Two Rice Engineering alumni, Shao-Lee Lin ’88 and Travis McPhail ’04 ’07 ’11, have joined the Engineering Advisory Board (EAB) and will serve as advisors to the dean. Their insight will help guide strategic advancements in health and well-being and future computing—two of the school’s core research areas.
“Shao-Lee and Travis bring to our board expertise in biotechnology and computing, and they can advise on connecting our research and education in these areas to the industry,” said Luay Nakhleh, William and Stephanie Sick Dean of the George R. Brown School of Engineering. “Furthermore, I would like to see more entrepreneurship and commercialization activities coming out of our school, and both Shao-Lee and Travis would offer tremendous advice to us in this area.”
Dr. Shao-Lee Lin is the founder and former chief executive officer of biopharma company ACELYRIN, where she created a portfolio of clinical stage programs and raised over $1 billion in capital.
Previously, Lin was the executive vice president, chief scientific officer and first head of research and development at Horizon Therapeutics, a global biopharmaceutical company targeting medicines for rare diseases, rheumatology and primary care. Under her leadership, Horizon gained the first FDA approval of a treatment for thyroid eye disease, a vision-threatening autoimmune disorder.
“I am honored to be part of this accomplished group of individuals looking to innovate together and continue to contribute more to the university and to society,” said Lin. “I hope my background in engineering from Rice, in academic medicine, and as a biotech founder and former CEO will be helpful to Rice Engineering.”
Travis McPhail, Engineering Director for Maps and Immersive Experiences at Google Maps Platform, leads the technical strategy for 2D and 3D geospatial visualization products. His team's work impacts over 2.8 million customers and billions of daily users worldwide, supporting both first-party Google applications and third-party integrations across the globe.
McPhail is also an advocate for Google’s diversity and inclusion efforts globally, expanding access to computer science education by spearheading Google’s HBCU engagement. In 2018, he led a team of Google designers and engineers to develop an interactive 3D exhibit for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, allowing visitors to explore artifacts not physically on display.
“As a new EAB member, my goal is to establish and enrich synergies between industry, academia, and government,” said McPhail. “With the evolving tech landscape, engineering is also evolving and our students must adapt with the change. I'm thrilled to help Rice Engineering navigate these topics and establish new relationships across software, hardware, and policy.”
McPhail completed undergraduate degrees in computer science and electrical engineering and a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in computer science—all at Rice. Lin earned her undergraduate degrees in chemical engineering and biochemistry from Rice and holds an M.D. and Ph.D. from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.