Editor's Note: The date of the second candidate's visit was incorrectly listed in the initial release of this article. It has been corrected to Thursday, Jan. 17.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Two of the final candidates for dean of the University of Arkansas College of Engineering will visit campus next week for interviews and public forums.

The two candidates are Kim Needy of the University of Arkansas and Mohammad Kiani of Temple University.

Kim Needy holds the Twenty-First Century Professorship in Engineering and is currently head of the department of industrial engineering at the University of Arkansas. She will make an open forum presentation at 4 p.m. Monday, Jan. 14, in Bell Engineering, Room 273.

Needy received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in industrial engineering from the University of Pittsburgh and earned a doctorate in industrial engineering from Wichita State University. Before coming to the University of Arkansas in 2008, she was an assistant and then an associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh. Before beginning her academic career, Needy worked in industry for over a decade, and her resume includes positions with PPG Industries Inc. and the Boeing Company. Needy is a fellow of the Institute of Industrial Engineers and the American Society for Engineering Management. She is currently serving as the president-elect of the Institute of Industrial Engineers. Her research interests include engineering management, sustainability and supply chain optimization.

Mohammad Kiani, chair of the department of mechanical engineering at Temple University, will visit campus on Jan. 17 and 18. He will hold an open forum at 4 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 17, in Bell Engineering, Room 273.

Kiani holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Oklahoma and a master’s degree and doctorate in biomedical engineering from Louisiana Tech University. In addition to his position as chair of mechanical engineering, Kiani also serves as a professor in the department of bioengineering and the department of radiation oncology at Temple University. Previously, Kiani held positions as assistant professor, associate professor and professor at the University of Tennessee. He has also served as an established investigator for the American Heart Association and has founded two small businesses, MedVas Concepts and POSoft, and a non-profit organization, Engineering World Health. Kiani has two patents and numerous publications in the field of biomedical engineering and is co-author of the book The Bionic Human. He is a fellow of the American Heart Association.

position,” said Provost Sharon Gaber. “It will be difficult to choose among them, but I am confident that the next dean of engineering will lead the college and the university to exciting new places.”

For more information, go to the College of Engineering Dean Search.