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MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. (June 28, 2018) — Milligan College has hired two new faculty members for its growing engineering program: Dr. Ke Bao and Dr. Landon Holbrook. Both will start this fall.
Bao, who will teach electrical engineering, holds a master’s and doctorate in electrical and computer engineering from The University of Alabama. He earned his bachelor’s in electrical engineering and automation from Ocean University of China in Qingdao, China.
Specializing in artificial intelligence and power systems, Bao has numerous honors and publications, including a U.S. patent for “AI-Augmented, Ripple-Diamond-Chain Shaped, Rateless Routing in Wireless Mesh Networks with Multi-Beam Directional Antennas,” which he holds along with Fei Hu and Sunil Kumar.
Holbrook, who will teach mechanical engineering, earned a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering and a doctorate in engineering from Virginia Commonwealth University. He specializes in how engineering can impact the community and the function of aerosol delivery for medical treatment, the latter of which he has published research extensively.
In 2008, Holbrook assisted with the design of a surgical clinic in Danja, Niger, as part of an Engineering Ministries International internship. In 2011, he participated in an Engineers Without Borders Assessment Trip, investigating water quality at a school in Virginia.
“Both of these professors are at the top of their respective fields and also are Christian servant-leaders who care about changing lives in their community,” said Harrell, director of the engineering program and a lead technical advisor for the U.S. Department of Energy Industrial Programs and the U.N. Industrial Development Organization. “These men will join other esteemed engineering faculty members including a past West Point professor and NASA fellow, as well as a Fulbright Scholar.”
Milligan’s engineering program is a four-year program offered from the college’s main campus in Johnson City, Tennessee. It is the only such program within a two-hour radius of the Tri-Cities. In 2017, the college dedicated its state-of-the-art engineering labs in honor of Eastman, NN Inc., Nuclear Fuel Services Inc. (a subsidiary of BWX Technologies) and TPI Corporation.
In addition, Eastman Credit Union donated $100,000 in December to create the Maker Space Lab, designed to allow students to dream, create and innovate with hands-on learning.
The program has accomplished a lot in its first two years: mechanical and electrical engineering students have helped adapt numerous toy ride-on vehicles for disabled children in the community, as well as initiating design and development of a solar-powered AC unit for students with health needs, a sustainable water treatment system for a disadvantaged community, an affordable personal power generation system and a sustainable aquaponics system.
Milligan’s engineering majors have been reviewed and approved by regional accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). Milligan also will be seeking accreditation from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). Accordingly, the program has been designed to meet accreditation standards. Milligan’s engineering faculty are experienced leaders in the field and seasoned academicians who have been core faculty members in ABET-accredited programs. Local industry leaders and national corporations have endorsed the program, are offering internships and co-ops, and are eager to hire Milligan engineering graduates. More information on ABET accreditation can be found at www.abet.org.