College of Engineering Staff

College of Engineering

Executive Administrators and Staff

Dr. Fredric M. Ham, Dean

Dr. Fredric Ham Dr. Ham is Dean of the College of Engineering. Dr. Ham joined Florida Tech in 1988. He received his B.S, M.S., and Ph.D degrees in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University in 1976, 1979 and 1980, respectively. His past experiance includes becoming a fellow of IEEE for Computational Intelligence Society and a fellow of SPIE for specific achievements in Bio-optic Sensor Systems.

Dr. Ham is the Harris Professor of Electrical Engineering in the College of Engineering. He is also the Director of the Information Processing Laboratory. He worked 10 years in industry before coming to Florida Tech. He was with the Harris Corporation from 1980 to 1988 and the Shell Oil Company from 1976 to 1977. He is currently the Past President of the International Neural Network Society (INNS) (2009), an elected member of the INNS Board of Governors (2009-2011), INNS Vice President of Membership (2009-2010), President of INNS (2007-2008), President Elect of INNS (2006), and Secretary of INNS (2004-2005).

He is a Senior Member of INNS, a member of SPIE and was an Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks from 2001 to 2007. He has published over 100 technical papers and reports, mostly in the areas of neural networks, digital signal processing and biomedical engineering (specifically, biosensors). He holds 3 U.S. patents and is author of the textbook: Principles of Neurocomputing for Science and Engineering, McGraw-Hill, 2001. He has served on many organizing and program committees for several conferences. He has given several invited talks which includes a recent colloquium talk at Boston University’s Department of Cognitive and Neural Systems. Dr. Ham's current research interests include: applications of neural networks, adaptive signal processing, digital image processing, wireless systems (network security), acoustic modeling, pattern recognition, biosensor development for non-invasive blood glucose monitoring, and development of neural-based classification methods for classifying man-made and natural infrasound signals.

Dr. Edward H. Kalajian, Professor and Associate Dean

I have over 30 years of academic experience at Florida Tech and serve as the Associate Dean of Academics for the College of Engineering. I direct the General Engineering Program and teach the Introduction to Engineering course, a graduate course in geotechnical engineering and undergraduate courses in soil mechanics and foundations, and civil engineering materials.

My undergraduate degree is in civil engineering from the University of Maryland and my graduate degrees are from the University of Massachusetts. I am a registered professional engineer (P.E.) in Florida with expertise in soil mechanics, foundation design, concrete materials, waterfront construction and waste stabilization. I have served as a consultant and expert witness, and have five years of engineering experience with the US Navy. I am an active member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, American Society for Engineering Education, Chi Epsilon and Tau Beta Pi (the engineering honor society).

I am married and I have two sons both of whom are engineers, although one is currently in medical school. I enjoy woodworking and refinishing oak furniture as a hobby. I love snow skiing and will go just about anywhere for good snow.

Dr. Pierre Larochelle, Professor and Assistant Dean for Academics and Accreditation

Pierre Larochelle joined Florida Tech in 1994. He received his Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from University of California at San Diego (1989), his Masters of Science (1991) and Ph.D. (1994) degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California at Irvine. In addition to serving as Assistant Dean for Academics and Accreditation, he is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering with expertise in the design of robotic mechanical systems.

He is the founder and director of the Robotics and Spatial Systems Laboratory (RASSL). He has more than 100 publications, is the holder of a US patent, and has served as a consultant to a number of companies in the areas of robotics, automation, machine design, and computer-aided design. He is currently serving as an Associate Editor for the ASME Journal of Mechanical Design as well as the journal Mechanics Based Design of Structures & Machines. Prof. Larochelle serves as an ABET program evaluator and he is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Dr. Ronnal Reichard, Director of Laboratories

Judy Tryzbiak , Assistant to the Dean

Judy Tryzbiak has been with Florida Institute of Technology since April 2009. Prior to joining Florida Tech she worked in various administrative and business office management positions. She worked in the islands handling the logistics for supplies and repair schedules. Judy is a long term resident of Melbourne. Her organizational skills are commitment to Florida Tech are a great addition to the Dean's office. She enjoys working with the students and works hard to make sure their needs are met.

Sheila Rodriguez, Administrative Assistant

Sheila My name is Sheila Rodriguez. I was born and raised in Melbourne Florida. I attended the University of Central Florida where I received a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration. I am currently enrolled at FIT for my Master's in Public Administration. l enjoy working with the students, faculty and staff at Florida Tech and supporting the College of Engineering.