People-Centered STEM with USC Engineering and Computing Dean Haj-Hariri

Dean of the University of South Carolina’s College of Engineering and Computing, Hossein Haj-Hariri, discusses the importance of complementing STEM with the humanities, learning student’s names, and allowing young people to choose their own career paths. During Dean Haj-Hariri’s tenure, his college has grown its faculty, student body, diversity, contracts, and grant awards.
In his 20 years of academic leadership, he has learned that listening to his team members, finding them the resources they need, and then getting out of the way produces champions who succeed. He says that STEM teachers should focus on the fundamentals, stress critical thinking, and teach students to teach themselves. In this way, we can prepare students for a rapidly changing future.