When the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences (CEAS) created a new faculty director position for the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) honors program, Mónica Bugallo was appointed to serve in the inaugural role. An associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, she will help support WISE’s strong commitment to STEM diversity.
Working hand-in-hand with WISE Director Carrie-Ann Miller-Engel, the aim of this new role will “build upon the success of WISE and take it to the next level, with the goal of advancing STEM professions by increasing the participation of women,” according to Associate Dean Robert Kukta. “STEM fields — engineering in particular — are about solving people’s problems. It takes input from all people of all backgrounds and experiences to serve our diverse population.”
The WISE program has set its sights on increasing the number of women in STEM through student outreach, recruitment and retention. “The program will expand and improve educational and professional opportunities for female students at all levels in all fields of STEM by facilitating individual, institutional and social change,” said Bugallo, who added, “WISE will become the Flagship Program of CEAS to promote girl power in STEM.”
Bugallo will also work toward growing resources through external grants and donations, and strengthening faculty support for the program. As faculty director, she will build stronger connections with faculty across many disciplines including, but not limited to, the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences and School of Medicine.
Professor Bugallo teaches communication systems, digital communications, stochastic processes and information theory to undergraduate and graduate students. She is also an advisor to the Society of Women Engineers, the honor society Eta Kappa Nu and the sorority Alpha Omega Epsilon. Bugallo initiated the Stony Brook Engineering Summer Camp and the Engineering Enterprise programs, which engage students from middle school through the graduate level in engineering and research.
Bugallo joined Stony Brook in 2002. Her research and educational efforts have been funded by government and state agencies and by corporations. She has received numerous research and education awards including the prestigious National Science Foundation Career Award, the IEEE Outstanding Young Engineer Award and the IEEE Athanasios Papoulis Award.
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