Introduction

The College of Engineering is increasingly helping to create strategic opportunities that support NC State University in reaching its Wolfpack 2030 Strategic Plan Goals. Our college is expanding interdisciplinary academic programs, strengthening industry partnerships and investing in strategic research areas to shape the future of engineering. We made progress advancing key research initiatives over the last year while ensuring we are meeting student needs amid a period of growth during the Engineering Expansion.

Section I: COE Alignment with Wolfpack 2030 Strategic Plan Goals

Goal 1: Empower students for a lifetime of success and impact.

Through curricula aligned to industry needs, professional development to improve faculty teaching, and high-impact experiences, College of Engineering students are prepared to succeed and to make an impact.

Philanthropic investment continued to expand access and opportunity for engineering undergraduate and graduate students in FY26. A total of 952 students received support through 422 endowed and annual scholarship funds, while donors established 28 new scholarship funds and four new graduate support funds.

Over the last year, we have prepared our graduate students for their next steps beyond NC State by creating master’s degree programs that address industry gaps and by enhancing our professional development opportunities.

• Two New Master’s Degree Programs: The college established two new Master of Science degree programs, one in cybersecurity and one in wide bandgap semiconductors, driven by the college’s leading research capabilities. These curricula leverage the specialized faculty expertise and advanced infrastructure of the Secure Computing Institute (SCI) and the Commercial Leap Ahead for Wide Bandgap Semiconductors Hub (CLAWS). To maximize accessibility and reach, both programs are delivered through dual in-person and online modalities.
• Professional Development Opportunities: The college launched an inaugural professional development workshop series designed for a cohort of approximately 60 first-year doctoral students. This sequence of programming facilitates the transition into advanced graduate study while fostering interdisciplinary peer networks across engineering departments. By providing targeted developmental support and community-building opportunities, the initiative aims to enhance long-term Ph.D. retention and student success within the college.
• Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s (ABM): The college continues to grow enrollment in ABM engineering degree programs, providing our undergraduate students the opportunity to earn a Master of Science degree within one year of their B.S. degree at a lower cost and time commitment than conventional M.S. degree pathways.
• Entrepreneurial Education: As part of the Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network (KEEN), the college’s Office of Faculty Development and Success hosted nine Wolfpack Engineering Unleashed (WEU) events and supported 18 faculty in national KEEN programming, expanding entrepreneurial mindset education across the college.
• New Faculty Orientation Workshop: The Office of Faculty Development and Success developed and evaluated the New Faculty Orientation Workshop, demonstrating improvements in new faculty teaching self-efficacy and confidence to implement evidence-based instructional practices that support student success.

As demand for an NC State engineering degree increases, we have continued to enroll more undergraduate students while maintaining student access to high-impact experiences that add value to their education and prepare them for their futures.

• Increased Enrollment, Retention and Graduation: Undergraduate enrollment and student success continues to be very strong in the College of Engineering. The demand for enrollment continues to grow with over 13,000 applications for Fall 2026.
  • First-year, first-time cohorts have grown from 1,571 in fall 2021 to 1,900 anticipated students in fall 2026, an increase of almost 20% over five years.
  • Transfer students continue to be strong through our community college, four-year, 2+2 and dual-degree partnerships—along with the university’s C3 admissions. In spring 2026, 115 new transfer students enrolled in engineering from these sources. 
  • Retention and graduation rates continue to improve. Data for the last available year shows first year retention holds steady at 96%. Meanwhile, four-year graduation rates increased by almost 2-points to 65.3%, and 6-year graduation rates remained steady at around 85%.
• High-Impact Experiences: Investing in High-Impact Educational Experiences supports the development of our students. The Engineering Enhancement Fee generates an annual budget that impacts our undergraduate students as they develop and prepare for the workforce. The college maintains a strong partnership with NC State’s Global Training Initiative to promote Developing Cultural Competence, as well as with the University Career Development Center.
  • In FY26, 1,369 students received financial support for their high-impact educational experiences, which include:
    • 729 students attended professional conferences and student design competitions.
    • 28 earned technical certifications.
    • 205 undergraduate students participated in immersive study abroad opportunities, and more opportunities were created for first-year engineering students. 
      • Nearly 100 students participated in E101 Study Abroad programs in Ecuador, Kenya and the Czech Republic.
      • 22 student participants attended ASCEND’s annual alternative service break trip to Rwanda.
    • 93 students participated in Alternative Service Break (ASB) experiences.
• Living and Learning Villages:
  • The Engineering Village was home to 543 students for the 2025-26 academic year. It held 64 programs designed to support students as they transition into the rigor and possibilities of college-level engineering, supplemented by 59 Sullivan Hall community programs. Over the 2025-26 academic year, the Engineering Village was operating without a program director. The director position has been filled with the hiring of Jayne Carlisle.
  • The Centennial Engineering Village was home to 86 students for the 2024-25 academic year. Staff hosted 33 programs that supported students in building confidence, maintaining wellness and connecting academic learning to professional experiences aligned with their specific engineering major. These were supplemented by 54 Wolf Ridge Apartment community programs. Over the 2025-26 academic year, Centennial Village was operating without a program coordinator. The coordinator position has been filled with the hiring of Yessenia Rodriguez.
• Engineering Career Fair: The two-day fall 2025 NC State Engineering Career Fair drew 5,705 NC State students, 584 non-NC State students and 294 companies. The one-day spring career fair was rescheduled due to inclement weather. The make-up day surpassed expectations, drawing 1,260 students and 155 companies.
• Engineering First-Year (EFY) Program: During the 2025-26 academic year the EFY program served approximately 2,200 new students, including 1,900 first-year engineering students and more than 300 transfer students, from admission through their successful transition into a degree-granting major (CODA).
  • Foundational Support: The EFY program facilitated foundational first-year courses.
    • E101 (Introduction to Engineering and Problem Solving) enrolls more than 1,700 students across 32 sections.
    • E102 (Engineering in the 21st Century) serves more than 2,100 students across 32 sections, making it the university’s highest-enrolled Interdisciplinary Perspectives GEP course.
    • E122 provided targeted academic recovery for 85 students facing academic challenges through small, high-support class sections.
  • Engagement Success: EFY coordinated signature events, including the 26th annual First-Year Engineering Design Day and the Grand Challenge Poster Competition, that provide opportunities for students to apply the engineering design process, develop technical and professional skills and present innovative solutions to real-world problems. The Engineering Alumni Panel Speaker Series featured 42 alumni in FY26. Experiential learning opportunities such as the Motul Petite Le Mans race program strengthen student networking, professional development and sense of belonging. The EFY program supported initiatives including the Engineering Study Groups Program and the CARES program, while instructors continued to advance evidence-based teaching practices through participation in interdisciplinary faculty learning communities.

Goal 2: Ensure preeminence in research, scholarship, innovation and collaboration.

The College of Engineering remains the largest research enterprise at NC State, accounting for approximately one-third of university research awards and proposal activity. Our departments and units continued to pursue cutting-edge research, excellence in teaching, and opportunities for more students to learn through research.

• Strengthened Research Enterprise: The college submitted approximately 936 proposals for externally sponsored projects totaling approximately $557 million and received approximately $165 million in awards, reflecting resilience and a stable, diversified, high-performing research portfolio performance despite significant disruption and uncertainty in the federal funding environment. Research expenditures from externally sponsored projects exceeded the prior year’s pace. The college was one of the leading institutions in Department of Energy funding for nuclear engineering research, education and workforce development programs. The college’s strengths in energy systems, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, defense-related technologies, robotics and other strategically important areas have helped position NC State to navigate evolving federal priorities while continuing to support North Carolina’s economic growth and workforce needs.
• Faculty Engagement: The college supported faculty engagement in major strategic funding opportunities including the Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs), National Science Foundation Engineering Research Centers (ERCs), DOE Genesis Mission, and other large-scale interdisciplinary initiatives. Faculty development activities included workshops, concept-paper development efforts, research and innovation forums, and targeted engagement intended to strengthen competitiveness for center-scale and transformative research opportunities.
• Research Infrastructure Advancements: The college advanced several major research infrastructure initiatives, including the Generation IV advanced nuclear reactor initiative, molten salt loop planning, the Battery and Energy Storage Initiative and makerspace, and planning associated with future engineering facilities. These efforts position NC State for long-term leadership in areas of national importance including energy systems, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, defense technologies and related fields.
• Modernized Research Administration: The college worked closely with the Office of Research and Innovation (ORI) to support university-wide research administration modernization efforts and continued to strengthen collaborative relationships with industry, government and academic partners.
• Support for Faculty Development: The college’s Office of Faculty Development and success received over $550,000 in external funding from the Kern Family Foundation to advance innovation in engineering education. The team authored four conference papers and facilitated five national workshops, expanding NC State’s leadership in engineering faculty development. It also collaborated with 14 strategic partners (nine internal and five external) to advance faculty success and interdisciplinary collaboration. The team coordinated and organized the CAREER series to support faculty success in applications for National Science Foundation CAREER Awards. To further support faculty research in Applied AI, the college introduced two new award programs this year. Three teams were selected to receive the Dean’s Applied AI Research Accelerator Award, each receiving $100,000 to advance applied AI research, while three individual faculty members were recognized with the Dean’s Applied AI Faculty Scholarly Fellowship Award to further their knowledge on AI.
• Student Research: Through a number of Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs), students gained research skills through hands-on experiences and helped advance the college’s research priorities. A spring REU put on by The Engineering Place fostered hands-on research mentorship in engineering education. Since launching in summer 2022, the Grand Challenges Scholars Program-Undergraduate Research Experiences program has funded 143 total awards. Now expanded year-round, the program supported 38 scholars during the 2025-26 fiscal year by awarding 11 research positions in fall 2025, 10 in spring 2026 and 17 in summer 2026. More than 50 students — 83% first-time researchers — participated in ASCEND’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates programs, which access to valuable research opportunities with dedicated staff support, mentorship and cohort engagement.
• Engineering Education: The joint Engineering Education program between the College of Education and the College of Engineering in Engineering Education continues to grow, teaching 177 student credit hours this year. The program has added the ability for students in Ph.D. programs in the academic departments to earn a pass-through M.S. in Engineering Education as a part of their journey. This not only improves their teaching abilities, but also makes them more competitive for academic jobs. The effort to redesign the first-year engineering curriculum in partnership with all of the engineering departments and the first-year engineering teaching team continues. The new curriculum was piloted in fall 2025 in three sections of E102 and in spring 2026 in three sections of E101. Eight students are enrolled in the M.S. program with several more students enrolled in the Graduate Certificate Program. Three Ph.D. students in three different departments are working on Engineering Education Ph.D. projects with EED advisors. Engineering Education continued to teach a robust profile of courses, attracting students from various backgrounds. Two of those courses, EED509 Field Experiences in Engineering Education and EED511 Ethics in Engineering Education, served as the basis for the four-week study abroad in Rwanda, which engaged 12 students from NC State. The team traveled to Musanze for two weeks to work with students from two high schools and engineering students from INES University in Musanze.

Goal 3: Expand and advance our engagement with and service to North Carolina and beyond, defining the standard for a 21st-century land-grant university.

Our extension and outreach programs connect with industry, government and K-20 partners to expand engineering education and research throughout the state of North Carolina and beyond. We ensure workforce development and engage with communities to deliver solutions that make an impact.

• Trusted State Resources: The College of Engineering advanced NC State’s land-grant mission through research, extension, workforce development and technical engagement activities that directly benefit North Carolina’s citizens, industries and communities. Collectively, these efforts demonstrate the college’s commitment to applying engineering expertise to real-world challenges while supporting economic development, workforce preparation, energy security, public service and innovation throughout North Carolina and beyond.
  • The NC Clean Energy Technology Center provided leadership in energy policy, clean transportation, energy-system planning and stakeholder engagement, including support for statewide energy initiatives.
  • Industrial Extension Services strengthened connections with North Carolina’s manufacturing and defense ecosystems.
  • The Minerals Research Laboratory in Asheville expanded engagement in strategically important areas related to critical minerals, mining and supply-chain resilience.
  • The Golden LEAF Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center (BTEC) continued to support workforce development and industry engagement activities that reinforce North Carolina’s leadership in biomanufacturing and life sciences.
• K-12 Outreach: The Engineering Place (TEP), the college’s K-20 outreach, engagement and extension hub, is a national leader in engineering education. TEP, often in collaboration with undergraduate engineering students and COE faculty, engages students through hands-on programs that spark interest, build foundational knowledge and strengthen the K-12 pipeline to support high school recruitment. Graduate and undergraduate engineering students support this work while gaining valuable leadership and communication training, preparing them for careers as socially engaged engineers. This past year, TEP saw increased impact across all programming:
• Delivered 101 events, reaching 6,862 K-12 students and 833 K-12 teachers, while providing 387 opportunities for NC State undergraduate students to engage in K-12 outreach.
• Mentored a high school intern from Wake Early College of Information and Biotechnologies through a career-focused internship.
• Fulfilled 98 faculty/staff and 298 student supply requests.
• Operated 39 week-long summer camps with an attendance of 932 students.
• Supported three partner camps, essential outreach to rural communities, providing engineering programs across the state, serving an additional 217 students. The Engineering on the Road program supported this important outreach during the academic year.
• Engaged 12 local K-12 educators as part of the summer camp team, helping them learn how to effectively integrate engineering education into their classrooms. An additional 457 teachers attended learning sessions provided by the TEP at four state and national conferences.
• Hosted the 10th annual Building Engineering in K-5 Classrooms state conference with over 350 elementary teachers in attendance and over 35 workshop sessions. This conference was added to our suite of offerings upon the hiring of Steve Johnson, the new summer engineering camp director.
• Rural Workforce Opportunities: In 2025-26, the College of Engineering’s Academic Affairs and Industry Expansion Solutions (IES) offices continued their dedicated partnership in support of Rural Works!, a flagship internship program that connects NC State engineering and computer science students with meaningful summer opportunities in rural North Carolina. The program focuses on Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties, placing students primarily with small- to medium-sized manufacturers where they contribute to real-world projects in operations, design, project management and supply chain management. The program’s model is built on shared investment. University resources and employer partnerships come together to generate exponential returns. Students gain confidence, experience and connections; employers grow their capacity and talent pipeline; and communities across North Carolina see strengthened local economies and workforce development.
  • 189 students were placed in internships at 93 companies in 41 counties for summer 2026, a record-breaking year for engineering Rural Works!, with 189 students interning at 93 unique companies across 41 counties.
  • Participating companies reported an average economic impact of $191,627 in 2024, underscoring the tangible value that Rural Works! interns bring to their organizations.
• Globally Minded Problem-Solvers: The Engineering Grand Challenges Scholars Program (GCSP) atNC State continues to maintain a global reputation for excellence, leadership, and as a model for fostering intellectual curiosity and learning transfer in engineering education. Over the past four years, the number of undergraduate engineering scholars addressing the National Academy of Engineering’s 14 grand challenges has steadily increased.
• In 2025-26, the program supported 146 active scholars (29 sophomores, 40 juniors, 77 seniors).
• Since its inception, the program has produced 197 total graduates across all engineering disciplines, averaging 25 graduates per year. Over the last five years, the alumni base grew from 10 in 2020 to 197 in 2026.
• As part of the program’s global expansion, NC State launched the first ever GCSP Collaborative Online International Learning partnership with the Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma (UCBM) from October 2025 through April 2026. Through this initiative, eight NC State GCSP scholars partnered with 10 UCBM scholars in mixed international teams to tackle global grand challenges. This collaboration culminated in scholars traveling to Rome to present their research at the GCSP Network Annual Meeting, hosted at Sapienza University of Rome.

Goal 4: Champion a culture of equality, belonging and well-being in all we do.

All of the college’s academic departments and administrative units continue to foster a culture in which students, faculty and staff can thrive through programs, partnerships and initiatives that strengthen wellbeing, accessibility, belonging and community.

• Student Community and Belonging: Multiple College of Engineering units work to ensure a culture of equality, belonging and well-being for our students through student engagement events, mentorship programs and community-building opportunities.
  • The college’s Advocates for Student Communities through Engagement, Networking and Development, or ASCEND, team serves as a programmatic leader in student engagement focused on providing valuable support, engagement, leadership, service and research opportunities while increasing the sense of community and belonging for students of all backgrounds and identities. In addition to significant individual donor gifts solicited during the 2025-26 academic year, ASCEND programs submitted successful grant funding proposals to corporate partners such as Exxon Mobil ($96,000), John Deere ($31,500) and Boeing ($15,000) with 100% of all support directed toward student impacts and opportunities.
    • More than 2,000 engineering students participated in ASCEND’s signature student engagement and community-building opportunities, including ASCEND Networking Night, averaging over 350 student attendees over the last three years; the Taste of Engineering, attended by 309 students and staff from 11 of 12 engineering departments; and the Emerging Leaders Summit, with 212 student attendees and 54 industry representatives.
    • Over 300 EFY students successfully completed the ASCEND-taught academic and professional development courses (i.e., E144/E145) this year, with over 95% retention of day-one enrolled students despite not being a graduation requirement.
    • 103 incoming first-year engineering students will participate in the summer 2026 residential Summer Exploration Experience (SEE) camp, which also provides peer leadership opportunities for 25 engineering student counselors.
    • 54 students were selected as START (STudent Advancement Retention Teams) mentors trained to mentor and academically support incoming first-year students to positively impact retention.
    • ASCEND actively advised multiple engineering student organizations with current membership exceeding 500 members.
    • Over 80% of admitted engineering students who participated in the ASCEND Overnight Stay chose to enroll at NC State’s College of Engineering, indicating ASCEND’s impact on yield.
  • The Office for Wellbeing and Engagement (OWE) works collaboratively with campus partners to put on community-building events for students, including a resource fair, game nights, movie nights and other fun events meant to relieve stress and build connections.
    • OWE expanded support for first-generation students through the establishment of the First-Generation Advisory Committee, which brings together faculty, staff and campus partners to enhance mentorship, resource coordination, community building and institutional practices that promote student success and belonging.
    • OWE hosted the LDOC Stress Reliever Fest, attended by more than 1,000 students on the Oval on the last day of classes.
  • The college hosted the third annual POP Back, drawing more than 7,000 NC State University students to the Oval for games, food, live music, student club connections and more.
• Faculty and Staff Community and Belonging: Wellbeing and accessibility is embedded into the college’s daily operations and strategic priorities. The college aims to be a national model for integrating accessibility, wellbeing and engagement into engineering education, reinforcing NC State’s reputation for innovation, excellence, and creating environments where every member of the community can succeed.
• The college advanced accessibility through a comprehensive digital accessibility workshop series attended by 86 faculty and staff. Faculty and staff also received ongoing access to recorded training sessions, implementation resources, and nearly 30 individualized consultations to improve the accessibility of instructional materials, digital content and campus experiences. A team of graduate students is working with faculty to ensure their course materials for the fall 2026 semester meet digital accessibility requirements ahead of the federal deadline.
• The Dean’s Accessibility Council, a multidisciplinary advisory group of 23 faculty, staff, students, industry representatives and community partners provides strategic guidance for advancing accessibility and disability inclusion throughout the college.
• The Office for Wellbeing and Engagement (OWE) delivered 28 programs that supported mental health, employee engagement, professional development and community building. OWE hosted more than 100 people from 25 institutions and seven states attended the inaugural Accessibility in STEM Conference (AISC). The conference featured 25 educational presentations and was supported by 13 industry sponsors and community partners, establishing NC State as a national convener for advancing accessibility and disability inclusion in STEM. The team worked with 17 campus and external partnerships to enhance programming, professional development and collaborative initiatives while increasing opportunities for knowledge sharing across higher education, industry and community organizations.
• Specific to faculty, the Office for Faculty Development and Success expanded the New Faculty Network, engaging 28 new faculty through networking and community-building events. The team launched the EngEx Mentor Network pilot, engaging 12 faculty in evidence-based mentoring practices. The office hosted two CARE Coalition events, engaging 38 faculty and staff in initiatives supporting academic caregivers, including programming connected to the CARE Coalition grant and the development of caregiving-focused micro-initiatives.

Goal 5: Improve university effectiveness through transformative technologies, cutting-edge processes and actionable data.

The College of Engineering continues to aggressively advance operational excellence across all administrative and academic support functions. Despite significant leadership transitions, the college has accelerated its multi-year administrative transformation — shifting toward shared services and hub-based operating models while taking decisive action to stabilize the college’s fiscal health. Through these structural shifts and fiscal controls, the College of Engineering is building a sustainable, agile administrative backbone that supports academic and research excellence.

• Interim Executive Leadership: COE is operating under steady leadership with an interim dean, while key operational roles are being led seamlessly by internal leaders:
  • The Assistant Dean for Personnel and Administration has stepped up as the Interim Assistant Dean for College Operations (following the departure of the Assistant Dean for College Operations & Chief of Staff).
  • The Associate Director for Communications has assumed the role of Interim Director for Communications & Marketing (following the departure of the Executive Director).
  • The university’s Assistant Vice Chancellor for Principal Gifts is serving as the Interim Assistant Dean for Philanthropy for the college (following the departure of the Assistant Dean for Philanthropy).
• Searches: Active searches and recruitment strategies are underway to permanently fill these critical college-level operational and communications leadership positions.
• Consolidated and Functional Operating Models: Building on prior pilots — such as the joint communications model shared between the Departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science — the college is systematically transitioning away from fragmented, department-by-department administrative structures toward consolidated functional hubs.
• Research Administration (RA) Hubs: Transitioning from individual departmental support to a hub structure covering both pre- and post-award processes, ensuring specialized coverage and reduced administrative burden for faculty.
• HR Hubs: Moving toward a shared services model for hiring, onboarding, and position management to eliminate redundancies and streamline personnel actions across departments.
• Communications and Marketing: Expanding on the cross-departmental shared services approach to ensure strategic alignment across the college’s communications efforts, while providing all units access to high-quality writing, media and design support.
• Financial Stewardship and Cost-Saving Measures: In tandem with operational restructuring, COE implemented aggressive budget revision strategies in FY26 to address fiscal deficits, improve visibility and align spending with strategic priorities.
  • To ensure long-term fiscal stability, the college implemented targeted financial controls and policy revisions in FY26. A college-wide position control review, combined with centralized vacancy management and shared staffing resources, successfully recovered $3M in salaries. Additionally, by capping faculty startup spending timelines at four years and improving transparent communications with department heads and faculty, the college eliminated $15M in deferred startup liability while establishing real-time tracking systems for ongoing visibility into startup commitments.
  • To directly address the operating deficit, the College applied its June 30, 2026 balance to the FY26 deficit, forewent uncommitted strategic spending, and redirected provost startup commitments toward deficit reduction. Administrative units were also transitioned to zero-based, centralized budgeting to ensure all expenditures explicitly support unit goals. Finally, a comprehensive compensation analysis led to new guidelines that resolve salary inconsistencies and rigorously validate future personnel requests.
• Comprehensive Faculty Development: The Office for Faculty Development and Success improved university effectiveness by providing comprehensive faculty development across teaching, mentoring, leadership, promotion and tenure, and recognition, supporting faculty success throughout all stages of their careers. Through nearly 20 college- and campus-wide programs designed to improve faculty effectiveness, collaboration, and professional growth, the team engaged approximately 175 engineering faculty members. It also launched the Honors Hub and centralized faculty awards infrastructure to improve efficiency, continuity and institutional knowledge across the college; distributed a faculty leadership needs survey to guide future programming; and launched a mentoring competency assessment tool.

Goal 6: Lead in developing innovative partnerships, entrepreneurial thinking and applied problem-solving.

The College expanded partnerships that connect research, innovation, entrepreneurship, workforce development, and economic impact. During the year, COE strengthened relationships with industry, government, nonprofit organizations, and academic partners while creating new pathways for translating research into societal benefit.

• Strategic Advisory Board Launch: The College launched a new Strategic Advisory Board to advise college leadership on strategic initiatives, industry-alignment, workforce needs, and philanthropic growth as COE continues its expansion under the Engineering NC’s Future initiative.
• Entrepreneurial Education: The Engineering Entrepreneurs Program advanced entrepreneurial education and faculty engagement through new programming focused on innovation, commercialization and applied problem-solving. New interdisciplinary activities were developed to connect students, faculty and external partners around technology commercialization, dual-use technologies and emerging national priorities. The new Accelerate2Launch initiative will engage faculty through a year-long program for faculty to learn the business concepts they need to turn applied research into commercial ventures. The Office for Faculty Development and Success hosted nine Wolfpack Engineering Unleashed events to advance entrepreneurial-mindset education and awarded 18 KEEN Golden Tickets to expand faculty participation in national entrepreneurial mindset programming.
• Multidisciplinary Collaboration: The college hired Anita Vila as the Director of Multidisciplinary Engineering Senior Design and Professor of the Practice in the Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at NC State. She is spearheading the development of a multidisciplinary senior design program in engineering. The program will launch in the fall of 2026 and incorporate industry-informed practices in discovery methodology, user-centered design, metrics and high-velocity decision-making.
• Corporate Engagement: The college convened major events that brought together leaders from industry, government, and academia, including activities associated with batteries, robotics, energy systems, advanced manufacturing, and emerging technologies. The launch of the M.C. Dean Engineering Hub and continued expansion of corporate engagement activities further strengthened connections between faculty expertise, student opportunities, and industry needs.
• Government Engagement: The College also supported strategic federal and state engagement activities, including Congressional-directed spending efforts, large-scale research initiatives, and major infrastructure opportunities. These activities reflect the College’s commitment to building partnerships that accelerate innovation, strengthen economic development, and address significant societal challenges.

Goal 7: Elevate the national and global reputation and visibility of NC State.

The College of Engineering is the flagship engineering school of the UNC System. It was ranked in the top 15 public engineering graduate programs for the 11th consecutive year, and six programs (aerospace, biological/agricultural, chemical, industrial, materials and nuclear) were ranked in the top 25 nationally by the U.S. News and World Report.

• The college partnered with NC State Athletics to boldly share NC State Engineering’s impact on North Carolina. The campaign tagline is “Engineering the Future. It All Starts at NC State.” Through this campaign, which continues through the 2026-27 and 2027-28 football and men’s basketball seasons, the college:
  • Produced two in-stadium videos that ran during the NC State vs. Georgia Tech football game (Homecoming; 56,919 attendance on Nov. 1, 2025) and men’s basketball game vs. Virginia Tech (19,500 attendance on Feb. 7, 2026).
  • Hosted two activation zone events featuring student clubs and K-12 activities to engage with fans at each entitlement game.
  • Generated an estimated 9.5-15 million impressions (based on an estimated 1.9 million attendance at Carter-Finley and Lenovo Center with 5-8 impressions per person) through pole banners outside of Carter-Finley Stadium and the Lenovo Center.
  • Created LED signage shown at all home football games (398,433 attendance across 7 games) and men’s basketball games (293,907 attendance across 17 games).
  • Ran 118 commercial spots across 47 games (13 football & 34 men’s basketball)
  • Ran a weekly 30-second TV commercial airs on Pulse of the Pack
  • Reached an estimated 77,809 people and generated over 200,000 impressions through social media partnership with NC State Athletics.
• The college had a significant presence at national and international conferences with new, elevated marketing materials and a modular booth set-up reflective of the cutting-edge work happening at NC State. These conferences include the Biomedical Engineering Society Annual Meeting, the Society of Women Engineers’ flagship event WE25, the National Society of Black Engineers’ Annual Convention, and the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE) Annual Conference & Exposition.
  • Forty-two NC State faculty members, post-docs, and students presented at ASEE, the national conference for engineering education. The Office for Faculty Development and Success granted 19 travel awards.
• The college hosted symposia, conferences and seminar series that strategically highlighted our strengths in research areas including applied AI, robotics, batteries and energy storage systems, biomanufacturing, quantum computing, and sustainable protein; as well as the college’s leadership in STEM accessibility and engineering education.
  • Major highlights include:
    • Applied AI in Engineering and Computer Science Symposium
    • Bezos Center Summit
    • Accessibility in STEM Conference
    • Engineering Education Symposium
    • Battery and Energy Storage System Symposium
    • Robotics Symposium
    • Workshop on Energy Needs for AI Data Centers
    • BTEC Symposium on Applied AI in Biomanufacturing
    • Summer Workshop on Quantum Machine Learning for Complex Science and Engineering Problems
  • The college hosted Tsu-Jae King Liu, president of the National Academy of Engineering, for a talk and fireside chat on the future of engineering leadership in a rapidly changing world. Liu spoke to a packed auditorium, toured engineering labs and connected with students.
• The college revamped its website homepage to showcase the opportunities available to prospective/current students and highlight our key research initiatives and strengths.
  • 861,955 impressions July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026
  • 405,040 active users July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026
• The college’s overall social media following increased in FY26:
  • 56,804 followers (up 34.7% from 42,167)
  • 4,116,745 impressions (up 85.7% from 2,216,979)

Section II: Additional Topics Relevant to the College of Engineering

Program Updates and Changes

• Research Administration Hub-and-Spoke Model planning and phased implementation
• Enhanced engagement with ORI and university-wide research administration modernization efforts
• Development of new enterprise-level analytics, research intelligence, and portfolio assessment capabilities

Initiatives

• Engineering North Carolina’s Future
• Applied AI in Engineering and Computer Science Initiative
• Robotics Initiative
• Battery and Energy Storage Systems Initiative
• Advanced Research Reactor Initiative
• Research Administration Transformation (Hub-and-Spoke Model)

Staff

In FY 2025-26, the College of Engineering (COE) celebrated extraordinary achievements across its staff and faculty, highlighting leadership continuity, scholarly excellence, and dedicated university service.

New Leadership Appointments

• Steven Shannon was named permanent head of the Department of Nuclear Engineering.
• Daphne Yao was named permanent head of the Department of Computer Science.
• James Tuck was named interim head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
• Katherine Saul was named interim head of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

State and National Honors

• Cheryl Xu, Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, was elected to the National Academy of Inventors.
• Srinath Ekkad, Department Head and Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and Julie Swann, Department Head and A. Doug Allison Distinguished Professor, Edward P. Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, were elected Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
• Eight faculty members received National Science Foundation CAREER Awards:
  • Amay Bandodkar, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Dariush Heiranian, Assistant Professor,  Department of Materials Science and Engineering
  • Aritra Mitra, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Andrew Lee, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
  • Xiaorui Liu, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science
  • Yuchen Liu, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science
  • Vijay Shah, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Wentao Tang, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
• James Braun, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, received the Young Investigator Award from the Office of Naval Research.
• Richard Kim, Jimmy D. Clark Distinguished University Professor in the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, received the University of North Carolina System’s O. Max Gardner Award for 2026.

University Honors

Over 60 staff and faculty members were honored at the annual 2026 COE Awards event on April 9, 2026

• Staff Awards:
  • 27 staff members were nominated for the Awards for Excellence, and four staff members won the award
  • 5 staff members were named Pride of the Wolfpack winners in the last year
  • 7 staff members were nominated for the NC State Staff Senate’s inaugural Cornerstone Award, including one staff winner
• Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal for Excellence (NC State’s highest faculty honor):
  • Carol Hall, Worley H. Clark, Jr. Distinguished University Professor, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering.
  • Francis de los Reyes, Glenn E. and Phyllis J. Futrell Distinguished Professor, Civil, Construction & Environmental Engineering.
• University Faculty Scholars (2025-26 Cohort): Nearly a third (6 of 20) of NC State’s entire 2025-26 class of University Faculty Scholars were selected from the College of Engineering. This prestigious award recognizes emerging academic leaders for outstanding contributions in teaching, research, and public service:
  • Derek Kamper, Professor, Lampe Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering
  • Brina Montoya, Professor, Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering
  • Venkat Narayanaswamy, Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
  • Spyridon Pavlidis, Associate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Ge Yang, Professor, Department of Nuclear Engineering
  • Jie Yin, Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
• Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor Award
  • Lina Battestilli, Teaching Professor, Department of Computer Science
  • Jacqueline Cole, Associate Professor, Lampe Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering
• Alumni Association Distinguished Graduate Professorship Award
  • Kate Saul, Professor and Interim Department Head, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
• Goodnight Early Career Innovators Award
  • Amay Bandodkar, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • James Braun, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
  • Jingjie Hu, Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
  • Xiaorui Liu, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science
  • Yuan Liu, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Yuchen Liu, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science
  • Vijay K. Shah, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Ruijuan Xu, Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science Engineering
  • Ruozhou Yu, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science

Challenges

• The federal research environment continues to experience significant uncertainty, including funding delays, workforce reductions at federal agencies, increased proposal review timelines and evolving agency priorities. These dynamics increase the importance of faculty engagement, research development support, strategic partnerships and agile institutional response.
• As the college’s research enterprise continues to evolve in an increasingly complex and competitive funding environment, investments in research development, analytics, center support and scalable research administration services will be important to sustain competitiveness and support faculty success.
• Major strategic opportunities such as the TARDISS transition, advanced nuclear reactor initiative and future research infrastructure projects will require continued coordination across college, university, state, federal and external partners.
• Recent and potential future changes to student visa policies and processing procedures creates uncertainty for future international student enrollment and progress toward degree for current international graduate students. This challenge increases the importance of diversifying sources of graduate student recruiting and the engagement of faculty and departments with strategic recruiting.

Opportunities

• The college is well positioned to capitalize on emerging opportunities in energy systems, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, AI-enabled engineering, defense technologies, robotics, biomanufacturing and interdisciplinary research.
• Near-term opportunities include successful launch of the DOE CReST center, transition of the TARDISS ERC to NC State leadership, growth of the Battery and Energy Storage Systems Initiative, advancement of the advanced research reactor initiative and implementation of the Engineering Teaching Building vision.
• The college also sees significant opportunities to expand research development capabilities, strengthen industry engagement, enhance research infrastructure and further position NC State as a national leader in addressing large-scale societal and technological challenges.