Showcasing University Of Arkansas Engineering

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The University of Arkansas College of Engineering will be showcased in a special session at the American Society for Engineering Education Conference for Industry and Education Collaboration in Orlando, Fla., Jan. 30 - Feb. 2. Nine engineering faculty members will present an invited panel session detailing the many ways the College of Engineering contributes to economic development in Arkansas.

"It is very rare - almost unheard of - for one University to be invited to present an entire session," explained Bob Wardlow, director of distance education for the College of Engineering.

The CIEC conference brings together more than 200 industrial partners ranging from Raytheon and Trane, Inc. to Motorola and TRW. More than 200 educational participants, including the University of Arizona, Purdue, UCLA, Auburn and Penn State, will also be represented. The conference focuses on how education and industry can partner most effectively.

"This is a unique opportunity for University of Arkansas educators to share with representatives from more than 400 corporations and other educational institutions the ways that we fulfill our mission to add personal, social, and economic value at the state and national levels," explained Otto Loewer, dean of the College of Engineering.

The college has four distinct but integrated activities: undergraduate education, graduate education and research, continuing education and technology transfer and technology-based business incubation and job creation. These activities combine to save or create one job per day in Arkansas through industry/education partnerships.

The College of Engineering has been a leader in distance graduate education for 25 years. With more than 300 students living at points far distant from the University yet continually enrolled at the graduate level, it is one of the oldest and largest distance graduate programs in the United States.

The Arkansas Center for Technology Transfer (ACTT), another component of the college, works to strengthen the state’s economy by providing direct technical assistance to the private sector.

"Our staff of professional engineers and industrial trainers work in areas such as workforce development, technical training, product design improvement, feasibility studies, and process improvements," explained Mark Langston, ACTT director.

Established in 1986, the GENESIS Technology Incubator is the fourth major activity of the College of Engineering designed to promote Arkansas’ economic development. GENESIS is a significant reason that Arkansas has led its surrounding states in job growth.

"In 1999 alone, 423 new jobs were created in Arkansas by GENESIS clients," said John English, GENESIS director.

GENESIS was created to promote development in science and technology. Not only does GENESIS provide its clients with access to modern office facilities, computer and machine shop facilities, and specialized research laboratories, but clients are assigned a mentor from the 15-member board of directors. This mentor can help the client in many areas associated with starting and growing a small business.

Economic development is also enhanced through a variety of centers in the college. The Logistics Institute, located in industrial engineering, is an industry/education consortium that studies commerce and the logistics of business and industry and the Separation Center in chemical engineering works with its industrial partners to develop novel membranes for many different industrial applications. The Mack-Blackwell Rural Transportation Center in civil engineering seeks to improve the quality of rural life through transportation, while electrical engineering’s High Density Electronics Center (HiDec) is a world-class advanced electronics packaging center.

The college’s seven academic departments are divided into six main areas of emphasis of strategic importance to Arkansas. Arkansas has long been associated with three of these areas: biological, chemical and food processing; environmental and ecosystem analysis; and transportation, logistics and infrastructure. In addition, a substantial base has been established in the database and telecommunications, electronics manufacturing, and materials and manufacturing areas.

"Because these areas cut across traditional departmental boundaries, they are a natural bridge for collaborative research," Loewer noted.