Liang Zhu (Mechanical Engineering) was selected as a recipient of the 2024 University System of Maryland Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Mentoring, the highest honor that the Board of Regents bestows to recognize exemplary faculty achievement. Congratulations, Liang!
As an internationally recognized expert in biotransport, Dr. Zhu has successfully established and sustained an extramurally funded research program in heat and mass transfer in biomedical systems. In 2015, Dr. Zhu was elected as a fellow of American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a rare honor reserved only for the most influential mechanical engineers. As a mentor with a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion, Dr. Zhu has been a defining factor in the success of students and junior faculty at UMBC.
Retention in engineering has been a nationwide challenge in higher education, especially for public institutions. To enhance retention and graduation for undergraduate mechanical engineering students at UMBC, Dr. Zhu single-handedly established the ME S-STEM Scholars Program in 2010. The program uses evidence-based mentoring practices to enhance students’ research skills, self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and applied experience. In the past 13 years, the program has provided intensive mentoring and scholarships to 135 students from diverse backgrounds. The success of this program is unparalleled by every measure:
- 86% of the scholars were retained in mechanical engineering, which is 46% higher than students not in the scholarship program at UMBC,
- 35% of the scholars moved on to pursue graduate STEM degrees, which is 25% higher than students not in the scholarship program at UMBC,
- 65% of the scholars were employed in the industry, including top-notch employers like Applied Physics Laboratory and Northrop Grumman, and
- 100% of the scholars earned degrees in 4 or 4.5 years, which is significantly higher than the ASEE national benchmarks of 40% completion within four years and 65% within six years.
Dr. Zhu is also an excellent mentor to graduate students and junior faculty at UMBC. Many of her graduate students have become leaders in industry and academia to conduct innovative work of societal significance. She has devoted a tremendous amount of her efforts to mentoring junior faculty within and outside of her home department. In addition to one-on-one mentoring, she leads campus-wide efforts in recruiting and advancing women and minority faculty. These efforts having been transforming the inclusive culture at UMBC and beyond.
Congratulations again, Liang! You are an inspiration!
