with Danesh Tafti and Allison Jones,
Mechanical Engineering Graduate Program

September 25, 2026 – 2:30 PM – Goodwin 190

In this seminar, we will give students and faculty a snapshot of the current state of the graduate programs in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and discuss changes related to graduate curriculum, policies, and processes that will impact graduate students. Specifically, we will discuss the integration of the EM program into ME, changes to the annual evaluation, and guidance for the MSnt project and report. We will introduce institutional policy changes that are in effect for Fall 2026 and share some data collected from the annual graduate student survey. Finally, we will end with an open Q and A session.

Danesh Tafti has been a faculty member in the department for 24 years and currently serves as the Associate Department Head for Graduate Studies. He has also served as the Interim Department Head from 2014-2015. Before joining Virginia Tech, he held positions of Senior Research Scientist and Associate Director at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the Univ. of Illinois Urbana Champaign. His research spans computational modeling of propulsion, energy, and biological systems.

Allison Jones has worked in higher education administration for over 20 years. She has been a member of the VT ME graduate program support team since 2019, serving as the Program Manager for DC area and virtual programs before moving into the role of Director of Graduate Programs. Previously, she served in program administration roles in medical education at Georgetown University and UCLA. Ms. Jones specializes in process improvement and assessment in higher education.