EIT Division welcomes new faculty and staff members

The Engineering and Information Technologies Division welcomes three tenure-track faculty members and a new academic advisor who joined the College this Spring Semester.

Dr. David Barbella is an instructor for the Computer Programming & Database Management program. He moved to Cincinnati from Richmond, Indiana, where he taught computer science at Earlham College for seven years.

David grew up in the Marshall Islands, a country in the central Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and the Philippines. After moving to the U.S. he earned a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Carleton College (Minnesota) and received his PhD from Northwestern University. His research interest is natural language processing.

David and his wife have two dogs (Charley and Stella) and two cats (Eppie and Effie). In his free time, David enjoys trying out new recipes and listening to podcasts.

Emmanuel “Junior” Ivenso is an instructor in the Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) program. He has served as a adjunct faculty member for MET since January 2020.

Junior was born in Brooklyn, New York, but has been calling Cincinnati home since he was in the second grade. He is a graduate of Princeton High School, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Cincinnati.

Despite starting his adjunct teaching during the pandemic, Junior enjoyed helping students complete their courses, and he remains passionate about helping others excel at achieving their future goals.

Junior has three young and energetic sons, and he is an avid animal lover– so much so that at one point he welcomed five dogs into his home, four of which were strays. He loves outdoor adventures and wishes to one day travel across the globe to visit as many waterfalls as he can, which he considers one of nature’s most beautiful and serene creations.

Curtis Maples is an instructor for the Electro-Mechanical Engineering Technology (EMET) program. He has served as an adjunct instructor at the College since 2015.

Curtis holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Wilberforce University, where he minored in nuclear engineering. He earned a Master of Engineering degree, concentrating in Systems Engineering, from Pennsylvania State University. He is currently working on a second master’s degree in business administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Curtis brings over 12 years of engineering experience in a variety of industries including energy efficiency, public utility, military and aerospace, and automotive. Most recently he worked in medical device R&D with Ethicon Inc., where he helped develop advanced powered laparoscopic surgical tools, both hand-held and modified for surgical robot platforms.

Curtis is a lifelong Cincinnati west-sider who resides in Cheviot with his wife Sara and two young sons, Blaise and Mars. He serves on several non-profit boards including the ACLU of Ohio and Seven Hills Neighborhood Houses. He is an avid computer gamer (Steam Tag: Pres. Shimmy Carter) and loves building custom gaming rigs. He is also a voracious reader and enjoys collecting books for his personal home library.

Andy Obregon-Mantilla is the EIT Division’s full-time Academic Advisor. He’s originally from Barranquilla, Colombia, but he comes to Cincinnati State from the University of Cincinnati, where he was an Area Coordinator in their Resident Education & Development department.

Andy earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology & Sociology from Ohio University, and a master’s in Student Affairs in Higher Education from Miami University, where he also worked for four years as a hall director.

Andy says all of his higher education experiences “have centered the student experience” and he looks forward to meeting and supporting Cincinnati State students and also getting to know the faculty and staff.

Outside of work, Andy enjoys spending time with his wife, Shawna (who works at UC in their Honors department), and their 1-year-old daughter. Andy describes himself as a big soccer fan and a reluctant runner, and he likes exploring the brewery and food scene in Cincinnati.