In November, Randa Shehab, Ph.D., senior associate dean for the Gallogly College of Engineering and co-coordinator for the Data Science and Analytics Institute at the University of Oklahoma, was inducted into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame. She was among 11 statewide honored as part of the 2022 Hall of Fame Class.
A native Oklahoman, Shehab has devoted her entire career to broadening access to engineering education. She started her academic career as an industrial engineering professor at OU, later serving as the college’s director. Today, she serves as senior associate dean for the Gallogly College of Engineering and co-director for the Data Science and Analytics Institute at OU.
Shehab strives to provide opportunities for all students so they may succeed in engineering, regardless of individual background or academic preparation. Recognizing the critical staffing needs of Oklahoma’s bustling aerospace and defense industries, she led the renovation of the industrial engineering curriculum to incorporate systems thinking. She continues spearheading partnerships with the U.S. Department of Defense aimed at further workforce development.
In her current role as senior associate dean, Shehab developed and launched the Engineering Pathways program. The program provides ways for students throughout Oklahoma to nurture their interest in engineering, draw them to engineering disciplines, and support and mentor students as they progress through their degree programs. A key Pathways initiative is the Engineering Catalyst program, which provides academic structure and support for motivated incoming engineering students who may be less prepared in certain areas for the discipline’s robust curriculum.
Shehab has trained and mentored more than 4,650 undergraduate students and served as an adviser to more than 30 graduate students. She is the author of 85 scholarly publications. She is a member of the Institute of Industrial Engineers, the American Society for Engineering Education, and the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. After earning her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in industrial engineering from OU, she served as an ergonomics consultant to the manufacturing ergonomics laboratory at the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, Michigan.
Shehab joins 75 other OU faculty members and administrators who have been inducted into the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame since its establishment in 1994.
Read OU's news release.
Learn about all inductees.
By Lorene A. Roberson, Gallogly College of Engineering
