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Liberty welcomes new School of Engineering dean

Liberty University has named Dr. Mark Horstemeyer as the new dean of its School of Engineering. Horstemeyer brings extensive experience in both engineering and higher education.

His significant contributions to engineering include cutting-edge integrated computational materials engineering (ICME) research in the nuclear industry and helping to revolutionize safety testing in the automotive industry.

Horstemeyer comes to Liberty from Mississippi State University, where he has taught computational manufacturing and design as a Giles Distinguished Professor. He also served as chair for computational solid mechanics in the university’s Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems (CAVS), one of the world’s premier automotive research centers. As a global pioneer in ICME, Horstemeyer is the founder and president of two start-up companies: Predictive Design Technologies and Yobel Technologies. He has five patents, including ones for “shock wave mitigating” football helmets, applying his safety research in the automotive industry to protecting the human body.

Horstemeyer holds a Ph.D. from the Georgia Institute of Technology, a Master of Science from Ohio State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from West Virginia University.

He officially begins his new position at Liberty on Jan. 1.

“We are excited to welcome such an accomplished individual like Dr. Horstemeyer to our academic leadership team,” said Dr. Scott Hicks, interim provost. “With a wealth of experience on so many groundbreaking engineering projects that have had widespread impact on the industry, he will help us fine-tune our residential programs and boost our online programs. Liberty already has a strong reputation as a teaching university, and Dr. Horstemeyer will help us balance our interests in both teaching and research in the field of engineering.”

Over the course of his teaching career, Horstemeyer has mentored over 150 undergraduate students, graduate students, and post-doctoral researchers, supervising groundbreaking research. He plans to bring that expertise to Liberty and establish the university as a world-class engineering research campus.

“God called me into academia to raise the next generation of Christian intellectuals,” Horstemeyer said. “He has called me to redeem, restore, and renew academia for His purposes. Liberty’s mission of Training Champions for Christ aligns perfectly with my vision. I hope to elevate the research culture in the School of Engineering and recruit world-class faculty with the goal of making Liberty the premier destination for Christian engineers and building a world-class engineering school that the greater academic community can’t help but recognize for its excellence.”

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