School of Engineering, University of Connecticut www.engr.uconn.edu Summer 2005 GE Advanced Materials Establishes $500,000 Scholarship for African American Engineering Students see page 4 Also In this Issue: Connecticut Global Fuel Quing Zhu’s Research Aids Middle School Girls Cell Center Receives 40 kW in Breast Cancer Detection Sample Engineering GenCell Fuel Cell see page 11 see page 14 see page 4 generous alumni. These highly-valued ates by 42 percent. During the same period, faculty positions help us recruit and retain we have increased the number of African top researchers. American students by more than 48 One of our challenges in Engineering percent, and the number of Hispanic A Message has been the very strong desire to increase and Puerto Rican students by 25 percent. from the Dean the diversity of our faculty and students. Last fall, I delivered an invited keynote In the last seven years, we have successfully address at a National Science Foundation recruited 10 talented female faculty mem- Workshop for the Development of Minority elcome to the summer 2005 issue bers, bringing our total to 11—a rate of Faculty in Engineering. My talk was entitled Wof Frontiers. growth that exceeds that of many other “Fostering Diversity in Engineering In the last year, while visiting other schools of engineering nationwide. Education: Challenges and Opportunities.” universities or attending professional We remain committed to adding even We are proud to share our experiences and conferences, I repeatedly am asked about more women in the coming years. successes, but we still are not where we certain faculty members, or about certain Quality defines our academic leaders, want to be, and much work remains. cutting-edge research being conducted by as well, from department heads to directors, We have also increased the value and our faculty teams. Our engineering faculty Associate and Assistant Deans. These talent- number of merit scholarships awarded each are well known and respected beyond the ed individuals are so exceptional that in the year to outstanding scholars, from 100 to modest sphere of the UConn community. last few years we have lost two, who became 232 in just five years. Clearly, our reputation is growing and gain- deans at the University of Vermont and Finally, our exceptional alumni are a ing respect. This underscores an important Dartmouth College. We lost another three tremendous source of pride for the School theme: it is the combined contributions to Columbia University, Ohio State and of Engineering. Among our alumni are and commitment of students, faculty Florida, where they accepted leadership presidents and CEOs of major corporations, and alumni who make our school great. positions as Department Heads or leading academics, astronauts, top govern- Therefore, it is appropriate to reflect on Directors. Our challenge at UConn is to ment officials, university presidents and where we have been as a school and to recruit and then successfully retain these researchers. This year we inducted 15 new outline where we are going. highly qualified people by creating an envi- members into the School’s Academy of We in the School of Engineering are ronment that stimulates their research and Distinguished Engineers. Brief profiles of fortunate in having 120 world-class educational excellence. Their research will these impressive individuals appear later in researchers and teachers. Of these, nearly ultimately improve our lives, create new this issue of Frontiers and underscore the 40 are chief or associate editors of major jobs and benefit all Connecticut citizens. lasting contributions they have made to international scientific journals. Forty-three The numbers speak volumes: in just the engineering profession, their respective have been elected Fellows of major profes- six years, the School of Engineering has employers and the nation’s economy. sional societies; this is the highest rank increased undergraduate enrollments by They are role models for all of us, and they members may attain. Three are members more than 70 percent and our freshman signify how much our graduates can achieve of the prestigious National Academy of enrollments by more than 110 percent. in their professional lives. Engineering: it is worth noting that in Meanwhile, the average SAT score of our As Dean, my challenge is to not only 2000, none of our faculty were members incoming freshmen has risen more than 100 maintain our current high level of excellence of the Academy. Sixty-six are authors or points since 2000. Furthermore, for the fall but, indeed, to expand upon our current co-authors of engineering and technical 2005 term, the School of Engineering has successes. If we are to continue to fill the books. Together, our faculty hold more admitted six Nutmeg Scholars out of a total regional demand for well-trained engineers, than 170 patents. And they are among of 15 at the University, three Day of Pride the UConn School of Engineering must the most productive researchers at the Scholars, and 25 out of 100 valedictorians expand our resources, enhance our outreach University, bringing a total of over accepted throughout the entire University. activities, and strengthen our recruiting $18 million dollars of sustained funding These figures reflect on the success of a and retention of world-class students annually to the University from external number of important initiatives geared to and faculty. We can not do the job alone, sources. In fact, our external research improve the quality and diversity of our but need and welcome the assistance of our expenditures rose from $12 million in 2002 undergraduate engineering populations. many dedicated friends and alumni. to more than $18 million in 2004— Our diversity initiatives have focused on a 50 percent increase in just two years. introducing engineering to middle school This money supports faculty research, and high school students, and our goal is and employs graduate students and to enhance the number of female students undergraduate research assistants. and students from underrepresented groups. Since 2000, we have established 16 I am happy to report that our efforts are Amir Faghri endowed faculty positions with support paying off. In the last five years, we have Dean and United Technologies Endowed from our friends in industry as well as increased the number of female undergradu- Chair Professor in Thermal-Fluids Engineering 2 FRONTIERS SUMMER 2005 www.engr.uconn.edu IN THIS ISSUE A Message from the Dean 2 GE Advanced Materials Establishes $500,000 Scholarship for African American Engineering Students 4 10 Connecticut Global Fuel Cell Center UNIVERSITY OF Receives 40 kW GenCell Fuel Cell 4 13 CONNECTICUT Lei Zhu Awarded DuPont Young Professors Grant 4 SCHOOL OF Aggelos Kiayias Awarded NSF Career Award 5 ENGINEERING Promotions and Tenure Decisions 5 School Honors Outstanding Alumni and Students 6 Dean Wilson Chiu Captures Three Major Awards 9 Amir Faghri 14 UConn Hosts Concrete Canoe Competition 10 Associate Deans Theodore Bergman, Research & Outreach Quing Zhu’s Research Aids in Breast Cancer Detection 11 Ian Greenshields, Academic Affairs Fuel Cell Design & Manufacture Assistant Dean Topic of May Workshop 12 Marcelle Wood, Undergraduate Education Lei Wang Brings Microprocessor Expertise to ECE 12 Director of Development William Kissick, Jr. Clever Inventions Take Storrs by Storm 13 Writer/Editor Middle School Girls Sample Engineering 14 Nan R. Cooper Student Athlete Balances Graphic Designer/Illustrator Academic and Sports Goals 15 Chris LaRosa 16 Civil Engineering Students Win Photo Credits Special Environmental Leadership Award 16 Chris LaRosa, Kevin McLaughlin, Liang Pei, Leon Shaw, University Communications Tom Wood Captures AAUP Research Excellence Award 16 Frontiers is published twice yearly by the Office of the Dean, School of Engineering Middle School Students Get Lesson in Fuel Cells 17 at the University of Connecticut. Jack Stephens: Driven to Improve Road Durability 18 261 Glenbrook Road, Unit 2237 17 Storrs, Connecticut 06269-2237 “Patently Female” Lecture Telephone: (860) 486-2221 Highlights Women Inventors 19 22 Published for the alumni, faculty, students, Faculty News 20 corporate supporters, and friends of the School of Engineering at the University of ITE Sculpture Dedicated 21 Connecticut. Suggestions are welcome. Send correspondence and address Students Shine at Design Expo 22 corrections to the Editor at the above address or e-mail to [email protected] Alumni News 23 www.engr.uconn.edu SUMMER 2005 FRONTIERS 3 GE Advanced Materials Establishes Connecticut $500,000 Scholarship for African Global Fuel Cell American Engineering Students Center Receives n early April, the School of Engineering said John Krenicki, president and CEO of GE Ireceived a cash endowment of $500,000 for Advanced Materials. “We’re delighted to be 40 kW GenCell establishment of the GE Advanced Materials helping worthy African American students to Endowed Scholar Program Fund, focusing on have the opportunity to get an education in Fuel Cell African American students. GE Advanced engineering and science. Scholarship Materials, based in Pittsfield, MA, is a world awardees will also have the opportunity for n January, GenCell Corporation of leader in providing material solutions through a summer internship at one of our many Southbury, CT delivered a carbonate fuel engineering thermoplastics, silicon products I locations worldwide.” cell system to the Connecticut Global Fuel and technology platforms, and fused quartz Dean of Engineering Amir Faghri enthused, Cell Center, a center operated by the and ceramics. “We are deeply gratified by this outstanding School of Engineering. The unit, housed in The permanent endowment will support investment in the UConn School of a dedicated room within the 16,000 sq. ft. undergraduate scholarships in the depart- Engineering and its students. In making this Fuel Cell Center, converts pipeline natural ments of Mechanical Engineering, Chemical generous gift, which will make an excellent gas into AC Engineering and Materials Science & engineering education affordable for a power and Engineering.