Liesl Folks

Liesl Folks serves as the Vice President of Semiconductor Strategy and Director of the Center for Semiconductor Manufacturing at the University of Arizona, roles held since July 2019 and July 2023, respectively. Previously, Liesl was the Provost and Chief Academic Officer at the University of Arizona and Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at the University at Buffalo from January 2013 to July 2019. Liesl has also held various leadership positions within the IEEE and the IEEE Magnetics Society, including President and Chair of the Nominations Committee. Earlier experience includes roles at HGST, a Western Digital brand, and IBM Corporation's Almaden Research Center. Liesl holds an MBA from the Cornell Johnson Graduate School of Management and a PhD in Physics from The University of Western Australia, where Liesl also completed a Bachelor's degree in Physics (Honors).