Dr. Marcus A. Huggans is a native of St. Louis, Missouri and was educated in the University City and Lutheran Parochial school systems.
Dr. Huggans completed his engineering studies at the University of Missouri-Rolla (UMR). He received a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering and M.S. & Ph.D. in Engineering Management. He was one of the first African-American males to earn a Ph.D. in this discipline from the University. For his Ph. D. dissertation, Huggans conducted a study to determine if different Internet-based study aids helped students of different learning styles under the advisors Dr. Halvard E. Nystrom and Dr. Harvest L. Collier. The title of his dissertation was “The Impact of Learning Styles Using Web-based Asynchronous Distance Learning to Enhance Instruction by Electrical Engineering Students.” Dr. Huggans is an alumnus of the GEM Fellowship Program.
Dr. Huggans has extensive experience in the STEM field with over twenty years of working in the industry. He has worked for 3M Company, AT&T Bell Laboratories, Department of Justice-Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Texas Instruments Inc.
Dr. Huggans also worked at UMR now known as Missouri University of Science & Technology (S&T) as the Director of the Student Diversity and Academic Support Program. Under his leadership, S&T experienced unprecedented growth in the recruitment of under-represented minority students in the areas of science and engineering. He began working at the National GEM Consortium in 2006 as a Senior Recruiter and Programs Specialist, and now he is the Executive Director of Client Relations at GEM. At GEM, Dr. Huggans recruits and conducts graduate programming to encourage under-represented minority students to pursue their graduate degrees in science, technology, engineering, and applied mathematics (STEM) fields. He also wrote the publications that accompany the entire student programming at GEM. Dr. Huggans has been the Finance Chair for IEEE-ITSC and was appointed to the IEEE-HKN Editorial Committee and Board of Governors. Dr. Huggans has won several foundation grants through the National Science Foundation (NSF), 3M, Intel, and Motorola Foundations that support some of the GEM students and programming. Finally, Dr. Huggans has been an invited speaker to many diversity conferences, NSF, and multiple universities as well as corporations/national laboratories to discuss the importance of a graduate degree.
Currently, Dr. Huggans resides in Dallas, TX with his wife Melanie, and their daughter Hannah and son Ellis. In his spare time, he enjoys attending church, working with elementary, high school, and college students. He also enjoys studying various investment vehicles, including investing in real estate, stock options, and entrepreneurship. Dr. Huggans believes that all individuals need to take control of their financial future. It is not the vehicle that will make you financially independent; it is the dedication to it.
His Motto: “If there is light in the soul, there will be beauty in the person. If there is beauty in the person, there will be harmony in the house. If there is harmony in the house, there will be order in the nation. If there is order in the nation, there will be Peace in the World.”