Pratt still searching for new dean after Katsouleas' departure

The search for the new dean of the Pratt School of Engineering is ongoing, with George Truskey, senior associate dean for research, serving as interim dean.

The search committee was formed in June following former dean Tom Katsouleas’ announcement that he was leaving Duke to become the provost and executive vice president at the University of Virginia, a position he assumed in August. Headed by Jeffrey Glass, professor of electrical and computer engineering, the committee hopes to find a dean who will build on the improvements made under Katsouleas.

“What I really want most [in the next dean] is someone that is going to continue that forward momentum and really put a premium on high-quality faculty hires,” said Provost Sally Kornbluth.

During Katsouleas’ seven-year tenure as the dean of Pratt, the school consistently ranked highly among the best undergraduate engineering programs in the nation, including the annual list compiled by U.S. News and World Report. In 2014, Pratt was ranked No. 18 by the publication.

Katsouleas’ tenure was also highlighted by an increase in external research expenditures, the founding of six new research centers and a 62 percent increase in engineering graduate student enrollment.

One legacy Katsouleas leaves is his emphasis on hiring the best faculty members possible, Kornbluth noted.

“Because of that, the school is on this incredible upward trajectory,” she said. “When you’ve got better faculty, it attracts better students.”

In 2009, Katsouleas initiated the Grand Scholars Challenge Program, which is designed to empower students to address pressing global issues. Students in the program work to develop solutions to 14 problems identified by the National Academy of Engineering.

“It’s a great way to get students excited about engineering and how engineering can impact the world,” Truskey said.

The Grand Scholars Challenge Program has been recognized nationwide—with over 50 schools implementing their own grand challenge programs after Duke.

Katsouleas also helped integrate Pratt with the rest of the University. An important aspect of Katsouleas’ leadership was his work to enhance collaborations and initiatives between engineering and medicine, Truskey said.

“The thing that makes us really special is that people can come here and collaborate with really great people,” Kornbluth said. “The barriers are low, everyone is collegial [and] people are wanting to do new and interesting things.”

Truskey also shed light on possible future directions for the school.

Truskey said he hopes the next dean will continue Katsouleas’ work with entrepreneurial students who wish to start their own businesses. The next dean may also focus on advancing the new environmental engineering major, which has expanded Pratt’s undergraduate offerings. The first class of environmental engineers will graduate Spring 2016. Another goal will be to improve diversity among students, staff and faculty.

“[The next dean] needs to be a dynamic leader and to have a vision that can attract the support of the faculty and staff members,” he said.

As interim dean, Truskey noted that he plans to evaluate the first-year curriculum and develop ways to enhance it and make it more hands-on.

Katsouleas is not the only dean of Pratt to have gone on to become provost at another university. In 2007, former Pratt dean Kristina Johnson became provost and vice president for academic affairs at Johns Hopkins University. Johnson, the only woman to hold the post, later took a position in the U.S. Department of Energy.

Prior to arriving at Duke, Katsouleas served as an electrical engineering professor and vice provost for information services at the University of Southern California.

Although the length of the search is undetermined, previous searches have been completed within one calendar year. Both Katsouleas and Johnson were selected within a year of their predecessors’ departures.

Amrith Ramkumar contributed reporting.