Meet Dr. Laura Sullivan

Laura SullivanDr. Laura Sullivan arrived at Kettering University in 1992, after completing M. S. and Ph. D. degrees in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington. Prior to this, she obtained laura2a B.S. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Arizona State University and worked as a Clinical Orthopedic Engineer for the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas.

With expertise in polymer engineering and biomaterials, Professor Sullivan has taught Mechanics, Engineering Materials, Polymer Processing, Polymer Properties, and Biomaterials at Kettering University. She has also provided short courses in Thermoplastic Material Selection, Injection Molding, and Fracture Mechanics through the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.

Sullivan was instrumental in renovating the Polymer Processing laboratory at Kettering by winning over $250K in grant funding from the National Science Foundation. More recently, she won a $400K grant to fund scholarships for incoming freshmen engineering students. From 1999-2002, she served as Associate Dean of Student Affairs, where she advised womens programs, advised student government, and created a new student-driven orientation program.

Dr. Sullivan has served as Division Chair and Program Chair for the Materials Division of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). She also maintains membership in the Society of Women Engineers, the Society of Plastics Engineering, the Biomaterials Society, and she was selected in 1999 as a member of the Women in Engineering Leadership Institute. At Kettering University, she advises the Society of Women Engineers and is an honorary member of the Robot Society.

Dr. Sullivan is currently involved in research into the factors that contribute most to women leaving the engineering profession, and she has presented results of her research nationally. She was honored in 2003 to be selected by the Flint YWCA as a Corporate Woman of Distinction. She enjoys spending her personal time with her husband, John, and her two sons, Andrew and Daniel.