Dartmouth's Thayer School of Engineering will kick off the 2005-06 school year with a new dean calling the shots. The College announced the appointment of Joseph J. Helble, former Head of the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Connecticut, as Thayer's twelfth dean on Monday.
Helble will succeed Lewis Duncan, who left the school in 2004 to serve as president of Rollins College after six years as dean at Thayer. During the past year, William Lotko has served as interim dean while the school conducted a search for a new dean.
President Wright expressed his pleasure at the experience Helble brings to Thayer and the prospects he creates for its future when he announced Helbe's appointment on Monday.
"His accomplishments as a scientist, teacher and administrator are very impressive, and I am struck by his enthusiasm to work with the faculty to make this strong program even stronger. This is an exciting time for the Thayer School," Wright said in the announcement.
Helble was familiar with the research conducted at Thayer but had not spent time at the school before becoming a candidate for the position, he said. As a result, Helbe intends to learn from his colleagues and students.
"The first thing I need to do is really get to know the faculty and students and get a better sense what they feel are the challenges and opportunities," Helble said.
Helbe follows in the wake of former dean Duncan's flourishing tenure at the school. During Duncan's tenure, research activity tripled at Thayer, and the school's annual per-faculty-research expenditures grew to be among the top 15 in the country. Planning and fundraising for the new MacLean Engineering Sciences Center came close to completion, for which the groundbreaking ceremony took place in May 2004.
The new deansaid he plans to continue and increase this growth upon his arrival at Thayer, hoping to reach both its engineering students and those at the College.
"One of the great opportunities at Thayer is to expand and grow the research opportunities within the school to the benefit of both the graduate and undergraduate students alike," he said.
Helble comes to Hanover after spending a decade at the University of Connecticut, first as a professor of chemical and environmental engineering and then as head of the Chemical Engineering Department from 1999 until 2004. Before entering the educational field, Helble graduated from Lehigh University and earned his Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
For the past year -- and until he officially takes on the position at Thayer -- Helble is working as an environmental science and technology policy advisor in the office of U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman. He is providing scientific input into the policy-making process, he said.
Helble's awards and past accomplishments are numerous in the field of science. He has been honored with a National Science Foundation Career Award and holds five patents, all of which involve a device that produces nanoscale ceramic powders. He also has served on numerous Environmental Protection Agency Science Advisory Boards.
Helble will continue working in Senator Lieberman's office through the summer and will arrive on campus in September 2005.
