Sharon Joines, Ph.D., has been named interim dean for the College of Design, effective July 1. Dr. Joines is an experienced researcher and ergonomist, teaching courses in human-centered design and ergonomics as a professor of industrial design. She has served as associate dean of academic strategy for the college since 2018. 

Joining the College of Design in 2006, Dr. Joines was a member of the Center for Universal Design (CUD), a national research, information and technical assistance center that evaluated, developed and promoted accessible and universal design in housing, buildings, outdoor and urban environments and related products. When the CUD was de-funded in 2010, Dr. Joines continued this work through funded projects in the Research in Ergonomics and Design (RED) Lab as its founder. Over the past decade, she has received over $1.5 million in funded research and has filed 39 patents. 

Her interests encompass universal design, applied product and process research, innovation and quantifying the interaction between individuals, products and their environment. Dr. Joines works with engineers and designers in all phases of the design cycle. As associate dean for academic strategy, she leverages collaborations to solve over-constrained problems, and has a passion for improving the quality of life in the workplace. Her passion for universal design extends to purposefully co-creating inclusive courses, curricula and communities. She has been an advocate for student well-being and an advocate for standardizing processes and procedures across the college.

Before joining the college, Dr. Joines was the director of research and education at the Ergonomics Center of North Carolina. She was a John T. Caldwell Scholar, Merit Scholar, University Scholar and NC Fellow. She is a member of the Order of Thirty and Three, Alpha Pi Mu and the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.

She is a recipient of the 2017 Outstanding Graduate Faculty Mentor Award and the 2017 Alumni Association Outstanding Research Award. Her work on the Couplet Care Bassinet led to a Red Dot Design Award, the highest award granted to industrial designers. 

With three NC State degrees and more than two decades of service to the university, Dr. Joines is uniquely positioned to lead the College of Design as it continues to grow and provide a high-quality experiential education to students.