A&T Names Alumna Luster-Teasley Pass College of Engineering Dean

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (April 30, 2024) – North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University announced Stephanie Luster-Teasley Pass ‘96, Ph.D., has been named dean of the College of Engineering (COE), effective May 6, 2024.

Luster-Teasley Pass has served as interim dean of the college since May 2022. She succeeds Robin N. Coger, Ph.D., and previously served as A&T’s vice provost for undergraduate education starting May 2021 after serving in the role on an interim basis from September 2020.

“Dean Luster-Teasley Pass brings leadership experience that is aligned with our future-forward initiatives in the ever-expanding Division of Academic Affairs. We are at a pivotal point where the growth of graduate enrollment and the knowledge-producing enterprise requires leaders with a culturally responsive mindset around teaching, research and engagement,” said Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Tonya Smith-Jackson. “We have seen improvements in undergraduate and graduate student success in engineering, and faculty continue to expand their research footprint. Dean Luster-Teasley Pass continues to inspire faculty, staff and students to bring their best to the engineering ecosystem.”

As interim dean, Luster-Teasley Pass led a college of 2,402 students and 143 faculty and staff members. Her commitment to advancing COE toward the university’s strategic goals led to $42 million in new research funding, $3 million in gifts, donations and corporate sponsorships in 2022-23, $3 million in infrastructure improvements, increased student support and engagement through the college’s Center for Academic and Student Engagement and professional development for faculty, staff and post-doctoral researchers through mental health activities and mental health first aid training.

Luster-Teasley Pass has served as a faculty member in the Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering since 2004. In 2010, she led the A&T team that developed the National 4-H Science Youth Day experiment which was used to teach millions of K-8 students worldwide about water quality, energy use and global warming.

During her tenure as department chair from 2016 to 2020, Luster-Teasley Pass increased enrollment from 240 to 321 students, revived alumni support and engagement to include service and donations, and successfully renewed Architectural Engineering Program Accreditation and Civil Engineering Program ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering & Technology) Accreditation, among many other accomplishments.

“It has been an honor to serve as interim dean and I am excited to continue the work with our students, alumni, faculty and staff,” said Luster-Teasley Pass. “As an alum of the college and university, seeing and being a part of its growth is inspiring. I am grateful for the opportunity to lead the college in academics, research and development."

Luster-Teasley Pass’ research specializations include environmental remediation, water sustainability and engineering education. She has received patents from the United States, Great Britain and Canada for development of a controlled-release chemical oxidation polymer system for remediation of water and wastewater – the first African American woman and first faculty member at A&T to receive international patents. Her technology was licensed in 2017 by a company to market nationally as an emerging remediation method for groundwater and soil contamination.

Luster-Teasley Pass’ research has been funded by the U.S. Department of Education for developing a mentoring program for students in STEM disciplines, the National Science Foundation for developing and implementing case studies modules in science labs, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund to implement science programs for middle school girls, and others. She has served as co-Principal Investigator for the N.C. A&T ADVANCE-IT grant, which seeks to increase equity and help implement programs for female faculty to successfully progress through academia from assistant to full professorship. Overall, her research and professional development grants have yielded more than $8 million in funding.

In recognition of Luster-Teasley Pass’ excellence in teaching, research and service, she has received the 2005 National Women of Color in Technology Educational Leadership Award, the 2006 N.C. A&T State University Rookie Researcher of the Year Award and the 2008 N.C. A&T State University Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award.

Additionally, she received the UNC Board of Governors Teaching Excellence Award – one of the highest awards conferred for teaching in the UNC System – in 2013, the DuPont Minorities in Engineering Award at the National American Society for Engineering Education in 2014, the Black Engineer of the Year Innovation Award in 2018, and the ASEE Environmental Service Award and Michigan State University (MSU) Civil and Environmental Engineering Distinguished Alumni Award in 2020. She also was recently invited to serve on the MSU College of Engineering Alumni Advisory Board.

After earning her B.S. in chemical engineering at A&T, she earned an M.S. in chemical engineering and Ph.D. in environmental engineering, both from Michigan State. She returned to A&T in 2004 after working in private industry as an environmental engineer. Her research interests include environmental remediation, water sustainability and engineering education.

“As we continue to transform the Division of Academic Affairs and the university as a whole, I am confident that Dean Luster-Teasley Pass will advance the College of Engineering and increase the quality and impact of the college’s contributions to the state, nation and globe,” said Smith-Jackson.