Published on January 26, 2026

Dr. Sean Moseley was the 2025 winner of ProComm’s Emily K. Schlesinger Award for Outstanding Service Award. He was kind enough to speak to us about his IEEE ProComm work and what it means to him as an engineer and instructor.

He currently teaches at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology as a Professor of Mechanical Engineering with specialization in solid mechanics, technical communication, and engineering education.

Traci Nathans-Kelly [TNK]: You have been very active in IEEE ProComm for quite a few years, which this award acknowledges. Tell us a bit about how you first became involved in ProComm.

Sean Moseley [SM]: The PCS president in 2016 asked me to fill a temporary vacancy on the Board of Governors to replace an outgoing engineer. It was a natural fit with my engineer’s perspective on technical communication. I immediately noticed the collegiality and enthusiasm of the society and decided to remain involved in whatever way I could. In addition to board membership, I also got involved in conference planning which helped me make interpersonal connections that are strong to this day.

[TNK]: As an engineer and engineering educator, your perspectives have also held weight and sway during committee meetings, in conference sessions, and in most corners of ProComm’s inner workings more. This award is one way that the society has to recognize that applied expertise and commitment.  To that end, what would you say to other engineers about their potential contributions within ProComm?

[SM]: There is most certainly a place for both engineers from industry and engineering educators in our society. Start by recognizing that ProComm operates in a discipline with different ways of exploring knowledge than most of our engineering training. Listen often and respect the communication expertise all around. Balance this humility by recognizing that your engineering, scientific, and technical work is likely overflowing with communication situations. The society has always welcomed discussion and exploration of what I see when turning the communication lens inward. If you haven’t ever looked at our society’s mission and vision statements—do it now. Do you see that these will only be achieved through genuine cross-disciplinary collaboration between stakeholders of all kinds?

[TNK]: In what ways does ProComm help you to do your job better?

[SM]: By attending our annual conference and reading our website resources, I have grown my own toolset for thinking about engineering communication. Having frameworks and vocabulary to talk about the similarities and differences of a lab report compared to user documentation of an analytical tool allows me to better see the forest for the trees. Thinking about the audience, purpose, and context of whatever I’m working on makes me a better communicator and a better teacher. I now talk to students about the argumentative structure of a homework solution in solid mechanics. I hope that one day engineering training views communication as equally central to our discipline as mathematics. ProComm helps me effect this change from the inside.

[TNK]: Are there other topics or items that you wish to talk about regarding your ProComm work, volunteering, teaching, or other? 

[SM]: ProComm has been, by far, the most welcoming and collegial professional society I have ever been involved with. I encourage anyone to check out what we have to offer. If what we do is related to your interests at all, I suspect you can find a comfortable professional home with us.

IEEE ProComm thanks Dr. Moseley for his continued service to the Society. He currently serves on ProComm’s Board of Governors and is our Finance chair.