Attendees at the Western Regional Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Conference

Friday, April 18, 2025 marked the first-ever Western Regional Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) Conference, and San José State University showed up in full force.

Thanks to the extraordinary leadership of Dr. Crystal Fausett (College of Information, Data and Society) and a powerhouse team including Dr. Yue Luo (College of Engineering), Randy Mumaw (SJSU/NASA Ames), Shraddha Swaroop (SJSU alum), Aubrey Victoria (current student), Michelle Schroeders (current student) and Denise Forkey (longtime friend of the Human Factors and Ergonomics program), the conference exceeded expectations with nearly 100 attendees and wide-ranging participation from academia, industry, and government.

Hosted graciously by James Huie at the Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati law firm, and with Eric Shaver of Rimkus as the platinum sponsor, the day featured nationally synchronized keynotes, dynamic panels, poster sessions, and a hands-on resume review workshop.

Shraddha and 2nd place poster winner

SJSU’s impact was evident throughout, from faculty and alumni contributions to outstanding student research. Special shoutout to Dr. Gaojian Huang’s (College of Engineering) student Weihsiang Joshua Lo, who earned 2nd place in the poster competition! We also celebrated excellent poster presentations by Dr. Fausett’s students Marcela Castillo and Dori Hjalmarson.

Dr. Dan Nathan-Roberts from the College of IDS, who emceed the event, noted:

“I was honored to see our community come together in such a meaningful way to elevate the future of human factors and ergonomics.”