The 2nd Annual ISE Student Conference took place on Friday, May 2, 2025, at the Illini Union at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. This event provided a platform for graduate students and invited undergrads in Industrial and Enterprise Systems Engineering (ISE) to

present their research through oral presentations and poster sessions. The conference welcomed contributions from all ISE concentrations, including data analytics, decision and control Systems, design and manufacturing, financial engineering, operations research, healthcare technology, and human factors.

In addition to student led presentations, attendees had the opportunity to engage with keynote speakers Professor Hamsa Balakrishnan, Associate Dean of Engineering and the William E. Leonhard (1940) Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Professor Young-Jun Son, James J. Solberg Head and Ransburg Professor of Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering at Purdue University.

In her talk, Professor Hamsa Balakrishnan examined the critical need for effective traffic management systems to ensure the safe and successful integration of AAM. She highlighted how, unlike traditional air traffic controlled by agencies like the FAA, AAM operations may rely on decentralized, third-party service providers. Balakrishnan also shared insights from her research team’s work to address these emerging issues and enable the future of sky-based mobility.

Professor Young-Jun Son explored how advanced simulation techniques can enhance planning and control of complex systems in real time. Son highlighted a simulation-based planning and control (SPC) framework that uses fast-running models for both forecasting and real-time decision-making. Through case studies in service systems, smart manufacturing and autonomous vehicles, Son demonstrated how these models can drive smarter, more efficient operations across various domains.

The conference aimed to foster collaboration among students and faculty, allowing participants to showcase their work, whether it was thesis research, ongoing projects or published papers. In addition to presentations, the event featured networking opportunities and a poster competition recognizing outstanding contributions.

Poster Competition Winners

Congratulations to Kaitlin Skurnak for winning the Best Poster Award. Kaitlin is a first-year PhD student in Systems Engineering and her winning poster featured her research: "Work System and Technology Requirements of a Device to Support Breast Oncology Surgeons." In addition, she presented her research earlier in the day during the oral presentation session Human Factors section.

Honorable Mentions: