Viola Acoff is a metallurgical and materials engineer who has been working to promote STEM education for over two decades. Currently acting as associate dean for undergraduate and graduate programs at the University of Alabama, Acoff holds a doctoral degree in materials engineering and has expertise in additive manufacturing, materials characterization using electron microscopy, welding metallurgy, and more.
It is not only her own accolades which have landed Acoff on our list, however, as the well established engineer has done a great deal to promote and encourage STEM education at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the U.S.
Notably, Acoff has played an integral role in establishing materials engineering courses and programs at HBCUs by developing a program geared towards helping faculty integrate the discipline into science and math courses.