Sara Wadia-Fascetti

Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies

Director of ADVANCE & Special Assistant to the Provost for Faculty Development

Dr. Sara Wadia-Fascetti is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northeastern University where she has been on the faculty since 1994.  She performs research in the use of nondestructive sensing technologies for condition assessment and diagnostics on structural systems and is engaged in research through the NSF-funded Gordon Center for Subsurface Sensing and Imaging Systems (CenSSIS). Current and past research related to condition assessment of structures includes finite element model updating in the presence of errors, development of data quality indices, use of fuzzy mathematics to quantify the uncertainty in earthquake ground motion, bridge performance assessment for bridge management systems, and subsurface sensing and imaging of civil engineering materials. She directs the NSF funded Interdisciplinary Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) site for Intelligent Diagnostics for Aging Civil Infrastructure.

In addition to her faculty role, Dr. Wadia-Fascetti also has administrative responsibilities at the College and University levels as Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Special Assistant to the Provost for Faculty Development and Director of ADVANCE. Dr. Wadia-Fascetti served as Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Advancement (2005 - 2008) where she was responsible for university-wide faculty development activities and initiatives. One outcome from this effort is the National Science Foundation funded ADVANCE Institutional Transformation program at Northeastern University. She created and led the development and institutionalization of a major College of Engineering initiative, the NSF-funded Connections project, to strengthen the pathways to engineering and science careers for women and girls. She continues in an advisory role to Connections, now housed within the College of Engineering Dean's Office. Connections has received recognition from a number of organizations including the American Association of University Women (nationally in 2005; MA chapter in 2004) and the American Association of Engineering Education (2002).

She received her MS and PhD degrees in Structural Engineering from Stanford University and a BS in Civil Engineering with a double major in Engineering and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon.   She is recognized by Northeastern University as a Distinguished Research Fellow and in 2002 received a Presidential Aspiration Award from Northeastern University President Freeland. At the national level she received an NSF Career Award (1997), American Society of Engineering Education Minorities in Education Award (2002), American Society of Engineering Education Sharon Keillor Woman in Engineering Education Award (2006) for distinction in teaching, research, and administrative leadership, and in 2003 she was recognized at the White House with a 2002 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Mentoring.

Education

  • Ph.D. Civil Engineering, Stanford University (1994)
  • M.S. Civil Engineering, Stanford University (1991)
  • B.S. Civil Engineering (double major in Engineering & Public Policy), Carnegie Mellon University (1990)
  •