Paul J. Benkeser is a professor and senior associate chair in the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University. He has been a member of the Georgia Tech faculty since September 1985. He received his B.S. degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois. He was one of the founding faculty members of the Coulter Department in 1998 and served as its first associate chair for Undergraduate Studies.
His early research interests were in the areas of therapeutic and diagnostic application of ultrasound. After joining the Coulter Department, his energies were redirected toward enhancing undergraduate biomedical engineering (BME) education, with particular interests in integrating problem-driven learning and global experiential learning opportunities into the BME curriculum. His research and education endeavors have been funded by grants from NIH, NSF, Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Whitaker Foundation.
In 2019, Benkeser and colleagues Drs. Joseph LeDoux and Wendy Newstetter were awarded the National Academy of Engineering’s Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education “For fusing problem-driven engineering education with learning science principles to create a pioneering program that develops leaders in biomedical engineering.” Benkeser has been active in engineering accreditation activities for ABET since 2002, serving in a number of capacities including as a program evaluator, commissioner for the Engineering Accreditation Commission, and member of its Board of Delegates. He is a member of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, American Society for Engineering Education, a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and a Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society.
