Dr. Wayne Whiteman, Director of the Office of Student Services and Senior Academic Professional for the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, has been recognized as one of the "5 Influential Engineering Professors Teaching Online." The list is comprised of some of the most outstanding professors in the field recognized for their great contributions to academia, as well as the rise in online education.

OnlineEngineeringPrograms.com (OEP) regularly profiles outstanding professors in online engineering to give prospective students a flavor for the thought leadership, teaching effectiveness, and impact of research of some of the most extraordinary professionals in engineering today.

OEP (2015) used the following criteria for the selection of the five influential engineering professors:

  • College or university affiliation: professor must be actively teaching at an accredited, top online program in engineering which has been recognized by an established authority (e.g., U.S. News & World Report, Fiske Guide)
  • Publications: professor must have published extensively in peer-reviewed, moderate- to high-impact factor scientific journals
  • Awards and research grants: professor must have a track-record of recognition in his or her field, evidenced by awards (e.g., "Best Paper Awards") and research funding from prominent institutions (e.g., NASA, NSF, Air Force)
  • Experience: professor must have at least 10 years of experience teaching engineering as well as demonstrated leadership through professional societies, conference boards, and/or community organizations

Dr. Whiteman decided to make his expertise available to students worldwide. He teaches the popular introduction to engineering mechanics class, a massive open online course (MOOC) offered through Coursera. Dr. Whiteman is the recipient of several awards, including Georgia Tech’s Center for the Enhancement of Teaching & Learning (CETL) Undergraduate Educator Award (2011); Georgia Tech’s Women in Engineering Faculty Excellence Teaching Award (2004); Tau Beta Pi’s Eminent Engineer Award (2002), and others. Additionally, Dr. Whiteman served for 24 years in the US Army and retired as a Colonel from the Corps of Engineers.