Dr. Bonnie Holub, a robotics engineer who taught courses in artificial intelligence and computer science at the University of St. Thomas from 1987 to 2000, is returning to the university’s Graduate Programs in Software and will hold the Honeywell Endowed Chair in Global Technology Management.
Dr. Bonnie Holub
After leaving St. Thomas as an associate professor in 2000, Holub founded and led three Minnesota-based high-tech research and consulting firms. As holder of the Honeywell chair, she will help develop curriculum and serve as a liaison to business.
“I’m delighted to be returning to St. Thomas” she said. “My background as a faculty member and experience running high-tech companies is a perfect fit with the mission of the university’s engineering programs.”
St. Thomas’ graduate software program, the first of its kind in the Midwest and the fourth in the nation when it was launched in 1984, was developed jointly by the university and firms such as Control Data, Honeywell, IBM, Sperry and 3M.
“With students from more than 100 companies in the Twin Cities region studying in our programs today, the connection between the rapidly evolving software field and what happens in the classroom is critical,” said Dr. Don Weinkauf, dean of St. Thomas’ School of Engineering, home to both graduate and undergraduate engineering programs at the university.
“Dr. Holub’s leadership experience will reinforce the relevance and impact of our programs in industry and the broader community,” he said.
Holub, who lives in the St. Paul suburb of Sunfish Lake, graduated from St. Thomas with a bachelor’s in computer science and English in 1982. She received her master’s and doctorate, in computer science and artificial intelligence, from the University of Minnesota.
She began a 13-year career as a full- and part-time scientist with Honeywell in 1982. As president of Knowledge Partners of Minnesota from 1992 to 2000, she led expert-systems research for Fortune 500 corporations in the Midwest.
In 2002 she founded Adventium Labs and Adventium Enterprises, which she led until selling her ownership interest in 2010. The 39-employee research and development firm worked extensively in the field of complex systems and computer security. In addition to commercial clients, Adventium worked with the federal Department of Energy, Department of Homeland Security, NASA, National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation.
In 2010 she founded ArcLight Technology Consulting and continues to be its president and CEO. The firm focuses on technology consulting for the aerospace and defense industries.
Over the years Holub has been involved with an extensive range of projects that have included Minnesota state parks, Boeing 757 and F-16 aircraft, and the space station Freedom.
Holub was named the 1993 Minnesota Young Engineer of the Year by the Minnesota Federation of Engineering Associations. In 2009 she received the Distinguished Alumnus award from the Computer and Engineering Science Department at the University of Minnesota.
She is chair of the board of the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce and also serves on the boards of the Minnesota High Tech Association, High Tech Kids, and Dodge Nature Center. She also is on the board of advisors for St. Thomas’ Graduate Programs in Software and the College of Science and Engineering at the University of Minnesota.
St. Thomas’ Graduate Programs in Software currently enrolls more than 300 students. Since its founding 27 years ago, it has granted more than 2,500 master’s degrees.
