July 30, Buddy LeTourneau BLT Consulting Dear Search Committee Members:

Transcription

1 July 30, 2015 Buddy LeTourneau BLT Consulting Dear Search Committee Members: I am honored to submit my application for the Dean position in the College of Engineering and Computer Science (CECS) at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC). I am currently serving as the Interim Dean of the CECS and have worked at UTC in a variety of academic and leadership capacities for over 15 years. I believe my experience, knowledge, and relationship with the community uniquely positions me to lead the College and work in partnership with UTC s new academic and administrative leaders to develop a more productive and integrated platform of academic programs and scholarly activities. I came to the United States in 1994 to pursue my Ph.D. in Engineering Management at the University of Missouri-Rolla (UMR), which is currently called Missouri University of Science and Technology. I finished my Ph.D. in record time in December 1996 and was offered a job as a Postdoctoral Fellow at UMR, where I worked for two years. From the beginning of my academic career, I have always taken an active leadership role in contributing to the success of my colleagues and institution. My first task as a UMR fellow was to assist another Ph.D. student with her research, who successfully finished her Ph.D. in 1997 and became the first African American female Ph.D. graduate from UMR. I was so honored to be a part of this historical achievement. I also taught undergraduate and graduate level courses on campus and other satellite campuses, including Fort Leonard Wood, a United States Army installation located in the Missouri Ozarks, and the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Columbia campuses. In addition to teaching, I conducted research on online and distance teaching and implemented the WebCT, the first online technology at UMR. This program was launched successfully in 1998 and became the first in the University of Missouri system. I was invited to other University of Missouri campuses (Columbia, Kansas City, and St. Louis) to train faculty and staff to use the WebCT. After completing a very successful Postdoctoral experience at UMR, I was hired by UTC in 1999 as an Assistant Professor in the College of Engineering and Computer Science. During my tenure at UTC, I have built a very good reputation in developing new programs, fostering community engagement, attracting financial support for the College, improving international student recruitment and management, and increasing enrollment and graduation rates significantly. I have also developed a very strong relationship with my colleagues within the College and UTC, which has cultivated more recognition and trust and has allowed us to work in a cohesive and cooperative manner. My academic and administrative title has changed several times in the last decade, including UC Foundation Professor, Director of Graduate Programs, Assistant Dean of Graduate Programs and Department Head of Engineering Management & Technology, and Associate Dean of Graduate Programs and Department Head of Engineering Management & Technology. In May 2014, I was appointed as the Interim Dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science, and it has been an honor to serve in this capacity with the tremendous support that I have received from faculty and staff within the College and University. I have also been recognized as the first female Engineering Dean in the state of Tennessee. When I first joined the UTC faculty in 1999, I helped implement an online system for the Engineering Management graduate program, in addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in Engineering Management and Industrial Engineering. At that time, the College was moving toward discipline-based Engineering accreditation through the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), so we worked toward improving curriculum and adding new courses in every area. I was responsible for developing and teaching more than 10 new undergraduate Industrial engineering courses both in class and online. I also received a $100,000 grant to move the Engineering Management graduate courses online at UTC. After 5 years of challenging work, we were able to move the entire Engineering Management program online. In 2014, the Engineering Management graduate program was chosen as one of the Best Online 1

2 Engineering Graduate Programs in the nation, ranking #7 according to the US News & World Report, which was a very big success for the College and UTC. In 2006, I moved into an administrative role as the Director of Graduate Programs to help grow the graduate programs within the College, recruit more students, and increase the graduation rates of graduate students. The Chancellor sent me to India three times to recruit graduate students, which helped us increase the international student population in the College from 20 students to more than 100 students a number that continues to grow. As a result of these efforts, our enrollment has increased from 50 graduate students to more than 250 in 5 years, and our graduation rates have increased from 50% to 90% at the graduate level. During that time, I was also tasked with revitalizing the Technology program, which only had 3 students in 2007 and was facing closure. I developed a 2+2 program with Chattanooga State Community College (CSCC) in order to create a pipeline for transfer students into our Technology program, and I received a $150,000 grant from the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of East Tennessee to develop the first Construction Management technology program in the state of Tennessee, which launched in the Fall of With the addition of this new program, the number of students in the Technology program has flourished from 3 students to more than 100 students in less than three years. We also added a graduate Construction Management concentration in the College, which helped with graduate enrollment. Since the initiation of the Construction Management program, AGC has provided $50,000/year to support scholarships for our Construction Management students. This growth in the Construction Management program provided many internship and job opportunities for students in local construction companies, such as Signal Energy Constructors, EMJ Corporation, TU Parks Construction Company, The Strauss Company, Inc., Stein Construction, Pointe General Contractors, etc. After successful growth of the Technology program and graduating the first student, I led the first ABET-Engineering Technology Accreditation (ETAC) and received it successfully in When I was appointed as Interim Dean in May 2014, my initial tasks were to stabilize the College, fix the budget problems, improve communications, and create transparency in the College. One of my key goals has been to shift the culture within the College to a more collaborative and cohesive environment where all stakeholders students, faculty, and staff feel they can contribute to development and success of the College. I meet with Department Heads on a bi-weekly basis, organize quarterly meetings with the College faculty, meet with the staff once a month, and meet with students once a month to learn more about their issues and challenges so I can work with Department Heads to resolve them based on the identified priorities. These meetings and planning efforts have helped all Department Heads see the big picture within the College, understand issues in other areas, and collaboratively come up with solutions to help the College thrive. I feel fortunate to have such a strong and caring Executive Team, who has provided assistance and guidance to me during my Interim role as Dean. My first priority is and will always be students, since they are the main reason for our jobs in academia. I strongly believe that our utmost priority is to help students achieve and become successful individuals in college, their careers, and life. Therefore, I began to meet monthly with student leaders to discuss their issues and expectations from the College, and they have been extremely pleased to be heard and valued for the first time in the College. During the academic year, we have achieved many accomplishments impacting students as a result of these meetings, including: Formed the first CECS Dean s Student Advisory Council Created a Constitution for the Council Organized the first College-level Job Fair (one in the fall and one in the spring semester), with more than 30 local and regional companies attending the fairs Continued to organize the Get On Board Day to present student organizations Hired two Professional Advisors to assist students with their advisement related issues Started a Tutoring program to assist students who struggle in some courses Established a Makerspace for students to network and work on community related projects with an assigned faculty advisor Created a study room space for Engineering students Emphasized marketing to bring visibility and recognition to the College 2

3 Provided a better sitting and working environment for CECS students within the College and outside the courtyard area Hired a part-time Research Coordinator to assist students with their writing and communication skills Hired a part-time Outreach Coordinator to recruit students and help the current students with their job searches Supported student projects and helped secure funding for the projects Received diversity scholarship funding in order to increase the diversity within the College Improving communications among faculty, staff, and students has been another key priority for me as Interim Dean, which I view as essential to develop a broader growth agenda, expand programming, and strengthen community engagement. Below are the accomplishments in this area for the academic year: Started to meet with Department Heads on a bi-weekly basis Started to meet with faculty on a quarterly basis Started to meet with staff and student leaders once a month Developed the first e-news for the College that was sent once a month Created the first Annual Review magazine in hard and electronic copies, which was sent to all alumni, Advisory Board members, and industry partners Based on input from meetings and planning efforts, I have also worked to restructure the College effectively, so we can function better, meet the needs of students, build our research capacity, and become much more visible to the community. A few of the key accomplishments in the academic year include: Reorganized the College Advisory Board, added more than 30 new members, started to meet with them twice a semester, and formed three sub-committees, which are designed to assist the College in strategy, community, and marketing areas Reorganized the College Executive Team comprised of six Department Heads and an Associate Dean, who is primarily responsible for Academic Affairs Hired a new Development Director to assist the College with support and engagement initiatives Hired two Professional Advisors to support student advisement Hired one part-time Research Coordinate and one part-time Outreach Coordinator Hired a grant consultant to help faculty with their research funding opportunities One of the weakest areas of the college was our marketing efforts. Therefore, we have invested in several marketing areas during the academic year: Rented billboards on the highway and other locations within Chattanooga for one year to bring visibility to the College Started actively using social media with Facebook and LinkedIn to increase visibility Upgraded the College website Developed promotional video clips to highlight student success Promoted marketing materials for the College, such as brochures, flyers, t-shirts, flash drives, mugs, pens, etc. Put several digital signs within the Engineering, Mathematics, and Computer Science building to inform faculty, staff, and students about events and share accomplishments Purchased ads in local magazines Community engagement is extremely crucial for the College, and during my time as Interim Dean we have continued to build on our strong relationships and add new partnerships. Below are some key partnerships and initiatives that have grown or been launched over the academic year: We have established a new agreement with Erlanger, which has allowed more faculty to conduct projects at Erlanger, and we are continuing to increase these numbers Faculty have worked on several projects through the Siskin Children s Institute Miller Industries has continued to hire our students and support student projects UNUM s Internship program has benefited many of our CECS students Green Spaces has been working with the College toward a $5 million grant from the Georgetown University Energy Prize 3

4 Co-Lab has used our facility for their Gig Tank projects, and this year we have faculty and students assisting other teams. Our goal is to have our own team in next year s Gig Tank. Enterprise Center is working closely with the College to develop the first Advanced Manufacturing and Additive Technology Lab in the Mapp building Enterprise Center is also bridging the College with US Ignite and GENI activities, in which Computer Science faculty are engaged Volkswagen (VW) R&D Center is working very closely with the College toward unique research initiatives In addition to the R&D Center, VW is also working with the College to recruit students in their Engineering Specialist Training (EST) program BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee continues to work with the Computer Science & Engineering Department The Chamber of Commerce is working closely with the College to bring prospective technical companies to Chattanooga The College has also celebrated many academic accomplishments over the academic year that have solidified the quality of our program and our partnerships with community colleges in the region, which will help us continue to attract quality students and grow our undergraduate and graduate programs. Below are a few highlights of our success: Civil Engineering Department hosted the largest conference in the College and University history by organizing the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Southeast Student Competition, with more than 1,000 students and faculty in attendance We hired three new faculty in Electrical Engineering, one new faculty in Mechanical Engineering, one new faculty in Chemical Engineering, two new faculty in Computer Science and Engineering, and one new faculty in Engineering Management & Technology We have successfully completed and submitted 5 Engineering self-study reports for the ABET- Engineering Accreditation Commission (EAC) reaccreditation visit in the Fall of 2015 Computer Science and Engineering Department has developed the first Data Science program both at the undergraduate and graduate levels Our Engineering Management graduate program has been ranked as #7 Best Online Graduate Program in the nation according to the US News & World Report We made major curriculum changes to strengthen our current programs We have signed our first Memorandum of Agreements (MOAs) with Chinese Universities for the Computer Science and Civil Engineering programs We have worked with all local community colleges (including Chattanooga State Community College, Cleveland State Community College, and Dalton State Community College) to formalize our relationship and agreements in order to create a seamless transfer opportunity for students who are interested in coming to UTC, which is fully aligned with the TN Promise We have reorganized the Project Lead The Way (PLTW) Training Program for middle and high school teachers, offered courses in Memphis the first time, and increased the number of participants from 30 to 100 teachers in one year I strongly believe that we have worked hard and accomplished a lot during the academic year while I have served the College as the Interim Dean, but there are still many things that can be done. UTC has recently launched a new Strategic Plan for Our new Chancellor and Provost are working closely with UTC faculty, staff, and students, as well as the UT System and the Chattanooga community. They have hired new key individuals to implement the Strategic Plan and take UTC to a higher level, including a new Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate School Dean, Director of Community Partnerships, and a Vice Chancellor for Development and Academic Affairs, who started one year ago. UTC is currently in the process of hiring a new Executive Director for International Programs, a new Continuing Education Director, and a new Vice Chancellor for Communications. 4

5 Due to these recent changes and developments at UTC, the College is in an excellent position to develop a broader growth agenda, and we are working to establish a 5-year strategic plan aligned with UTC s strategic plan to expand our programming and community engagement. Below is a draft of key projected outcomes for the CECS strategic plan, which will be discussed and finalized with faculty, staff, and students input: Increase the total enrollment from 1,400 to 2,000 Increase the graduate enrollment from 250 to 400 Increase the annual graduation rates from 250 to 350 Increase the number of faculty from 42 to 65 Expand the current Ph.D. program to include Engineering, Computer Science, Engineering Management, and other discipline students Create a new Automotive Engineering master s program to meet the needs of Volkswagen and other car manufacturers in the area Establish the first Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) degree in Engineering Technology in Tennessee Develop the first Advanced Manufacturing and Additive Technology Lab, which will be shared with the community As outlined in this letter of interest and my attached curriculum vitae, I have built a strong track record as a leader and effective collaborator throughout my career, and my experience within numerous leadership roles in the College, including Interim Dean, positions me as an excellent candidate for the Dean position. I have established very strong ties within the community, with many new initiatives under development that will have a far-reaching impact on the future growth of the College. I am poised to successfully carry these programs and opportunities forward with the relationships I have developed in actively partnering with industries and organizations across the community. I have been working to shift the culture in the College and build research capacity through faculty hires and by providing a greater level of communication and support for expanding the College s research program. With more than 15 years of experience in the College, I also bring a unique historical perspective and background knowledge that I believe is essential to help the College fully realize its potential. I am fully committed to UTC and the College and thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Neslihan Alp, Ph.D., P.E. Interim Dean College of Engineering and Computer Science University of Tennessee at Chattanooga 5