Faculty

Department Heads

Robert Krueger

Professor & Department Head of Social Science and Policy Studies, Social Science & Policy Studies

Robert Krueger is a human geographer whose scholarship and teaching focus on creating sustainable, socially just, improvements to development projects in the global north and south. His work has taken him around the world. He has worked in countries in North America, Europe, Asia [...]

Anita Mattson

Professor, Chemistry & Biochemistry

Research in the Mattson Group is a combination of catalyst design, methodology development, and complex molecule synthesis. Our catalyst design program is focused on the synthesis and study of new families of non-covalent catalysts, including boronate ureas and silanediols, that [...]

Kathryn Moncrief

Professor & Department Head, Humanities & Arts

Kathryn M. Moncrief is Paris Fletcher Distinguished Professor of Humanities and Head of Humanities and Arts at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Worcester, MA. She was previously Professor and Chair of English at Washington College, in Chestertown, MD where she taught co [...]

Sarah Olson

William Steur Professor & Department Head, Mathematical Sciences

At WPI, I enjoy teaching all courses fundamental to applied mathematics, scientific computing, and modeling. I look forward to mentoring students interested in working on areas in Mathematical Biology, Computational Biofluids, and Scientific Computing. I specialize in Mathematica [...]

Doug Petkie

Professor and Department Head, Physics

I am delighted to collaborate with students and colleagues to enhance WPI's global impact. WPI offers a vibrant and dynamic environment that emphasizes experiential learning and interdisciplinary research, with near-peer mentorship spanning the undergraduate and graduate programs [...]

Reeta Rao

Professor & Department Head, Biology & Biotechnology

A member of the WPI faculty since 2004 and chair of the Department of Biology and Biotechnology since 2022, Reeta Rao is a leader in the field of molecular genetics and genomics. Her primary research activities are focused on emerging infectious diseases, specifically understandi [...]

Craig Shue

Professor & Department Head, Computer Science

I am interested in computer networking and security. Given the significance of the Internet in our economy and society, I am interested in improvements and studies that can have a real-world impact. My recent work has focused on how to make both enterprise and residential network [...]

Jing Xiao

Professor & Department Head, Robotics Engineering

My research spans robotics, haptics, multi-modal perception, and artificial intelligence, at the intersection of computer science and engineering. There are two highly related themes in my robotics research: one is the focus on “contact sport”, i.e., the contact and interaction b [...]

Gillian Smith

Associate Professor, Computer Science

Gillian Smith, an award-winning game designer, joined WPI in 2017. Her interdisciplinary work merges technical research in AI and HCI with creative practice in textiles and games, with a view towards addressing social issues and broadening participation and perspectives on comput [...]

Gottlieb and Rundensteiner Named William B. Smith Professors

Elke Rundensteiner, professor of computer science, and Roger S. Gottlieb, professor of philosophy, have been named William B. Smith Professors. The distinguished William B. Smith Professorships were established by the estate of William Binns Smith, a local entrepreneur and 20th century industrialist.

School of Arts & Sciences Faculty by Department or Program

Department Heads

Faculty Awards & Achievements

Gottlieb and Rundensteiner Named William B. Smith Professors

New BS in Cybersecurity