Dr. Michelle Sabick assumed the role of Dean of the Daniel Felix Ritchie School of Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Denver in March of 2021.  Previously, she was Dean of Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology at Saint Louis University, Chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Saint Louis University, and Chair of the Department of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering at Boise State University, where she started her academic career.

 

Sabick earned a BS degree in Biomedical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University and MS and PhD degrees in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Iowa.  Before moving to academia, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Orthopedics at the Mayo Clinic and worked as an upper extremity biomechanics researcher at the Steadman-Hawkins Sports Medicine Foundation in Vail, CO.

 

Dr. Sabick’s research areas are orthopedic biomechanics and sports medicine.  Her primary focus is on how highly ballistic human movements affect the joints of the upper extremity.  She is currently the Past-President of the American Society of Biomechanics. In her previous position, she co-chaired the Saint Louis University Science and Engineering Task Force, and she also led the team that designed the new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building at SLU that opened in August, 2020.

 

Throughout her career, Sabick has been passionate about improving undergraduate engineering education. She has been highly involved in efforts to transform STEM teaching practices at both Saint Louis University and Boise State, where she helped mentor faculty members to infuse courses with more interactive and hands-on learning experiences.  She is currently working on an externally funded project to encourage math and science faculty to adopt active learning techniques and entrepreneurially minded learning strategies in their courses.