FDU Appoints Laila Khreisat Dean of the Gregory H. Olsen College of Engineering and Science

February 26, 2026 — After concluding a national search, Fairleigh Dickinson University has announced the appointment of Laila Khreisat as dean of the Gregory H. Olsen College of Engineering and Science, effective immediately. A professor of computer science, Khreisat was previously serving as interim dean of the college.

“Laila Khreisat has well demonstrated her exceptional leadership and her tremendous commitment to the success of students, faculty and staff in our newly established Olsen College,” said University Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Benjamin Rifkin. “I am excited to appoint her to this role, and I thank the search committee and all the community members who participated in the process.”

“I am deeply honored and excited to serve as dean of Olsen College at this pivotal moment in its growth,” Khreisat said. “This role is both a privilege and a responsibility that I hold deeply, and I am grateful for the trust placed in me by the University and our remarkable community.”

Khreisat first joined FDU as an assistant professor in 2005, was promoted with tenure to the rank of associate professor in 2010 and promoted to the rank of professor in 2018. She served as chair of the Department of Math and Computer Science (formerly the Department of Math, Computer Science, and Physics) in the Maxwell Becton College of Arts and Sciences from 2011 to 2022 (Florham Campus), when she became the associate dean of Becton College. On July 1, 2025, she was named interim dean of the Gregory H. Olsen College of Engineering and Science, which brought together mathematics, computer science and natural science programs from Becton College and programs in computer science, mathematics and engineering from the Gildart Haase School of Computer Sciences and Engineering.

An active scholar, Khreisat is the author or coauthor of numerous publications and the principal investigator on many grants. Throughout her time at FDU, “she has been an engine of curricular innovation,” Rifkin said, leading the development of an interdisciplinary data science minor, a financial mathematics concentration in the bachelor’s degree in mathematics, the development of the major in science and technical writing, and the creation of new computer science courses to integrate culturally relevant content as part of a larger national initiative from the American Association of Colleges and Universities. She also has been involved in the creation of peer-mentoring programs to foster student success and was a founding member of FDU’s Center for Cybersecurity and Information Assurance. 

In her service as interim dean of Olsen College, she has guided the faculty and staff to draft mission and vision statements, create bylaws, staff committees, and establish processes for the review of research proposals. She also supported the development of new curricular initiatives including pathways into the Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine. Rifkin added, “She has cultivated a unified college identity, enhanced collaboration among faculty and staff coming together from different academic units and overseen curricula on all three degree-granting campuses.” In addition, she has played a critical role in accreditation efforts at the Metropolitan and Vancouver campuses.

Khreisat said, “Continuing to build on Olsen College’s strong momentum since we launched, I look forward to working collaboratively to strengthen academic excellence, support faculty and student success, and advance innovative and interdisciplinary programming to prepare our graduates to lead and make meaningful contributions in an evolving world.”

Khreisat earned her bachelor’s degree in computer science at Yarmouk University in Jordan, her MS degree in computer science from Columbia University, and her MPhil and PhD degrees in electrical engineering from The City University of New York.