UC names new engineering and computing education department head

Mejia comes to UC from the University of Texas at San Antonio, where he served as an associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Chemical Engineering and in the Department of Bicultural-Bilingual Studies. Prior to his career in academia, he worked as a project engineer for the Department of Defense, Rio Tinto, and FLSmidth Minerals.

"As the College builds on over 100 years of experiential learning via our world-renowned cooperative education (co-op) program, our Department of Engineering and Computing Education serves as the tip of the spear," Weidner said. "I am very excited to work with Alex Mejia and his cutting-edge approaches to pedagogical research as we lead a national transformation in engineering and computing education."

Mejia's research interests include Latino/a/x/é engineers, engineering culture and discourse, the development of critical consciousness among engineers, and engineering for social justice. His work has significantly contributed to the field’s understanding of bilingualism and broadening participation in engineering spaces.

"I am thrilled to step into the role of Department Head and excited about the opportunities ahead. I look forward to all the exciting opportunities to impact the professional development of the next generation of engineers, and to advance research that improves teaching, learning, and access to engineering," Mejia said. 

Mejia received The Collaborative Network for Engineering and Diversity’s Rising Star Award in 2024 for his work, a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award in 2022, as well as the National/William Elgin Wickenden Award in both 2022 and 2017 for the “highest standards of scholarly research” in the Journal of Engineering Education by the American Society for Engineering Education.

Mejia holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Education from Utah State University. He earned his master’s degree in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Utah and his bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso. 

The engineering education graduate program, which offers both a master of science and a doctor of philosophy path, encompasses the research and study of how to best educate engineering students at all levels, from grade schoolers through college students and even workforce development. Launched in the fall of 2020, the engineering education program is one of only a couple of dozen such programs in the U.S. Mejia is believed to be the first Latino to serve as head of an engineering education department at a U.S. university offering a Ph.D. in the field.