Steve Mickelson

Special Advisor for Student Information Systems
271E Durham
515-294-1434
estaben@iastate.edu

Steven K. Mickelson is a professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (ABE) at Iowa State University (ISU). He grew up in northwest Iowa on a farm just north of Storm Lake, IA. Since 2011 he has served as the Chair for ABE and is the inaugural recipient of the Charles R. and Jane F. Olsen Professorship in Engineering. The named professorship was made possible through the generosity of Charles and Jane Olsen of Leawood, KS to recognize an outstanding faculty member with research and teaching emphasis in the areas of sustainability, clean water and the environment. During his tenure as Department Chair, the department has risen to the top rankings among ABE departments in the US according to US News. Dr. Mickelson’s teaching expertise is in engineering computer graphic, engineering design, engineering workplace competency development and his research focus areas includes evaluation of agricultural best practices for reducing surface water contamination and the scholarship of teaching and learning. Prior to becoming the Chair for ABE, he was the Director for the Center for Excellence and Teaching and the Co-director of Learning Communities at ISU for three years. He received his agricultural engineering degrees from Iowa State University in 1982, 1984, and 1991, respectively. Dr. Mickelson also has an honorary doctorate degree from Georgian Technical University in Tbilisi, Georgia. In 2017, he received the ASABE Gilley Academic Leadership Award and the ISU Award for Departmental Leadership. He became a Fellow of ASABE in 2018.