As we’ve reached the end of the 2022-23 academic year, I am very pleased to let you know that your College of Engineering is as strong as it’s ever been. Thanks to the outstanding efforts of our dedicated faculty members, students and staff members, we have rebounded extremely well from the many challenges faced during the pandemic. Combined with new commitments from our state legislature, the College is now on the cusp of a significant expansion. As we celebrate a century of achievements as part of our 100th anniversary this year, we can be as excited about where we are going in the years to come as we are proud of all that’s been achieved so far.
Minh-Thu Dinh provides a great example of that bright future. An electrical engineering senior, last fall she received NC State’s Leader of the Pack Award, which recognizes a student who has made outstanding contributions in leadership, scholarship and service. You can learn more about her in our Q&A. Other stories share how our researchers are working on the serious problem of microplastics and how electrical engineering alumna Christina Koch will be the first woman to travel to the moon as part of the Artemis II mission. The message in these stories is clear: as an NC State engineering or computer science student you will be afforded an opportunity to work on crucial problems faced by humankind, and as a graduate your degree is a platform that can carry you to any career goal that you want to achieve.
This has been the case for over a century. While engineering students were among the first graduates of our University, it was not until May 28, 1923, that a School of Engineering was established. We are celebrating this anniversary throughout this 2023 calendar year, with special events this spring and during Red and White Week this fall, Oct. 22-28.
As the College prepares for its second century, I will wrap up my time as its dean at the end of the summer. Let me just take this moment to reiterate what an immense honor and privilege it has been to serve as your dean for the last 17 years. Your generosity, enthusiasm, support and love for this College of Engineering have never ceased to amaze me. During these years, my wife, Maggie, and I have made so many close friends and have cherished memories of the many occasions and outstanding achievements we have been proud to celebrate with you. Please understand how crucial all of you, our alumni and friends, have been to the success of our College and how special you have made these years for us. For this and so much more we will always be sincerely grateful and in your debt.
Finally, I am very pleased to share with you that the provost has announced that Jim Pfaendtner, currently the chair of the Chemical Engineering Department at the University of Washington, will be starting his appointment as our new Dean of Engineering on Aug. 1, 2023. I leave you confident that with your steadfast support our College will continue to thrive under Jim’s leadership and look forward to the heights to where this very special College of Engineering will continue to rise in its second century.
Louis A. Martin-Vega, Ph.D., NAE
Dean
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