Sunter named John A. and Dorothy M. Adams Faculty Development Assistant Professor

The Tufts School of Engineering is pleased to announce that Deborah Sunter was named the John A. and Dorothy M. Adams Faculty Development Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, effective May 2025.

Sunter has a distinguished background at the intersection of engineering, energy policy, and environmental sustainability. In addition to her primary appointment as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, she also holds joint appointments in Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, and is an affiliate of The Fletcher School. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Cornell University, followed by both her Master of Science and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

Following her doctoral studies, Sunter broadened her impact beyond academia, serving as a Science and Technology Policy Fellow with the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) at the US Department of Energy. She later returned to the University of California, Berkeley as a postdoctoral fellow in the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory and joined the Berkeley Institute for Data Science, where she deepened her research at the nexus of energy systems and public policy.

Her work focuses on computational modeling of renewable energy integration, energy storage, and grid optimization. A core part of her research is examining how science and policy interact across academia, industry, and government, with the goal of advancing environmental sustainability and energy justice—principles that closely align with Tufts’ mission to pursue research and innovation for the public good.

In 2023, Sunter stepped into a national leadership role as Senior Advisor for Energy Justice Policy and Analysis at the US Department of Energy, where she supported the rollout of the Justice40 Initiative under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Drawing on her research in energy equity and computational modeling, she provided critical analytical support to guide the equitable distribution of climate and clean energy investments.

The John A. and Dorothy M. Adams Faculty Development Professorship was established through the estate of Dorothy Adams, in honor of her husband, John A. Adams, E39, a Tufts alumnus who earned a degree in electrical engineering. The professorship aims to support outstanding junior faculty in engineering and reflects the university’s long-standing investment in excellence and innovation.

Under the John A. and Dorothy M. Adams Faculty Development Professorship, Sunter will continue to use computational modeling and data science techniques to explore how technological innovation can inform policy decisions that shape more equitable and sustainable energy futures. Her presence strengthens Tufts’ role as a hub for interdisciplinary research in climate resilience, renewable energy, and environmental stewardship.

The Tufts community looks forward to the continued impact Professor Sunter’s work will have in the years ahead.