Message from the Dean: Launching the Future

« Washington Engineer - October 2005

: Acting Dean Mani Soma

We’re at the end of our spectacular summer season in the Pacific Northwest. The leaves are turning, the days are growing shorter and winter isn’t far away.

But every end brings another beginning, and for those of us in the academic world autumn marks the start of the academic year. It’s a busy and exciting time, with returning students and an influx of new freshmen, eager to start a journey that will set the course of the rest of their lives and help decide how they will affect society when they leave our sphere.

At the UW College of Engineering, this fall also brings us several steps closer to the start of a fresh chapter in the college’s history. The nationwide search for a new dean is continuing as we look for the right person to lead the college into a century where success in engineering is increasingly defined by the ability to pull from multiple disciplines in answering complex problems. To effectively do that, a leader must have flexibility to innovate and fill needs as they arise.

That’s where some of our good friends have stepped in to help.

Our thanks go to Frank Jungers and his wife, Julie, who have given $4 million to create UW Engineering’s first endowed deanship. That gift is being bolstered with $1 million from a matching fund established by supporters who understand that solid footing for premier research universities like the UW drives regional economies and enhances our nation’s competitiveness in the international arena.

The money from the endowment is discretionary. The new dean can spend it as he or she sees fit: fellowships, research undertakings, recruiting efforts – wherever the need is greatest. The Jungers’ generous gift will undoubtedly help us find the best person to take one of the country’s top engineering colleges to even higher levels.

Also of note is a major transition in one of our departments. Raj Bordia, longtime chair of our Department of Materials Science & Engineering, is stepping down after more than nine years of outstanding service. We want to thank Raj for his willingness to lead for so long and his talent in doing it so well. We look forward to working with him as a cutting-edge materials engineer as he dives back into teaching and research. Alex Jen, a UW materials science veteran of six years, will serve as acting chair.

Finally, I need to shine a spotlight on some of our faculty members. I am very proud of this year’s presidential award winners. Richard Ladner in Computer Science & Engineering is one of nine individuals nationwide recently honored with a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. Our former dean, Denice Denton, won the award the preceding year.

And two of our assistant engineering professors, Radha Poovendran in electrical engineering and Wei Li in mechanical engineering, are among 58 of the country’s most promising young scientists and engineers to receive this year’s Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering. The group includes two UW faculty members outside the college, and two winners from other institutions are UW grads.

In the end, all these things – support from our friends, strong leadership, award-winning faculty – come back to our students. Our focus lies in giving them the guidance and learning opportunities they need to become tomorrow’s industry and academic leaders. We have a long history of success in doing this – see this issue’s story about our Program on Technology Commercialization for one current example.

It’s a tradition that we’re committed to continuing.