Dr. Amir Yazdani announced as Director, Quality Assurance, FEAS
The Dean of FEAS, Tom Duever announced on July 23, 2021:
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Amir Yazdani as Director, Quality Assurance in the Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science for a three-year period starting September 1, 2021. Dr. Yazdani brings considerable academic leadership experience and commitment to his new role.
Dr. Yazdani is an internationally recognized scholar in the area of electronic energy conversion systems. He joined the academic staff of the Department of Electrical, Computer and Biomedical Engineering at Toronto Metropolitan University in 2011, after serving a five-year tenure as an Assistant Professor at the University of Western Ontario (UWO). Prior to joining UWO in 2006, Dr. Yazdani held an NSERC Industrial Research and Development Fellowship (IRDF) through which he worked for Digital Predictive Systems Inc. on the design and development of power-electronic converters for variable-speed wind energy systems. He received his degrees from Sharif University of Technology (B.Sc.), University of Tehran (M.Sc.), and University of Toronto (Ph.D.), all in Electrical Engineering, in 1995, 2001, and 2005, respectively.
At Ryerson and UWO, Dr. Yazdani has developed new upper-level undergraduate courses, modernized a number of lower-level undergraduate courses, and developed two graduate courses. He has taught 6 different undergraduate courses at Ryerson, some with enrolments exceeding 230, and has also supervised many undergraduate capstone projects.
Dr. Yazdani has also contributed significantly to SRC, HQP training, and service to the community. He has trained 17 PhD, 17 Master’s, and 10 undergraduate research students. He has published about 100 papers in top-tier journals and conferences, two books, and one book chapter. One of his two books, on the modeling and control of voltage-sourced converters, is a major reference having served many academic institutions, research centres, and manufacturers worldwide. Since 2008, Dr. Yazdani has regularly served as an Associate Editor, Guest Associate Editor, or Guest Editor-in-Chief of a number of top-tier transactions of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Currently, he is an Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, and IEEE Systems Journal. Dr. Yazdani has served as a keynote speaker or a member of technical committees of notable conferences in his area, and has offered consultations to the government as well as the private sector. Since 2020, he has been a member and a co-chair of NSERC Discovery Grant Evaluation Group 1510 (Electrical Engineering).
Dr. Yazdani’s contributions to academia extend also to university administration. Since 2015, he has been the Associate Chair (Graduate Studies) of the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Biomedical Engineering. He represents FEAS on the Academic Standards Committee, has been a member of various faculty-wide or departmental committees, and served as a Senator.
Please join me in offering Dr. Yazdani our best wishes for his appointment, and our support in his endeavours as the Quality Assurance Director.