Padmanabhan Seshaiyer, PhD

Dr. Padmanabhan Seshaiyer is a tenured Professor at George Mason University (GMU) in the College of Science and holds affiliate positions in the College of Engineering and Computing, College of Education and Human Development at GMU. He also holds international faculty positions at the Nelson Mandela African Institute of Science and Technology, Arusha, Tanzania and Advanced Teachers College, Suriname. Over the last decade he has served in several leadership positions including serving as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the College of Science, Director of two Centers of Excellence including the STEM Accelerator Program and COMPLETE (Center for Outreach in Mathematics Professional Learning and Educational Technology) at GMU and also serving as a Program Director at the National Science Foundation. He also currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the US National Commission for Mathematics Instruction by the National Academy of Sciences and also the Chair of the Diversity Advisory Committee for the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. His research interests are in the broad areas of computational mathematics, scientific computing, computational biomechanics, STEM education, Design and Systems Thinking, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Integrated with the research plan is a STEM education plan where the primary goal is to teach students and teachers at all levels to apply well-developed research concepts, to fundamental applications arising in STEM disciplines. During the last decade, Dr. Seshaiyer initiated and directed a variety of educational programs including graduate and undergraduate research, K-12 outreach, teacher professional development, and enrichment programs to foster the interest of students and teachers in STEM at all levels.

Dr. Seshaiyer has served and continues to serve on numerous boards and councils including DiscoverE; Edu-Futuro; VA-STEM learning network; the Virginia Mathematics and Science Coalition; the WashingtonExec STEM Council; the LEGO Education Advisory Panel (LEAP); Station1; National Math Alliance; SIAM Diversity Advisory Committee; Children’s Science Center STEM Advisory Board Council on Undergraduate Research Council on Math and Computer Science and the Northern Virginia MATHCOUNTS. In 2019, Padhu was awarded an honorary doctorate from Vrije Universiteit Brussel for “being a committed scientist who transcends the boundaries of their own disciplines and to personalities that have been at the frontiers of societal change.” He has also received the highest award from the President’s office from two separate institutions, the most recent being the Earle C. Williams Presidential Medal for Faculty Excellence in Social Impact from GMU. In 2021, he was officially sworn in to be appointed to the Virginia Governor Northam’s newest VA STEM Education Advisory Board that will advise the Governor directly on building a STEM ecosystem for Virginia.

Dr. Seshaiyer holds a B.E (Hons) in Electrical and Electronics Engineering and M.S (Hons) in Mathematics from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, India, a Ph.D in Applied Mathematics from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and a Post-doctoral Research Associateship from Bioengineering in Texas A & M University. He has mentored research projects for over 200 students at all levels; publishing over 125 peer-reviewed journal articles and proceedings; authoring two graduate texts (one in Numerical Analysis and another on mathematical modeling for teachers); acquiring over $14 Million in grant funding (both state and federal) to promote multidisciplinary research, training and mentoring programs for students, teachers and faculty at all levels. He is also actively involved in multiple global STEM collaborative projects and training programs that engage students and faculty from over 23 countries.