Lew Lefton is an emeritus faculty member and Retired Principal Academic Professional in the School of Mathematics at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He earned a B.S. with double majors in Mathematics and Computer Science from New Mexico Tech in 1982 and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1987. Following postdoctoral research at the University of California, Riverside, and a tenure-track position culminating in tenure at the University of New Orleans, Lefton joined Georgia Tech’s School of Mathematics faculty in 1999, primarily serving as Director of Information Technology. His responsibilities expanded in 2005 to include a role as IT Director for the College of Sciences. By 2015, he was appointed Assistant Dean of Information Technology for the College of Sciences, managing Academic and Research Computing Services. In 2017, he became Associate Vice President for Research Computing in the Office of the Executive Vice President for Research, leading strategic technology investments, facilitating faculty access to shared computing resources, developing sustainable cyberinfrastructure, and advising on research data management until his retirement in 2023.

Lefton’s research focuses on scientific computing, parallel algorithms, numerical analysis of nonlinear differential equations, computer architecture, IT system administration, computational humor, and applications of humor and improvisation in STEM education, scalable computing, data management, the maker movement, and hands-on STEAM education. Key publications include the textbook An Introduction to Parallel and Vector Scientific Computing with Ronald Shonkwiler (Cambridge University Press, 2006); “Humor Applied to STEM Education” with P. Ludovice and D. Hu (Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 2017); “Optimal Numerical Flux of Power Law Fluids in Some Partially Full Pipes” with D. Wei and Y. Liu (International Journal of Computational Fluid Dynamics, 2014); and “Penalty finite element approximations of the stationary power-law Stokes problem” with Dongming Wei (J. Numer. Math., 2003). He taught MATH/CS 4777: Introduction to Parallel and Vector Scientific Computing multiple times and co-taught “The Humor Genome Project,” a Vertically Integrated Projects course, every Fall and Spring since 2013.

Professional Email: lew.lefton@gatech.edu