With my first academic year as your dean of engineering in the books, I’m filled with optimism for the future of our College of Engineering and am excited to be in my dream job.
My onboarding process has included walking tours of our academic departments and centers, alumni events and even an afternoon of video games with students in our new Esports Lab in the James B. Hunt Jr. Library (see the inside back cover of this issue for more). I’ve listened and have learned a great deal about what makes this College such a special place, and it’s helped me to form a vision for where we are headed.
The College is entering a period of significant change, beginning with our plans to expand. Leaders in the North Carolina General Assembly who recognize the state’s opportunities for continued economic expansion and the vital role that NC State Engineering would play have asked us to increase enrollment by 4,000 students over the next few years. The Engineering North Carolina’s Future initiative will enable us to keep more of our state’s brightest and most talented students close to home and meet the workforce needs of our booming aerospace, software, biotechnology, construction and energy industries. You can learn more about expansion on page 16.
Our outstanding research enterprise is helping to train our students in the skills that they will need in the workplace and is creating economic development opportunities in North Carolina. In this issue, you’ll learn about the CLAWS Microelectronics Commons hub led by our faculty members that builds on decades of research at NC State on wide bandgap semiconductor power electronics. Our Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering is home to a new hypersonic wind tunnel that will be an asset to military and commercial applications of high-speed travel. And we’ve just announced the new Bezos Center for Alternative Proteins at NC State, which will help meet the nutritional needs of the global population.
Our engineering and computer science students are routinely being recruited and securing job offers before graduation and even receiving help from these new employers with tuition. One of my core beliefs is that there is no better path to upward mobility for young people than an engineering degree. I’m thrilled that the expansion is going to allow us to offer this transformative opportunity to more North Carolinians.
But completing this expansion the right way will require a great deal of hard work and support, and we have significant challenges to overcome along the way. As we grow, we must never lessen our commitment to the recruitment, retention and success of all students who walk through our doors. We’ll do that by creating and maintaining a culture where they feel supported, have the resources they need to thrive and can truly reach their full potential.
I’m confident that we will come through the expansion process stronger and ready to lead our state and nation as one of the premier public colleges of engineering.
As we think about the future, it is clearer than ever that we must adapt to the ways artificial intelligence is changing our classrooms, laboratories and workplaces. Stay tuned for more on how our College is a leader in engineering the tools of the future and putting emerging AI technology to work, including a College-wide symposium in September on our Applied AI Initiative.
Thank you again for your warm welcome and for your continued support of the College of Engineering. I look forward to engaging with more of our alumni community and to forging a bold path forward together.
Jim Pfaendtner, Ph.D.
Louis Martin-Vega Dean of Engineering
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