Alejandro Briseño was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He received his B.S. from California State University, Los Angeles, his master’s degree in chemistry at UCLA, and completed his Ph.D. research on organic semiconductor solids supported by a Bell Labs-Lucent Technologies Fellowship in 2008 at the University of Washington. Alejandro did a one-year postdoc at UC Berkeley. In 2009, he joined the Department of Polymer Science and Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where his research was centered on the synthesis of chemically stable organic and polymer semiconductors, interfacial crystallization, fundamental charge transport in organic solids, and advanced manufacturing of plastic electronic devices. In 2017 he became a full Professor of Chemistry at the Pennsylvania State University, Department of Chemistry.  Alejandro is currently a Senior Scientist at the Aerospace Corporation and a visitor at the California Institute of Technology, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

Alejandro’s research programs include advanced manufacturing of plastic electronics, solid and liquid propellant science, organic/polymer synthesis, crystal chemistry, and the physics of organic electronic devices. His research experience focuses on balancing interests not only in technological applications but also in answering fundamental questions regarding structure-property mechanisms in new materials. Perhaps his greatest passion is to inspire and mentor next-generation scientists in STEM.

Dr. Briseño is the recipient of the 3M Non-tenured Award, the Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Program Award, the UMass Faculty Exceptional Merit Award, the DOW Distinguished Lecturer at UCSB, the P&G Distinguished Lecturer at UCLA, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (where he met President Obama), the ACS-AMI Young Investigator Award, the Early Excellence in Physical Organic Chemistry, and the Arthur C. Cope Award for organic chemistry. He has over 125 publications and has delivered domestic and international invited lectures on nearly 100 occasions and joined the editorial board of Materials Today and ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. Alejandro’s hobbies include bass fishing, restoring muscle cars, and fossil hunting with his children.

Dr. Joseph Bull is the Dean of the Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science. His research focuses on biofluid mechanics and ultrasound and includes theoretical and computational modeling as well as in vitro and in vivo experiments. Dr. Bull's work primarily centers on the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems, related biomedical devices, and edema, addressing fundamental biofluid mechanics problems that may enable new clinical therapies or diagnostics. His research impacts include areas of gas embolotherapy, tissue compression and intra-tissue flow, artificial lungs and dialysis, liquid ventilation, and biological microfluidic devices. He has been PI or Co-PI on $32,376,255 of research funding.

As a Native American faculty member (an enrolled member of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, a federally recognized tribe of the Lenape), and a first-generation college graduate, Dr. Bull has a substantial history of working to improve racial equity and diversity. His work in this area was recognized by his receiving the Raymond J. and Monica E. Schultz Outreach and Diversity Award from the College of  Engineering at the University of Michigan in 2016. His many activities in support of DEI include: serving as faculty advisor for the American Indian and Engineering Society, serving on the Advisory Board for the University of Michigan ADVANCE project, being appointed to the Academic Advisory Council for the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, and serving on the Strategy for Tomorrow Steering Committee to lead Tulane’s 5-year plan to advance equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism through University-wide actions.

Dr. Bull received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University. He previously served as Associate Dean for Research in the School of Science and Engineering at Tulane University, where he held the John and Elsie Martinez Biomedical Engineering Chair. He began his career at the University of Michigan, where he held various faculty and leadership positions between 2001-2016. In 2014, he was appointed as a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and, among other honors, was named a Sequoyah Fellow of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society.

Alma Zaragoza-Petty, Ph.D., is a Mexicana social justice advocate and scholar who teaches equity to create change. Born in Los Angeles but raised in Acapulco, Mexico, for much of her childhood, she is the daughter of immigrant parents and a first-generation high school and college graduate. Zaragoza-Petty has a master's degree in counseling and a doctorate in education and has worked in higher education for more than twenty years. She has served as an academic advisor, as a professor, and in research and evaluation for a nonprofit organization. She is co-founder of Prickly Pear Collective, a trauma-informed, faith-based community organization, and cohost of The Red Couch Podcast with her partner, hip-hop artist Propaganda.

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