Kian Hageman

Bio

Kian Hageman is an engineering student and scuba diver. He is currently studying at the University of Iowa, where he will graduate with a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering in December 2026. During his time at Iowa, he's completed numerous design projects spanning biomechanics, biomaterials, and physiological modeling, building hands-on experience in CAD modeling, CFD and FEA simulation, circuit design, and prototyping along the way. Kian was also the president of the university's Brazilian jiu-jitsu club for three semesters. In his free time, Kian enjoys scuba diving in Lake Michigan and around the world, particularly when he can explore long-lost shipwrecks.

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Diving Right In…..

Not to be too on the nose, but let's dive right in to what Kian's up to!

He is currently working at Dive Right In Scuba, based out of Plainfield, Illinois. Operating as a "jack of all trades," he currently works in sales at their Orland Park location, but has been known to fill in for their shipping department, regulator repair, boat and pool maintenance, and much more. He also operates Double Action Dive Charters as their booking and crew organizer.

Along with the work comes the diving! He's starting his season off strong with two dives on the Straits of Mackinac.

Kian scuba diving, trailing bubbles, wearing a yellow OXYGEN 20 stage tank

Kian scuba diving, facing the camera in full technical dive gear

Kian scuba diving, holding a yellow stage bottle

Active projects

Bairway Trainer

Currently working as engineering support alongside lead Heather Bair on a mechanical training model for direct laryngoscopy. Most airway mannequins on the market are too rigid to teach real jaw biomechanics, so this project isolates the lift-angle-torque motion of the skill itself — first as a rough clay-and-rubber-band proof of concept, now moving into a tunable, rail-based CAD prototype. Currently sourcing hardware for the next physical build.

See the full project