Professor Musa Jouaneh has been awarded the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Region 1 award for Outstanding Teaching in an IEEE area of interest at a university or college.
The award goes to an individual who is improving communications between the IEEE and a student body, providing support and service to a student body, and for service and leadership to the student community. IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity. Jouaneh was honored for more than three decades of outstanding university-level teaching in mechatronics. He is also the author of three influential textbooks in this field.
Jouaneh, who lives in Wakefield, has been teaching at the University of Rhode Island for 34 years in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Systems Engineering, where he is currently a professor and director of the mechatronics laboratory. His research interests include mechatronics, manufacturing automation, robotics, and engineering education.
“I love teaching,” said Jouaneh. “I enjoy seeing the students comprehend the material and be engaged. Not only that, but they are learning something they can use. I remember when I was a student and thinking about what I wanted from an instructor, and I strive to be that. Explain the subject clearly, keep material interesting and engaging, and most importantly be fair.”
Jouaneh founded and directs the mechatronics lab that houses facilities and setups that allow students to test, develop, and experiment with various types of mechatronic systems.
Mechatronics, A Combination of Disciplines
Mechatronics, a term coined in the 1960s, is a combination of mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and computer science that encompasses sought-after skills in electro-mechanical systems, automation, robotics, and more. It is a multi-disciplinary field that is ever evolving as technology progresses.
“Not all students are the same and everyone learns differently so I often try to provide multiple ways to keep students engaged,” he said. Jouaneh provides experiments to take home for practical hands-on training in courses like system dynamics that builds confidence for the student in their capabilities in doing things on their own.
This isn’t the first recognition he has received for teaching. In 2003, Jouaneh received the URI Foundation Teaching Excellence Award, which he said, “was one of the proudest moments of his career.” “To have colleagues and students nominate me for that recognition was an honor,” said Jouaneh.
In 2023, he received the URI College of Engineering Frank White Teaching Award. One nomination stated, “His awareness of students’ challenges, devising relevant, thought-provoking assignments and exams that not only access knowledge, but also stimulate intellectual curiosity.”
In addition to his recognitions, he is the author or coauthor of over 80 publications including two U.S. patents, and author of several textbooks including “Fundamentals of Mechatronics” and “Arduino-Based Introductory Guided Exercises in Mechatronics,” which he created after noticing a gap in ways of teaching an ever-evolving subject.
Truly Cares About Students
Dan Brogan, MCE ’20, took multiple classes with Jouaneh and collaborated on research together. “Dr. Jouaneh truly cares about teaching his students valuable skills that are directly transferable to industry. He continuously updates his classes to be relevant to modern applications. His style of teaching is focused on the idea that students learn by doing, and he sets expectations high, so students have to rise to the occasion,” said Brogan. “I still correspond with him when I get stumped on a problem in industry, and he always provides valuable insight to lead me in the right direction. It is clear that Dr. Jouaneh provides tremendous value to the URI engineering program, as he has had a significant positive impact on my professional outcome as well as many colleagues of mine.”
“Professor Musa Jouaneh was the most influential professor for me during my time at the University of Rhode Island,” added Matthew Carvalho, MCE ’24. “He fostered a great sense of learning by passionately going through his material. I am truly grateful to have been able to learn from him and absorb the vast amount of knowledge and expertise he provides.”
The outstanding teaching award further honors the superior teaching Jouaneh exemplifies.
“To now be recognized outside of the university as well also makes me incredibly proud. At the end of the day, we are empowering students to be better engineers and provide a background and experience relevant to a future step in their career,” said Jouaneh.