The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) announced its newly elected Class of 2022 Associate Fellows. Sanjay Jayaram, Ph.D., will be formally honored and inducted during the AIAA Associate Fellows Induction Ceremony on Monday, Jan. 3, 2022, in San Diego, California, during the 2022 AIAA SciTech Forum, Jan. 3–7, 2022.

An associate professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering, Jayaram is among a distinguished group of individuals who the AIAA said have made significant and lasting contributions to the aerospace profession through education, research, and service. To be selected as an Associate Fellow an individual must be an AIAA Senior Member in good standing, with at least 12 years of professional experience, and be recommended by three current Associate Fellows.

“The AIAA Associate Fellows personify the innovation that drives our industry forward,” said Dan Dumbacher, AIAA executive director, in a media release. “The members of the Class of 2022 Associate Fellows embody the commitment, dedication, and ingenuity that are crucial for devising the best solutions to the complex questions raised across the aerospace community.”

Jayaram is the program coordinator in aerospace engineering at SLU’s Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology. He also is director of SLU’s Space Systems Research Laboratory. His research interests include bio-inspired aerodynamics, advanced control systems design of multi-vehicle coordination, and small spacecraft design.

His professional highlights include his role as a research associate and postdoctoral research scholar at the Florida Space Institute of the University of Central Florida. He is associate editor for Elsevier’s Aerospace Science and Technology Journal, panel reviewer for NASA's Minority Serving Institution Exchange and National Science Foundation Small Business Innovative Research Phase I and Phase II programs.

Jayaram is chair of the AIAA St. Louis Section and member of the American Society for Engineering Education. As chair of the AIAA, Jayaram said diversifying the aerospace engineering workforce through the recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority students to the field is a top priority for the chapter. 

About Parks College

Saint Louis University's Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology offers aviation degrees and engineering degree programs that enable students to study these technical disciplines in a traditional university setting. As the first federally recognized flight school, Parks College has a rich history of creating well-rounded leaders in aviation and engineering fields such as civil, electrical, computer, mechanical, biomedical, and aerospace.

About Saint Louis University

Founded in 1818, Saint Louis University is one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious Catholic institutions. Rooted in Jesuit values and its pioneering history as the first university west of the Mississippi River, SLU offers more than 12,000 students a rigorous, transformative education of the whole person. At the core of the University’s diverse community of scholars is SLU’s service-focused mission, which challenges and prepares students to make the world a better, more just place.