Shehan Jayasekera
Lecturer
Shehan Jayasekera
Lecturer
Bio
Dr. Shehan Jayasekera received his B.S. and Ph.D. from the Rochester Institute of Technology. He teaches a variety of hands-on and laboratory courses and emphasizes active, student-centered learning. His teaching philosophy is rooted in curiosity, relevance, and engagement: students learn best when they can connect theory to real-world applications and gradually build confidence through scaffolded experiences. He brings an approachable, lighthearted style to the classroom, uses demonstrations and real data to anchor abstract concepts, and encourages students to explore emerging tools such as AI to prepare for the workflows of the future. By integrating teamwork, project planning, and the KEEN framework of Curiosity, Connection, and Creating Value, he aims to help students not only master technical skills but also grow as collaborative problem-solvers.
Dr. Jayasekera’s research focuses on wearable sensing technologies and quantitative methods for studying human respiratory behavior. His doctoral work developed a novel approach for simultaneously measuring puffing and respiratory patterns in natural environments using smart garments, providing non-invasive data on inhalation, exhalation, and breath-hold dynamics. This system has been deployed to assess how product characteristics, such as airflow resistance or nicotine strength, shape usage behavior of tobacco products. He continues to draw on this expertise in his teaching, showing students how engineering tools and measurements can be applied in complex, real-world contexts where ambiguity and variability are part of the challenge.