ASME Engineering Culture: Building Momentum for Making Positive Change in Mechanical Engineering

Academic panelists from the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Michigan, recipients of the 2022 ASME MEDHEC DEI Award, will present their initiatives to inspire others and provide best practices for the broader mechanical engineering community. Open Q&A session will be at the end.

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Panelists:

Susan J. Cheng is the Manager of Diversity and Inclusion for the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan. Susan works with faculty, staff, students, and postdocs in the department and across the university to identify structural ways of supporting learning and professional success through community building and belonging.

Karl Grosh is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Michigan. From 2007-2009 and again from 2017-2019, he acted as Associate Chair of Mechanical Engineering; his current service activities emphasize Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Engineering. He co-founded a piezo-MEMS transducer company, Vesper Technologies. His current research interests include cochlear mechanics, the design and fabrication of electroacoustic transducers, hearing prostheses, and active metamaterials.

Allison King is a sixth-year Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan and a current Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholar. Her research focuses on adapting a source localization algorithm initially developed for underwater acoustics to be applied to structures, with the goal of performing structural health monitoring on full-sized naval assets using remotely measured acoustic waves. Allison actively fosters an inclusive and supportive environment within the Mechanical Engineering Department through her leadership in the student-run Mechanical Engineering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Alliance and Mechanical Engineering Graduate Council.

Penny Kitsopoulos is a fifth-year PhD student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan. She is a Rackham Merit Fellow and an NIH (T32) Hearing, Balance, and Chemical Senses Predoctoral Trainee. She was the Co-President of the student-run Mechanical Engineering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Alliance, and the DEI and outreach officer with the Graduate Student Society of Women Engineers (GradSWE). Her research focuses on developing a completely implantable auditory prosthesis for middle ear applications.

Micah Thorpe is a third year PhD student in Mechanical Engineering in Neil Dasgupta’s group at the University of Michigan. Micah’s research interests include energy storage and mechanics. Micah was awarded a NSF Graduate Research Fellowship in 2023 and is a GEM Fellow. Micah has a passion for celebrating diversity and serves as Communications Chair for the University of Michigan’s Graduate Society of Black Engineers and Scientists (GSBES) and is part of the Mechanical Engineering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Alliance.

Don Wirkner is the Instructional Lab Manager for the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan. Don supports experiential learning in instructional labs and manufacturing spaces, highlighting accessibility improvements. Don’s team won the University of Michigan’s Distinguished Diversity Leaders Award in 2023 for their work improving the physical accessibility of machine shops for undergraduate courses.

Moderator: Kate Klein, Chair of Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of the District of Columbia