Faculty and Staff

Dan Lamborn is returning to Idaho to serve as the executive director for the MER Institute.  He grew up in Twin Falls, ID and earned a B.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Utah.  Dan then earned a PhD in chemical engineering from The Pennsylvania State University with a research project focused superconducting thin film deposition and process modeling.  He then started his 16 year career at Intel where he had a variety of roles and responsibilities.  These ranged from process development pathfinding and engineering, equipment design and installation, team building and supply chain management.

Jeanne Hansen is a new member of the MER Institute staff and joins the team from her position as the Games, Interactive Media & Mobile (GIMM) Degree Program Coordinator. She completed her BA in Business Administration w/minor in Health Care Administration from Wayland Baptist University. She earned her MBA w/minor in Marketing from Trident International University and obtained her real estate license. Her career background includes budget analysis, project management, department office manager, event management, building client relationships, and providing outstanding customer service.  Jeanne is a proud military veteran who served 22 years in the Air Force and retired out of Mountain Home Air Force Base, ID.

Camille Platts-McPharlin serves as the MER Institute Semiconductor for All Project Manager, ensuring streamlined workforce development opportunities at Boise State for the semiconductor industry in Idaho. Her background includes 10 years of experience in formal and informal K-12 STEM education and science communication. She earned a B.S. in Forestry from Northern Arizona University and an M.Sc. in Science Communication and Public Engagement from University of Edinburgh, Scotland. Camille has a strong drive to make STEM opportunities accessible to all.

Eric Schneider is serving the MER Institute as an Encore Fellow since retiring from a 26 year career with Intel in Hillsboro where he worked on all aspects of product validation including both hardware and software.  He earned his B.S and M.S. in Computer Science from Washington State University and moved to Boise in 2020 prior to retiring from Intel in 2023.  He is passionate about expanding the semiconductor workforce by encouraging middle school and high school students to consider the career opportunities available in Idaho.  Eric collaborates with the Idaho Digital Learning Alliance (IDLA) on curriculum development for Semiconductor for All.

Research Areas: AI, Machine Learning

Research Areas: Cyber Security, Applied Cryptography, Data Mining, Cloud Computing

Research Areas: Empirical Software Engineering, Software Testing, Peer Code Review, and Software Metrics

Research Area: Human Computer Interaction

Research area: thin film deposition and characterization

Research Areas: Large Scale Data Analysis, Parallel Computing, Distributed Systems

Research Areas: Natural Language Processing, Dialogue Systems, Human Robot Interaction, Data Science

Research Area: Scientific computing, Hydrodynamics, Machine learning

Research Areas: Cyber Security, Data Privacy, Cyber-Physical Systems, Security, And Privacy

Research Areas: Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Science, AI/ML application Cyber and National Security

Research Areas: Software engineering, Static Analysis of software

Research Areas: Social media mining, Data Science