Professors Dusseau and Lombardo honored for outstanding performance

Dr. Steve Dusseau, professor of industrial and manufacturing engineering, and Dominic Lombardo, associate professor and director of Indiana Tech’s Center for Criminal Justice, were recognized in August for their excellence in teaching, student advising and classroom innovation.

Dr. Dusseau earned the 2020 Distinguished Faculty Advisor Award from SME (Society of Manufacturing Engineers). This award, established in 2011, is presented to SME student chapter faculty advisors for their continued oversight, engagement and awareness efforts on their local campuses, advocating for students and the manufacturing industry.

Originated in 1932, SME connects manufacturing professionals, academia and communities, sharing knowledge and resources to build inspired, educated and prosperous manufacturers and enterprises.

Faculty advisors utilize their expertise to integrate real-world design projects into their classrooms, offer onsite research lab experience, sponsor attendance at industry conferences and co-authorship of scientific papers published in peer-reviewed journals and professional conferences.

“Dr. Dusseau’s effort as an SME student chapter faculty advisor is outstanding. In the last year, Steve led a volunteer day at the Fort Wayne Rescue Mission; arranged a plant tour of Master Spas for SME students; continued the popular SME Speaker Series with a speaker from Master Spas; conducted a SME membership drive; and completed the accountability process to receive annual funding from SME Headquarters,” said Dave Aschliman, dean of Indiana Tech’s College of Engineering. “Steve’s national recognition, receiving the SME 2020 Distinguished Faculty Advisor Award, is well deserved.”

Dr. Dusseau was hired by Indiana Tech in 1996 to head up its industrial and manufacturing engineering program.

Lombardo was recognized as Indiana Tech’s 2019 Leepoxy Award for Teaching Innovation. This award was established in 2008 by community supporter and owner of Leepoxy Plastics, Larry Lee. It is given annually to a full-time faculty member who:

• Challenges students to continuously progress to higher levels of thinking
• Engages students in active learning activities
• Connects to students in innovative ways to positively impact their experiences at Indiana Tech

Professor Lombardo’s award was announced during Indiana Tech’s convocation ceremony on Aug. 25. During the presentation, he was recognized for:

• His dedication to his role—he arrives early, stays late and teaches in the evenings and throughout the summer.
• Supporting his students in various ways, even well after they graduate.
• Injecting his deep expertise and professional experience into his work for Indiana Tech’s Center for Criminal Justice.
• Using his many relationships throughout Fort Wayne, Indiana, and beyond to assemble an outstanding team of faculty—both full-time and adjunct—who serve our students well.
• Taking the idea of changing lives to another level; one of his passions is working closely with agencies that combat human trafficking and extricate young women and children from sex slavery.

“We in the College of Arts and Sciences our so proud of our dedicated faculty member, Dominic Lombardo,” said Dr. Anne Gull, dean of Indiana Tech’s College of Arts and Sciences. “He embodies the ideals of the criminal justice system as evidenced by his daily interactions with others and serves as an excellent role model for our students.”

Lombardo was a police officer with the Los Angeles Police Department for 14 years before coming to Indiana Tech in 2013. Sharing his experiences from his time on the LAPD has proven compelling and impactful in the classroom experience as he stresses the societal necessity for an effective, fair and trustworthy criminal justice system.