School of Engineering Charts Path Forward

By Joan Izzo
VCU School of Engineering

Barbara Boyan, Ph.D., dean of the VCU School of Engineering, has led the school in developing a new strategic plan, which includes four key themes to:

1. build upon the school’s legacy of student-centered learning to prepare the inter-disciplinary leaders of tomorrow,
2. conduct research that makes a positive difference in the community and human kind,
3. create and nurture a highly collaborative, creative, innovative and entrepreneurial culture and
4. provide students with a global, real world perspective of engineering in the learning experience.

Among the transformational plans for the school include recruiting 49 new engineering faculty members and expanding the number of undergraduate and graduate students over the next five years.

“Our strategy for the future includes growth and collaborations with the School of the Arts, the School of Business and the College of Humanities and Sciences as well as schools on the VCU medical campus. Students and faculty will have new opportunities to ‘make it real’ in today’s dynamic environment,” Boyan said.

The school has seen tremendous growth since it welcomed its first class in 1996. Today, its proud accomplishments include:

• A diverse and dynamic student population
• A first-of-its-kind Ph.D. in Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering degree program
• Home to Fulbright and Goldwater Award winning students
• Nearly 93 percent of VCU School of Engineering graduates are employed or in advanced studies six months after graduation (based on 2012 survey results)
• A diverse award-winning faculty that is internationally recognized by prestigious entities including the National Science Foundation
• A curriculum of joint research initiatives and corporate-sponsored projects

The School of Engineering offers the most complete nuclear engineering education in the Commonwealth of Virginia in addition to B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in mechanical, nuclear, biomedical, electrical, computer, chemical and life science engineering and computer science. Interdisciplinary research opportunities are now offered through the Center for Nanomaterials and Characterization, the Institute for Engineering and Medicine, the C. Kenneth and Dianne Harris Wright Virginia Microelectronics Center and the da Vinci Center for Innovation.

                               
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