn Bailey 2012 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Specialist, Merck |
| Evans Bernardin 2018 |
Medical Engineeing | Process Engineer, Plasma-Therm |
| Quenton Bonds 2010 |
Electrical Engineering | Center Technology Transition Lead (CTTL), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center |
| Joseph Bonivel, Jr. 2010 |
Mechanical Engineering | Subject Matter Expert and Project Manager, U.S. Department of Defense |
| Prony Bonnaire Files 2012 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Transportation Engineer, Manatee County Government |
| Justin Boone 2013 |
Electrical Engineering |
Sr. Manager ESA, Lockheed Martin |
| Jorge Calabria 2020 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Water Resources Engineer, Applied Sciences Consulting, Inc. |
| Joshua Candamo 2009 |
Computer Science and Engineering | Chief Information Officer, Ensurem |
| Shamara Collins 2018 |
Electrical Engineering | Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder, The BEMI Group |
| Pablo Cornejo-Warner 2015 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Assistant Professor, California State University- Chico (Chico State) |
| Ruan Cox 2015 |
Morsani College of Medicine | Associate Director, Strategic Partnerships and Business Operations, Regeneron |
| Regina Easley 2013 |
Marine Science |
Research Chemist, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) |
| Michael Grady 2017 |
Electrical Engineering | Research Engineer, Georgia Tech Research Institute |
| Jasmine (Oliver) Graham 2016 |
Physics | Faculty, Medical Physicist, Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute |
| Amine Hafsi 2017 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Senior Engineer, Wood |
| Earnest Hansley 2018 |
Computer Science and Engineering | Retired US Army |
| Deidra Hodges 2009 |
Electrical Engineering | Associate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Texas at El-Paso |
| Joniqua Howard 2010 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Entrepreneur and Former Lecturer, University of Texas at Arlington |
| Ransford Hyman, Jr. 2011 |
Computer Science and Engineering | Sensei On-Device ML Engineering Manager, Adobe |
| Tamina Johnson-Jeffers 2018 |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Senior Scientist, Upstream Process Development, WuXi Biologics |
| Wainella Isaacs 2020 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Operations Consultant, Office of the Executive Director, Green Climate Fund |
| Jermaine Kennedy 2006 |
Physics | Branch Manager, Littoral Acoustics and Target Physics Branch at U.S. Navy, Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division |
| Oscar Lara Yejas 2012 |
Computer Science and Engineering | Sr. Data Scientist & Squad Lead, IBM Data Science and AI Elite |
| Emma Lopez-Ponnada 2019 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Environmental Engineer, Carollo Engineers |
| Darline Lott 2018 |
School of Geoscience | Adjunct Professor of Earth Science at Hillsborough Community College |
| Dayna Martinez-Torres 2012 |
Industrial and Management Systems Engineering | Assistant Teaching Professor, Northeastern University |
| Domingo Mateo-Feliciano 2020 |
Physics | Optical Coating Manufacturing Engineer, Lockheed Martin |
| Erick Maxwell 2007 |
Electrical Engineering | Principal Research Engineer, Georgia Tech Research Institute |
| Adonis McQueen 2017 |
Morsani college of Engineering | Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Stony Brook University |
| Edikan (Archibong) Ogunnaike 2015 |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Postdoctoral Researcher, UNC-Chapel School of Pharmacy |
| Roland Okwen 2009 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Reservoir/Petroleum Engineer, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign |
| Alexandra Oliveros-Villalba 2013 |
Electrical Engineering | Director, Data center solutions & Strategic Partnerships, Intel |
| David Paulius 2020 |
Computer Science and Engineering | Post-doctoral researcher Technical University of Munich |
| Samuel Perez 2018 |
Elecgtrical Engineering | Faculty, Engineering Technology, Polk State College |
|
Alisha Peterson |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Product Regulatory Engineer (Ecology), Intel Corporation |
| Tony Price 2012 |
Electrical Engineering | Filter Designer, Qorvo, Inc. |
| Javier Pulecio 2019 |
Electrical Engineering | Device Scientist, IBM Research |
| Jose Rey 2011 |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Product Development Scientist / Engineer, Catalent |
| Mandek Richardson 2015 |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Principal RFIC/MMIC Design Engineer, Northrop Grumman |
| Andrea Rochas 2011 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Scientist, Geosyntec Consultants |
| Rafael Rodriguez 2017 |
Mechanical Engineering | Associate Professor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University |
| Natasha (Cover) Samuels 2012 |
Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering | Senior Specialist, Merck |
| Andrea Sanchez-Sours 2014 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Materials Reliability Lead, Intel |
| Lorena Sanchez-Vivas 2019 |
Civil and Environmental Engineering | Relocated to Spain |
| John Shelton 2011 |
Mechanical Engineering | Assistant Professor, Northern Illinois University |