CECS Faculty & Staff

Our faculty and staff are dedicated to being on the forefront of change in higher education and to equipping students for the careers of the future.

Featured CECS Faculty and Staff

Ozlem Kilic

Vice Provost and Founding Dean of the College of Emerging and Collaborative Studies | D.Sc., Electrophysics
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CECS Leadership

Art Sedighi

Teaching Associate Professor, Online | Director of CECS Online Academy | PhD, Industrial and Systems Engineering | PhD, Electrical Computer Engineering
Brock Jamal-Ertel

Events Manager
Candice Adams

Director of Distance Education | Teaching Associate Professor, Online | Faculty Liaison – Data Science | PhD, Computer Science
Elis Vllasi

Senior Director of Academic Operations | PhD, International Relations
Emam ElHak Abdel Fatah

Director of Curriculum Strategic Initiatives | PhD, Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science
Katie A. Cahill

Assistant Dean of Partnerships and Economic Development | Director of Workforce Development | PhD, Political Science
Lola Alapo

Senior Director of Strategic Communications & Marketing
Natalie Stepanov

Director of Advising | PhD, Higher Education Administration
Nneka Walson

Director of Student Engagement and Success
Sarah Kile

Director of Finance, Administration, and Operations

Faculty

Aubra Anthony

Teaching Assistant Professor, Online | PhD, Physics
Ayşegül Çuhadar

Teaching Associate Professor | PhD, Electronic Systems Engineering
Babak Shoraka

Teaching Associate Professor | PhD, Information Systems
Burak Sahin

Teaching Assistant Professor | PhD, Computer Science
Greg Patrick

Teaching Associate Professor | DSc, Computer Science
Hedy Hurban

Teaching Associate Professor | PhD, Digital Art and Technology
Jimmy Ardiansyah

Teaching Assistant Professor, Online | Faculty Liaison – AI | DSc, Information Technology
Mahmoud Jahanshahi

Teaching Assistant Professor | PhD, Computer Science
Michael Gelantalis

Teaching Associate Professor | PhD, Mathematics
Milan Parmar

Teaching Associate Professor | PhD, Computer Science
Nahom Kidane

Teaching Assistant Professor | PhD, Modeling and Simulation Engineering
Sena Sahin

Assistant Teaching Professor, Spring 2027 | PhD, Computer Science
Sudip Vhaduri

Teaching Associate Professor | PhD, Computer Science and Engineering

Faculty Fellows

Cary Staples

Committee Chair, Fellow in Residence, Teaching Fellow | Professor, UT School of Design
George Siopsis

Former Committee Chair | Professor and Director of Quantum Leap Initiative
Jennifer Bartlett

Fellow in Residence | Associate Dean for Engagement, Learning, and Public Services, UT Libraries
Joshua M. Rosenberg

Former Committee Chair | Associate Professor, Center for Enhancing Education in Mathematics and Science
Kristina Gordon

Fellow in Residence | Professor, CEHHS and CSW
Luís Finotti

Teaching Fellow | Associate Professor, UT Knoxville | PhD, Mathematics
Mehmet Aydeniz

Former Fellow in Residence | Professor, CEHHS
Michael McKinney

Former Committee Chair | Director of Environmental Studies and Professor, CAS
Nicholas Nagle

Fellow in Residence | Professor, CAS
Robin Hardin

Former Committee Chair | Professor of Sport Management, Kinesiology, Recreation & Sport Studies
Vandana Singh

Former Committee Chair | Director of Graduate Studies, UT School of Information Sciences
Vasileios Maroulas

Former Committee Chair | Associate Vice Chancellor and Director of the AI Tennessee Initiative

Adjunct Faculty

Ali Boyaci

Adjunct Faculty | R&D Grid Communications and Security Research Group, ORNL
Ali Riza Ekti

Adjunct Faculty | Senior R&D Staff Member, ORNL | PhD Electrical Engineering
Amir Sadovnik

Adjunct Faculty | Research Lead, ORNL | PhD, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Andria L Yates

Adjunct Faculty | Teaching Assistant Professor, Vanderbilt University | PhD, Psychology
Cary Staples

Committee Chair, Fellow in Residence, Teaching Fellow | Professor, UT School of Design
Edgar “Chip” Myers

Adjunct Faculty | Intelligence
Heather Finotti

Adjunct Faculty | Founder, Love of Math | PhD, Mathematics
Laura H. Belken

Adjunct Faculty | Global Assets Solutions Architect, North America, NTT DATA | B.S., International Development and Rural Psychology
Major Robert Willix

Adjunct Faculty | Associate Professor of Aerospace Science, AFROTC
Russell Eubanks

Adjunct Faculty | Managing Partner, Cyverity | B.S., Computer Science
Sally Ghanem

Adjunct Faculty | Machine Learning and Signal Analysis Researcher | PhD, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Shayan Monadjemi

Adjunct Faculty | Research & Development Associate, ORNL | PhD, Computer Science
Steve McFall

Adjunct Faculty | Director of Cybersecurity Services, Blue Lion Tactical Solutions

Staff

Faith Ide

Academic Advisor
Garrett Barnett

Financial Associate
Gillian Hunt

Academic Program Coordinator
Johnny Osborne

IT Technician
Katherine Schroeder

Cybersecurity Program Manager
Katheryn Riley

Administrative Associate
Laura Hardy

Program Coordinator
Olivia Miller

Communications & Marketing Coordinator
Pamela Vatter

Financial & Human Resources Specialist
Rebecca Bailey

Senior Academic Program Coordinator
Trent Richardson

Emeritus GAB Member | Assistant Director of Partnerships, CECS

AI Smokey & Smokey the Dog

Vice Provost and CECS Founding Dean Ozlem Kilic, Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Economic Development Deb Crawford, Chancellor Donde Plowman, and Provost John Zomchick at the CECS Ribbon Cutting