Biography

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Elisabeth Arnold Weiss teaches upper division Advanced Writing and Communication for Engineers, has taught the communication courses for Ph.D. students as well as a Freshman Academy, and teaches the cross-cultural component of Viterbi’s global innovation course. She is the recipient of the 2019 Viterbi Dean’s Award for Innovation in Teaching and Education. Elisabeth leads the Improv for Engineers co-curricular partnership program with the USC School of Dramatic Arts, to teach theater arts techniques to engineers through modules embedded in the EIS curriculum. She is currently producing an Improv Master Class in VR in association with the Engineering Information Foundation.

Elisabeth leads a long-standing community outreach partnership with the Accelerated Charter Elementary School (ACES) and has designed ATLAS, a service-learning collective for EIS. She is a frequent faculty contributor to Viterbi K-12 STEM Center programs.

With a robust mentorship track record spanning two decades, Elisabeth mentors start up teams in the USC and Viterbi entrepreneurial ecosystem and engages with industry to accelerate student pathways to professional purpose and achievement. She has initiated two programs, DREAM and “A Board of Trustees for every Student” to provide mentorship at scale across Viterbi.

She serves on the Board of Councilors of the University Club at USC and on several school boards across the country. She has served as a director for the ASEE-PSW Executive Board since 2019 and was recently elected Vice Chair for Student Awards.

Elisabeth has been teaching in the Viterbi School since 1999 and was previously an instructor at Harvey Mudd College. She holds degrees from the University of Virginia and Claremont Graduate University.