Dr. Cicciarelli grew up in northwest Florida, in a small town outside of Pensacola.
He attended the University of Florida and received a bachelor’s degree in Chemical
Engineering in 2001. Later that year, he began graduate school at M.I.T. His thesis
research focused on photoresponsive surfactants, which are specially-designed molecules
which change their shape when light conditions change and thereby cause changes in
solution properties such as surface tension and viscosity. Sometime during his undergraduate
studies, he decided that he wanted to eventually pursue an academic career. While
in graduate school, he had opportunities to assist in teaching courses and found that
he really enjoyed teaching and interacting with students. These positive experiences
reinforced his desire to teach and led him to seek out faculty positions at colleges
and universities with a strong emphasis on education. Louisiana Tech impressed him
with its commitment to teaching, and so after completing his Ph.D. in the spring of
2007, he moved to Ruston to join its faculty.
Dr. Cicciarelli is a Lecturer in both the Chemical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering
Programs. He has taught several classes in the thermal sciences area (thermodynamics,
heat transfer, etc.) as well as chemical engineering undergraduate lecture and laboratory
courses and a graduate level course in transport phenomena. He has enjoyed his experience
at Tech thus far and appreciates the opportunity to work with engineering students
from different backgrounds.
Despite nationwide studies that indicate that students are getting lazier and that
colleges and universities are lowering standards to accommodate them, Dr. Cicciarelli
remains committed to maintaining rigorous academic standards to ensure that his students
are well-prepared for future employment and that their diploma has value.
