Sneha Kumar Kasera has been named the new director of the Kahlert School of Computing in the John and Marcia Price College of Engineering at the University of Utah. His appointment will begin July 1, 2026. A distinguished researcher, educator, and academic leader, Kasera brings more than two decades of experience in advancing computing research, education, and innovation.
Kasera joined the University of Utah faculty in 2003 and is currently a professor in the Kahlert School of Computing with an adjunct appointment in Electrical and Computer Engineering. From 2018 to 2025, he served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the Price College of Engineering, where he provided strategic leadership and played a central role in shaping curriculum development, academic policy, and college growth.
Throughout his career, Kasera has demonstrated a strong commitment to innovation in education and interdisciplinary collaboration. He founded Kahlert’s Master of Software Development program, designed to provide rigorous software training for students without prior degrees in computing. Kasera has also played a central role in advancing artificial intelligence initiatives at the university. He established a college-wide AI committee and helped launch programs aimed at integrating AI across disciplines and expanding AI education for students and faculty. His efforts include initiatives to upskill faculty across campus in the use of AI in research and teaching, strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation. Kasera has built strong partnerships with the David Eccles School of Business particularly in financial technology, and serves as the Academic Chair of the University of Utah’s Fintech Center.
An internationally recognized scholar in computer networks, wireless systems, and network security, Kasera’s research has had significant academic and real-world impact. His work has deeply advanced wireless transmitter localization, spectrum management, and secure communications systems. He is the founding director of the Advanced Networked Systems Research Lab, which investigates next-generation networked systems and technologies. Kasera has published over 150 papers and has been granted 15 U.S. patents. He is a recipient of the 2019 R&D 100 Award for innovations in real-time radio frequency signal detection and classification. Earlier, in his career at Bell Labs, his work on overload control algorithms for telecommunications systems earned him the Bell Labs President’s Gold Award.
Beyond his research and administrative leadership, Kasera has been deeply engaged in professional service, mentoring faculty and students, and contributing to national and international computing research communities. He has served as program chair for major international conferences including ACM MobiCom, ACM WiSec, and IEEE ICNP, and has also served on the editorial boards of several leading networking journals including the IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking, and the IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing. He currently serves on the advisory board of the NSF LEVEL UP AI Initiative.
As Director of the Kahlert School of Computing, Kasera will guide the school through a time of extraordinary change and opportunity. He envisions the school to be shaping solutions to critical societal challenges; setting direction and influencing policy; leading in entrepreneurship, and research translation; and promoting responsible use of computing technology. Kasera aims to foster an exceptional culture of faculty excellence, productivity, and support, anchored by a collaborative and inspiring work environment in which faculty, staff, and students can do their best work and achieve their fullest potential.
“I would also like to express my sincere appreciation to Professor Mary Hall for her six years of outstanding service as director of the Kahlert School of Computing,” says Charles Musgrave, Dean of the Price College of Engineering. “We are deeply grateful for her many lasting contributions to the School and College during her term, including the new minor and B.S. in Artificial Intelligence, the naming of the School and the construction of the new home of the KSOC — the John and Marcia Price Computing and Engineering Building.”
This article originally appeared at price.utah.edu.