Undergraduate Academic Affairs Staff

Michael Falk serves as the Vice Dean for Undergraduate Education in the Whiting School of Engineering. In this role he is responsible for maintaining the excellence of our undergraduate educational programs, overseeing program accreditation, and attending to the academic advising needs of students. Prof. Falk earned a bachelors degree in physics and masters degree in computer science from Johns Hopkins University, and a Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

He is a professor of Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Physics. Prof. Falk’s research applies computer simulation to materials at the atomic scale and investigates how engineering students learn computing. He works in close partnership with the Baltimore City Schools to increase engagement in STEM learning and serves as advocate for diversity, particularly LGBTQ inclusion.

He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and a recipient of the Materials Research Society Impact Award.

Janet Weise joined JHU and the Whiting School of Engineering in 1999 as a senior academic advisor. She subsequently was the inaugural holder of several positions in the Whiting School: Director of Academic Advising, Assistant Dean for Academic Advising, and Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

In her role as Associate Dean for Undergraduate Academic Affairs, Janet supports the implementation of the recommendations of the Second Commission on Undergraduate Education (CUE2) in collaboration with Vice Dean Michael Falk.

She also provides administrative oversight to the WSE Curriculum Committee and serves on many ad hoc and standing committees, including the WSE/KSAS Joint Administrative Committee on Academic Policies and Procedures, the KSAS/WSE HelioCampus Implementation team, the WSE Education Partnership Evaluation Committee, WSE International/Corporate Affairs team, and many others. Janet received her B.S. in Biology from The College of William and Mary in Virginia and her M. Ed.

from the University of Maryland College Park.

Kimberley Bassett Zing joined the Whiting School of Engineering as assistant dean for undergraduate academic advising in the fall of 2021. She leads the Whiting School’s undergraduate academic advising team and coordinates advising practices with WSE’s academic departments.

She joined Johns Hopkins as the advising offices of the Whiting School of Engineering and the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences—in collaboration with NACADA and the Gardner Institute—were entering the second phase of the multi-year Excellence in Academic Advising (EAA) initiative. Her skills and visionary leadership experience contribute to Whiting’s broader institutional mission and goals for undergraduate student development. Prior to joining Hopkins, Dr.

Zing was associate dean in the University of Virginia’s Office of African-American Affairs. She joined the office in 2007, after earning her PhD in chemistry. Her work there employed relationship building, peer-to-peer mentorship, and mental health support to promote a thriving, creative learning environment. She also directed the OAAA Peer Advisor Program, which provided personalized support and counseling for first-year and entering transfer students.

Liana C. Mentor joined the Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering in 2026 as the inaugural Assistant Dean for Customized Academic Learning (CAL). She provides strategic leadership for the development and implementation of innovative, student-centered academic experiences across the Whiting School. In partnership with faculty, academic leaders, and university stakeholders, she leads the development of the Hopkins Semester, a full-time, credit-bearing immersive learning experience that enables students to design and complete individualized academic projects through faculty-mentored research, independent study, internships, entrepreneurship, and other experiential learning opportunities. She also oversees the policies, processes, and infrastructure supporting Customized Academic Learning, with a focus on expanding access to high-impact educational experiences, strengthening faculty engagement, and creating scalable pathways that integrate academic inquiry with students' academic, personal, and professional goals.

Prior to joining Whiting, Liana served as the inaugural Senior Director of Success Coaching and Advising at Johns Hopkins University, where she established and led one of the university's largest student success initiatives, supporting more than 1,500 first-generation and/or limited-income (FLI) and Division I student-athletes through holistic advising, coaching, and strategic academic support. Earlier in her career, she held leadership positions at the University of Miami and the Southern Regional Education Board, leading initiatives focused on student success, educational access, leadership development, and organizational innovation.

Liana earned her B.A., M.S.Ed., and Ph.D. in Community Psychology from the University of Miami. She also holds a graduate certificate in Higher Education Student Life and Development.

Constanza is a multidisciplinary academic interested in the intersection between the creativity of design, the ethics of cultural anthropology and the tech aspects of engineering. She is the Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Mentoring for the School of Engineering, and design faculty in BME. One of her tasks is to create and deploy the new undergraduate mentoring program for WSE.

Before JHU, she was an assistant professor at PUC Chile's Engineering School where she founded and directed (with a fantastic team!) the engineering design initiative (DILAB). Constanza holds a Ph.D. in Design with a focus in anthropology from NC State University. While a Fulbright grantee, she worked as a visiting researcher at Stanford's CDR (Mech. Engineering). As an entrepreneur, a team player, and researcher, her focus is on biomedical devices, engineering design education & pre-engineering education.

Today, she constantly interacts with industry linking students to the conversations of the current practice.