Shalini Bhat, PE, and Kevin Rogers, PE, have been named co-directors of Professional Development Programs within the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering’s Interdisciplinary Professional Programs (InterPro).
Bhat and Rogers, both longtime InterPro program directors with extensive engineering industry experience, will jointly lead InterPro’s portfolio of noncredit professional development programs. Each will work with a group of program directors while sharing responsibility for the overall direction of Professional Development Programs and representing the group within InterPro’s leadership team.
“Shalini and Kevin bring an outstanding combination of industry experience, teaching expertise and a deep understanding of the needs of practicing professionals,” said Ed Borbely, associate dean of Interdisciplinary Professional Programs. “They are highly collaborative leaders who understand both the industries we serve and the role continuing education canplay throughout an engineer’s career. I’m excited to see them build on the strong foundation Susan Ottmann established and lead our professional development programs forward.”
Bhat joined UW-Madison in 2018 following a career in the electric power industry. An electrical engineer and registered professional engineer, she previously worked for WE Energies, Cooper Power Systems and Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories in roles spanning electric power distribution, protection engineering and planning. At InterPro, she has served as a program director and instructor, developing and delivering professional education for engineers and other technical professionals.
Rogers joined UW-Madison in 2017 after working in engineering roles in the electric utility, consulting and construction industries. His experience includes electric power distribution and transmission systems, mission-critical facilities, underground medium-voltage distribution, and renewable generation. At InterPro, he has served as a program director overseeing professional development programming and working with instructors and industry professionals to develop technical education.
The new co-director structure follows Ottmann’s five years leading Professional Development Programs. Ottmann will continue with InterPro as Program Director for Technical Leadership and Technical Project Management, where she also teaches courses in those areas. During her tenure leading Professional Development Programs, she helped guide the portfolio and establish a strong foundation for its continued growth.