Will Fernandes joined Florida Polytechnic University as an assistant professor in Fall 2025. Prior to this, he held a post-doctoral research position at Texas Tech University, where he completed an M.S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering.
His area of expertise is aircraft design, especially related to the blended-wing-body (BWB) and flying wing. He published over 20 journal and conference papers between 2021 and 2025, exploring the intersection between aircraft design, aerodynamics, stability and controls and modeling. Fernandes has also been an active member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), especially as a part of the Transformational Flight Integration and Outreach Committee.
Education
Expertise
Professional Activities
Select Publications
Fernandes, G., Gandur, N., Maldonado, V., Mallory, A., Philip, J., Kendrick, D., Mills, C., Esquivel, V., Ku Doh Moo, H., & Ruiz, E. (2024). Conceptual Design of a Semi Blended Wing Body Hybrid Electric Regional Transport. AIAA SCITECH 2024 Forum. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2024-1911
Gandur, N., Fernandes, G., Maldonado, V., Wilkey, J., Valencia, A., Shelton, N., Brink, A., & Ramirez, S. (2024). Conceptual Design of a Single Core Mixed Pressure Flow Hybrid Electric Turbine Engine. AIAA SCITECH 2024 Forum. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2024-1181
Santos, D., Fernandes, G.D., Doosttalab, A., & Maldonado, V. (2024). Experimental Aerodynamics of a Small Fixed-Wing UAV Coated with Bio-Inspired Microfibers Under Static and Dynamic Stall. Aerospace, 11(11), 947. https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace11110947
Maldonado, V., Fernandes, G., Childre, H., & Gould, D. (2024). Aerodynamic Performance and Turbulent Jet Flow Characteristics of Ducted Rotors with Rectangular, Tapered, and Elliptical Blades. AIAA SCITECH 2024 Forum. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2024-1766
Dos Santos, D., Hicks, J., Dufflis, G., Cheon, M., & Maldonado, V. (2024). Computational and Experimental Aerodynamics of an E-VTOL Aircraft With Distributed Underwing Ducted Fan Propulsion and Boundary Layer Ingestion. AIAA AVIATION FORUM AND ASCEND 2024. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2024-4512
Dufflis Fernandes, G. (2024). Design of a stealth, flying wing bomber aircraft using vortex panel methods (Doctoral dissertation, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas). https://hdl.handle.net/2346/100823
Fernandes, G., Gandur, N., & Maldonado, V. (2025). Design of a Stealth, Flying Wing Bomber Aircraft Using Vortex Panel Methods. AIAA SCITECH 2025 Forum. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2025-2351
This session will demonstrate that practical risk management is for everyone, regardless of a formal program. Attendees will learn actionable and simple strategies that are easy to implement, enabling them to start immediately by focusing on their top risks to build greater operational resilience and ensure the sustained success of their auxiliary enterprises.
Michelle Powell serves as the pioneering Risk Manager at Florida Polytechnic University, the state’s sole 100% STEM-dedicated institution. Having been with the university for nearly 11 years, Michelle transitioned from a leadership role in Admissions in October 2023 to establish and evolve the risk management function from the ground up. In this solo capacity, Michelle builds robust frameworks for our dynamic, young university, overseeing our insurance portfolio, consulting on third-party and event risks, and developing critical campus-wide training programs. Michelle has obtained the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) Enterprise Risk Management certificate and the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist (CRIS) designations. Her distinct background in mathematics and engineering, combined with extensive higher education leadership, brings an analytical and strategic approach enhancing the institution’s resilience.
