Rate My Professor Jason Bolyard

Jason Bolyard, Ph.D., P.E., serves as Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering Technology in the Department of Engineering Technology at Fairmont State University, where he joined the faculty in 2007. He earned his B.S. from Fairmont State University, M.S. from West Virginia University, and Ph.D. from West Virginia University. A licensed Professional Engineer, Bolyard is deeply engaged in enhancing the Mechanical Engineering Technology program through curriculum leadership. He acted as the primary contact for proposal #23-24-02, which revised the B.S.E.T. curriculum for Fall 2024 implementation. These updates deleted nine credit hours of advanced thermodynamics and heat transfer courses (MECH 4410 and MECH 4430) and a technical elective, replacing them with MECH 3350 Numerical Methods, SFTY 1100 Safety and Environmental Components of Industry, and the new MECH 4420 Machine Design II. The revisions incorporated ABET accreditation requirements, NCEES Fundamentals of Engineering exam topics, trends from other West Virginia ABET-accredited programs, and feedback from the industrial advisory committee, while preserving the program's 120 total credit hours. MECH 4420 emphasizes integrating machine elements into systems, covering strength determination, deflection analysis, system performance evaluation, reliability assessment, and design to specifications.

Bolyard's research focuses on infrastructure evaluation, particularly West Virginia's aviation sector. He contributed as Chapter Champion and key participant in the aviation section of the American Society of Civil Engineers' 2025 Report Card for West Virginia’s Infrastructure. Under the STaR SURE Grant from the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, he mentors undergraduates in assessing airports via ASCE indicators including annual operations, passenger enplanements, delays, facility conditions, funding, safety, resilience planning, economic impacts, and emerging technologies. Data from West Virginia International Yeager Airport showed 100 daily departures with 47% delayed by an average of 56 minutes and 4.44% cancellations; Huntington Tri-State Airport had 259 flights with 45% delays averaging 54 minutes and 1.47% cancellations. This effort produced the publication 'Evaluating the aviation infrastructure in West Virginia as part of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Infrastructure Report Card' by Eliza McCallister and Jason Bolyard in the Proceedings of the West Virginia Academy of Science (2025). Bolyard also represents Engineering Technology on the Faculty Senate and authors university news features, such as on the Kestrel literary journal's 30-year cultural role in Appalachia.