Joseph Miles

Joseph Miles is an Associate Professor at the Charles V. Schaefer, Jr. School of Engineering and Science, Stevens Institute of Technology, where he has taught since 2004. He oversees the Engineering Design Spine curriculum, integrating Systems Engineering concepts, and serves as Program Director of the NASA-funded New Jersey Space Grant Consortium, managing student rocketry programs and statewide educational initiatives.

• Education: MS in Computer Science/Mathematics (1981), MS in Management Science/Operations Research (1976), BE in Electrical Engineering (1974), all from Stevens Institute of Technology.

Research focuses on hands-on engineering education through the Rock SAT-C program, mentoring interdisciplinary teams of undergraduate and graduate students in designing and launching sounding rocket payloads. His work emphasizes real-world challenges such as payload leaks, data collection failures, and environmental resilience, preparing students for careers in aerospace and systems engineering.

As Program Director of the New Jersey Space Grant Consortium, he secures ~$850,000/year in funding for internships, graduate fellowships, K-12 bridge programs, and rocketry initiatives. He has led the Stevens team in annual launches at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, navigating setbacks like 2023’s rain delays and 2025’s payload leak.

• Scientific Awards: Gallois Competition (2022).

Miles’ teaching spans Robotics (C++), Data Acquisition (LabVIEW), Truss & Beam Construction (MATLAB), and Electronics (MATLAB/Simulink/Simscape), with increasing student enrollment from 150–190 to 250–425 per semester since 2021. He chairs the New Jersey Statewide Program Coordinator role and mentors teams in NASA’s Rock-ON and Rock-SAT-C programs.

His corporate background includes 50 years of global project management experience in manufacturing, finance, and IT sectors, notably at Mobil Oil Corporation, where he managed $3.0 MM/year budgets and five personnel. Current efforts prioritize improving payload testing timelines and fostering innovation in dynamical systems and algorithmic programming.