September 23, 2005

Alumnus Fitts Gives $10 Million to Industrial Engineering Department

Edward P. Fitts

Edward P. Fitts, of Exton, Pa., has given $10 million to the Department of Industrial Engineering at North Carolina State University.  The commitment is the largest gift ever received by the College of Engineering from an individual donor and the largest endowed gift to academics in NC State’s history.

Founded in 1930, the Department of Industrial Engineering at NC State consistently ranks among the top 12 industrial engineering programs in the nation.  It is the leader in the United States in the number of faculty members who are fellows of the Institute of Industrial Engineers (IIE).

Fitts is the chief executive officer of Dopaco, a Pennsylvania-based global packaging company.  A native of Littleton, he earned his bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from NC State in 1961.  He was named Distinguished Engineering Alumnus in 2001.

A dedicated supporter of the College of Engineering and the Department of Industrial Engineering, Fitts currently serves on the NC State Engineering Foundation Board of Directors.  His previous gifts to NC State include the Edward P. Fitts Scholarship established in 1999, the Edward P. Fitts Industrial Engineering Professorship established in 2002 and an unrestricted gift of $250,000 for the college in 2005.

Through this most recent gift, Fitts hopes to increase awareness among fellow alumni, friends and the academic community of the strengths of the internationally recognized program in industrial engineering at NC State.

In honor of his dedication to the college, the department has been named the Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial Engineering.

— weston —

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