PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (June 29, 2021) – Engineer. Attorney. Teacher. Students in Dr. Lealon Martin’s chemical engineering thermodynamics, process modeling and simulation, and senior design classes at Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) are getting an assistant professor with an intriguing background and a lot on his plate. And, in his words, they are getting someone who “enjoys engaging student curiosity.”
“I enjoy guiding students as they learn how to think critically and solve problems in a structured way,” Martin said. “It is a difficult process for most students. But it is quite rewarding to see their growth and development as they mature into confident engineers with the ability to define, formulate, and solve problems.”
Martin joined the PVAMU faculty in 2018 after previous teaching positions at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the University of Texas at Austin. A graduate of Tuskegee University, Martin views his time at PVAMU as an opportunity to “give back to the Historically Black College/University (HBCU) community – a community that has given so much to me – by helping to advance Prairie View through dedicated service and hard work.”
Advancing research to solve 21st-century problems
Among Martin’s most notable contributions to the university to date is securing a National Science Foundation grant last September. The funded project is a collaborative effort between PVAMU, Morgan State University, and Tennessee State University. “Excellence in Research/Collaborative Research: Smart Technology-enabled Nutrient Lifecycle and Supply Chain Management for Microgreens” is a three-year project supporting research-to-engineer next-generation smart technology to improve farm-to-table food management of microgreen crops.
“This project is not only inter-institutional; it’s interdisciplinary,” he said. “Our team is comprised of a chemical engineer, a chemist, an industrial engineer, a nutritionist, and a horticulturist. We will study methods that support cultivation, harvesting, and transport in order to ensure the delivery of high-quality nutritional microgreen products.”
Objectives are to boost phytonutrient level in microgreens, which may lead to improvements in human metabolic health; increase the intake of nutrient-rich microgreen products, which gives way to the crops’ anti-carcinogenic properties; and have food supply chains that eliminate food deserts in underserved communities. Funds provided in the grant will support graduate students, and Martin has secured supplemental funding to provide research opportunities for undergraduates over the next two semesters.
“What projects like this allow me to do as a teacher is show students some non-intuitive applications of what they are learning,” he said. “The educational materials stemming from this project cannot be found in a chemical engineering textbook. Most students would never imagine that tackling issues surrounding food insecurity can find relevance in a chemical engineering curriculum. But that’s why this project represents such a special opportunity. It reinforces a core message that we want to instill in students: the concepts and engineering principles that they study at PV better equip us to solve tough 21st-century problems.”
Furthering PVAMU’s mission using a solid foundation
Looking back, Martin’s time as a lecturer and research fellow in the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at UT-Austin was a direct consequence of his decision to attend the university’s law school. Earning his J.D. in intellectual property law, Martin practiced as a patent litigator and then was a co-founder of LeCorte Martin, P.C., a science and technology law firm that focuses on intellectual property law, immigration law, and cybersecurity/data privacy law. He is currently a part of a team developing two classes at PVAMU that, if approved, would have their debuts next spring: cybersecurity law, policy and compliance (taught by Martin), and cybersecurity ethics (taught by Dr. Mark Tschaepe). This effort, led by Dr. Louis Ngamassi and members of the SECURE Center on campus, is part of a project funded by the National Security Agency called “Developing and Promoting Cybersecurity Programs in Non-STEM Curriculum at Prairie View A&M University.”
“These classes would target non-STEM students, but my goal in all teaching is the same: to help students reach their potential and access their untapped intellectual wealth so that they can go out and make a better world,” he said.
Martin said that a pivotal teacher in his young life was Mr. Davis, his 6th-grade math teacher. Mr. Davis was a retired high school principal who, after a first day in the classroom, took his charges outside to learn from doing things and making observations. “We were learning what we were supposed to in the curriculum, but we were doing it through play,” Martin said. “What he helped me realize early on is that there is no difference between in the classroom and outside so far as engaging one’s curiosity is concerned; the world is your classroom. I don’t take my students outside to play, but the same love and enthusiasm I have for research, those exact principles and concepts and thought processes apply to my approach to teaching. Everything is synergistic, integrated; I teach by example. I just try to be myself and let students see how excited I am about the subject matter and how excited I am about them learning it.”
By Andrew Cohen
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