SWE - Fall 2008 - (Page 48)

Seventh Installment of SWE’s Annual Series Academe 2008 BY PEGGY LAYNE, P.E., F. SWE Women Engineering Leaders in W “I looked at and listened to these women and thought, ‘I can do this!’ ” Susan Blanchard, after attending a Women in Engineering Leadership Institute summit. hen I started this series of profiles in 2002, I did not know it would become an annual commitment that I would look forward to each year. Another year, another great conversation with outstanding women leaders in engineering! The opportunity to learn about these women — members of the exclusive sisterhood of female deans of engineering — has deepened my appreciation for them both as individuals and for the work they do to advance engineering education. This year’s subjects are Susan Blanchard, Ph.D., of Florida Gulf Coast University; Candis Claiborn, Ph.D., of Washington State University; and Sallie Keller-McNulty, Ph.D., of Rice University. Their institutions are spread across the United States, and the differences between them are more than geographic. The U.A. Whitaker School of Engineering at FGCU has yet to graduate its first class, while WSU’s College of Engineering and Architecture is more than 100 years old, and Rice will celebrate its centennial in a few years. Rice is a private university, while FGCU and WSU are public. The deans took different routes to their positions — Dr. Blanchard’s being somewhat circuitous, Dr. Keller-McNulty’s having had an interesting detour, and Dr. Claiborn’s being more direct. In addition to interesting personal stories, all three deans share an enthusiasm for engineering and engineering students and an interdisciplinary approach to applying technology to meet human needs. The institutions Washington State is a public research university with its main campus in Pullman, Wash., and three other locations across the state. Founded in 1890 as the state’s land- grant university, WSU offers more than 250 fields of study. It serves more than 24,000 students with more than 1,400 instructional faculty. The College of Engineering and Architecture has six engineering departments and offers undergraduate degrees in eight fields, master’s degrees in 11, and Ph.D.s in six. Enrollment in the college is approaching 3,000 students, with almost 2,500 undergraduates and 500 graduate students. Florida Gulf Coast University was authorized by the Florida legislature in 1991 and enrolled its first students in 1997. Currently serving almost 10,000 students, FGCU plans to grow to 23,000 in the next 10 years. Its campus in Fort Myers opened with eight buildings and now has 60, with three academic buildings and a new dormitory scheduled to open this fall and two more in the planning stages. As a comprehensive regional institution, the university offers 37 undergraduate programs and 20 graduate programs with 361 faculty in five colleges. The U.A. Whitaker School of Engineering has a dozen faculty members and will graduate its first class of 22 students Dr. Susan Blanchard became dean of the next spring with degrees U.A. Whitaker School of Engineering at Florida Gulf Coast University in 2005. in bioengi- 48 SWE FALL 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of SWE - Fall 2008

SWE - Fall 2008 Heritage Club Contents Farewell Message from FY08 President Michelle Tortolani Congratulations SWE Magazine A Conversation with FY09 President Virginia Connolly, P.E. Introducing the FY09 Board of Directors View from the Executive Suite Editor's Page Public Policy Update SWE Retention Study, Part 6 Membership Information & Calendar A&B SWE Member Kristina Johnson First Woman to Receive John Fritz Medal University Labs Fuel a New Era in Energy Women Engineering Leaders in Academe 2008 Opening the Gateways to Engineering Your Collegiate Section History is Waiting to Be Discovered Honoring the Legacy of Ada Pressman, P.E. Report from WEPAN Engineering World Proposed Bylaws Amendments Point of View Correction Career Toolbox Corporate Partnership Council Book Review SWE Smiles In Memory Opportunity Index SWE Scrapbook

SWE - Fall 2008

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