Leah Mendelson

Leah is a visiting associate professor of engineering at Olin and an associate professor of engineering at Harvey Mudd College.

As an educator, she emphasizes experiential, student-centered, and interdisciplinary approaches to mechanical engineering. She regularly teaches courses in mechanical design, solid and fluid mechanics, and introductory engineering design and manufacturing and directs the Flow Imaging Lab at Mudd (FILM) research group. Her research interests are in experimental fluid mechanics, including biological and bioinspired hydrodynamics and imaging techniques for fluid flow measurement, and mechanical design education. Leah holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Olin and completed her PhD in Mechanical Engineering at MIT. Her dissertation experimentally examined how archer fish propel themselves out of the water to feed using three-dimensional flow visualization and high-speed imaging techniques. While at MIT, she was also part of the teaching team for Engineering Systems Design and Development, a year-long capstone sequence of classes sponsored by MIT Lincoln Laboratory and housed in the Beaver Works project-based learning lab.