Dr. Elisha M.H. Garcia served as faculty at the USCGA for the 2008-2009 academic year and rejoined the faculty permanently in 2010. In between, she worked as an Instructional Manager on a Department of Education grant at Miami Dade College in Miami, Florida. She got her Ph.D. at the University of Michigan in the department of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering with her dissertation entitled “Prediction by Energy Phenomenology for Harnessing Hydrokinetic Energy Using Vortex-Induced Vibrations” in the fall of 2008. During her studies at the University of Michigan, she received two Master degrees, one in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering and one in Aerospace Engineering. Prior to her graduate studies, she obtained a Bachelor degree in Ocean Engineering from the University of Rhode Island. She specializes in hydrodynamics and fluid-structure interactions with applications to marine renewable energy, as well as engineering pedagogy. Her experiences include experimental work at the Marine Hydrodynamics Lab at Michigan, computational fluid dynamics, and analytical analysis of vortex-induced vibrations, in addition to curriculum development and diversity recruitment and retainment.

Education

• Ph.D., Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, University of Michigan, 2008
• M.S.E., Aerospace Engineering, University of Michigan, 2006
• M.S.E., Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, University of Michigan, 2005
• B.S., Ocean Engineering, University of Rhode Island, 2002

Courses Taught

• Principles of Naval Architecture
• Statics and Engineering Design
• Engineering Material Science Lab
• Mechanics of Materials
• Dynamics
• Fluid Mechanics
• Ship Structures
• Marine Engineering
• Introduction to Computing
• Analytical Methods in Engineering

Selected Publications and Presentations

• Garcia, E.M.H., and Bernitsas, M.M, “Effect of damping on variable added mass and lift of circular cylinders in vortex-induced vibrations,” Journal of Fluids and Structures, vol. 80, July 2018, pp. 451-472.
• Garcia, E.M.H., Corl, M.J., DeNucci, T.W., and Taylor, T.E., “Systematic Approach to ABET Criterion 4: Continuous Improvement” Proceedings of the ASEE Northeast 2016 Conference, April 28-30, 2016.
• Garcia, E.M.H. and Cost, D.H., “Instructor-Developed Concept Map for a Survey Course,” Proceedings of the ASEE Northeast 2016 Conference, April 28-30, 2016.
• Garcia, E.M.H., “Instructor-Developed Course Concept Maps Used to Contextualize Material,” Proceedings of the ASEE Northeast 2015 Conference, April 30-May2, 2015.
• Clippinger, D., E. Garcia, and T. Taylor, “Dynamically-Induced Roll in Head Seas,” to be presented at Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers Annual Conference, Providence RI, Oct 2012.

Honors and Awards

• National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowship
• Rackham Engineering Award, U of M Rackham Graduate School
• Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society

Professional Memberships

• Professional Engineer – Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering
• American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE)
• Marine Technology Society (MTS)
• Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME)
• Society of Women Engineers (SWE)