Patty Buchanan joined the Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering at the University of Washington as a full-time teaching professor in 2016. Since then, she has been responsible for teaching introductory classes in engineering economics, optimization models, manufacturing scheduling, and inventory management. Prior to her tenure at the University of Washington, she worked at the defense and space company Harris Corporation as a production development manufacturing engineer, where she implemented simulation modeling techniques to improve cycle time and enhance manufacturing capabilities. Her academic background includes a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Central Florida, as well as both an M.S. and B.S. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Florida. Throughout her career, Patty has received several honors including the University of Washington College of Engineering Faculty Teaching Award in 2022 and multiple recognitions from the Institute of Industrial & Systems Engineering. Her research interests focus on Systems Engineering, Manufacturing Design, and Simulation Models.