Faculty profile: Kellen Maicher

Kellen Maicher tests a student-built touchscreen in a Knoy Hall computer lab.

Title: Assistant professor of computer graphics technology

Time at Purdue: Has been an assistant professor in the department since 2005.

What he researches: Maicher's work focuses on usability, human-computer interface development, and human factors of graphics technology. He is working on several projects involving Rich Internet Application development for educational applications. Most recently, he has been involved in the Adobe Education Developer Partnership, which gives students access to products, education, and training previously available only to industry pros. Purdue is one of a select group of universities to be chosen for the partnership. In addition, he is faculty adviser for the student chapter of ACM-SIGGRAPH (Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Graphics and Interactive Techniques).

Why he enjoys what he does: "I very much enjoy the interdisciplinary nature of computer graphics, which combines elements of science, art, and communication. When you combine that with the incredible experience of teaching and mentoring students, I can't think of anything else I'd rather do," said Maicher, who was accepted to both the Chicago Institute of Art and the University of Notre Dame. He instead chose to attend Purdue and earn degrees in population genetics and technical graphics.

When he's not working, you can find him doing this: Illustrating, reading, exploring the Web, and creating artwork.