Swanson School of Engineering

Swanson School of Engineering
Type Public
Established 1846
Dean Gerald D. Holder
Academic staff
 118[1]
Undergraduates 2104[2]
Postgraduates 751[2]
Location Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US
Campus Oakland
Endowment $92.0 million[3]

The Swanson School of Engineering is the engineering school of the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1846, The Swanson School of Engineering is the second or third oldest in the United States.[4]

History

Benedum Hall and the Engineering Auditorium (in the foreground) is the primary home of the Swanson School of Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh.

The Swanson School of Engineering evolved out of the Western University of Pennsylvania, the former name of the University of Pittsburgh, offering specialized engineering subjects to students, although they were still required complete their classical requirements. The first graduates in these engineering subjects were Isaac Morley and J. B. Stilly in 1846.[5] Separate degree programs in mechanical and civil engineering were announced in 1868, and four year degrees resulting in separate engineering degrees were first implemented in 1870.[6] The school was the university's response to the years surrounding the Civil War that transformed Pittsburgh's industrial base from regional to international.

By 1868, specialized degrees in civil and mechanical engineering were initiated, with mining engineering following in 1869 and electrical engineering in 1890. In 1909, the Metallurgical Engineering department was established, followed by the chemical engineering department and the world's first petroleum engineering department in 1910. Also that year, one of the nation's first undergraduate cooperative education programs was created. The Swanson School of Engineering is also the home of the nation's first industrial engineering departments, established in 1921.

In 2007 the school was renamed to the Swanson School of Engineering after John A. Swanson, founder of the computer software firm, ANSYS, Inc., donated a total of $41.3 million to the school.[7]

Deans

The Center for Biotechnology and Bioengineering is the home of the Swanson School's Department of Bioengineering

Nine individuals have served in the position of the Dean of the School of Engineering over its history.

Deans of the Swanson School of Engineering[8]
Years Dean
1882–1908 Daniel Carhart
1910–1927 Frederick L. Bishop
1927–1950 Elmer A. Holbrook
1951–1963 G. Raymond Fitterer
1965–1973 Harold E. Hoelscher
1973–1985 Max L. Williams
1986–1993 Charles A. Sorber
1994–1996 H.K. Chang
1996–present Gerald D. Holder

Academics

The Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation is attached to Benedum Hall

The Swanson School of Engineering offers undergraduate, graduate degrees, and doctorates in 6 academic departments:

Academic programs offered by the school included Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Civil Engineering, Mining Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Engineering Science, Industrial Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Nuclear Engineering.

Research centers housed in the school include:

Center for Energy

The University of Pittsburgh Center for Energy is a research center housed in the Swanson School of Engineering that is dedicated to improving energy technology development and energy sustainability.[10] Comprising more than 70 faculty members and 200 students and postdocs, the center is scheduled to be housed on a floor of Benedum Hall undergoing a $15 million renovation.[11] The center was created in 2008 to bring together energy innovators across a range of engineering and academic disciplines. It also sought to develop stronger collaborations with energy industry partners in the Western Pennsylvania.[12] The center's faculty focus on five key areas of research that include energy delivery and reliability, carbon management and utilization, high-temperature and other advanced materials, energy efficiency, and unconventional gas resources.[13] In February, 2012, the center announced it had received a $22 million grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation.[14] The donation, one of the largest ever grants awarded by the Mellon Foundation or received by the University of Pittsburgh, is targeted to strengthen the center by creating at least four new faculty positions and eight endowed graduate fellowships.[15] It will also purchase equipment and establish a fund to encouraging innovative research focused on smart grid technology, along with providing general support for research infrastructure and the center's operations.[16]

Notable alumni and faculty

Reginald Fessenden helped to pioneer wireless communications while at Pitt

See also

References

  1. ↑ Swanson School of Engineering Statistical Summary For the 2010 Academic Year. University of Pittsburgh. 2010. p. 68. Retrieved 2011-10-11.
  2. 1 2 Swanson School of Engineering Statistical Summary For the 2010 Academic Year. University of Pittsburgh. 2010. p. 52. Retrieved 2011-10-11.
  3. ↑ Swanson School of Engineering Statistical Summary For the 2010 Academic Year. University of Pittsburgh. 2010. p. 218. Retrieved 2011-10-11.
  4. ↑ Alberts, Robert C. (1986). Pitt :the story of the University of Pittsburgh, 1787-1987. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press. p. 403. ISBN 0-8229-1150-7. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
  5. ↑ Starrett, Agnes Lynch (1937). "Schools of Engineering and Mines". Through One Hundred and Fifty Years: The University of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press. p. 309. Retrieved 2010-10-13.
  6. ↑ Starrett, Agnes Lynch (1937). "Schools of Engineering and Mines". Through One Hundred and Fifty Years: The University of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press. pp. 310–311. Retrieved 2010-10-13.
  7. ↑ Templeton, David (2007-12-06). "Pitt engineering school renamed for alumnus giving $41.3 million". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh, PA). Retrieved 2010-10-13.
  8. ↑ Swanson School of Engineering Statistical Summary For the 2010 Academic Year. University of Pittsburgh. 2010. p. 4. Retrieved 2011-10-11.
  9. ↑ http://www.news.pitt.edu/news/pitt-engineering-develops-strategic-alliance-lubrizol
  10. ↑ "Center for Energy: About Us". University of Pittsburgh. 2010. Retrieved 2012-02-09.
  11. ↑ "The Center for Energy's Future Home". University of Pittsburgh. 2010. Retrieved 2012-02-09.
  12. ↑ Smit, Deb (2011-03-02). "Pitt's Center for Energy shines spotlight on sector; Alstom Grid of France moves in". Pop City (Issue Media Group, LLC). Retrieved 2012-02-09.
  13. ↑ Daniel, Bates (2011-10-17). "Bullish on Energy: Pitt Center for Energy at Forefront of Critical, Specific Energy Challenges". Pitt Chronicle (University of Pittsburgh). Retrieved 2012-02-10.
  14. ↑ Schackner, Bill (2012-02-09). "Pitt to receive $22 million for energy research". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh, PA). Retrieved 2012-02-10.
  15. ↑ Litvak, Anya (2012-02-09). "Pitt's Center for Energy gets $22M from RK Mellon Foundation". Pittsburgh Business Times (Pittsburgh, PA: American City Business Journals, Inc.). Retrieved 2012-02-10.
  16. ↑ Zlatos, Bill (2012-02-10). "Richard King Mellon Foundation grant to take Pitt's energy studies to 'next level'". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved 2012-02-10.

Further reading

Fitterer, George Raymond; Palucka, Tim (2004). A history of the University of Pittsburgh School of Engineering 1846-2004. Pittsburgh, PA: Cathedral Publishing. ISBN 1-887969-13-6. 

External links

Coordinates: 40°26′38″N 79°57′31″W / 40.443811°N 79.958488°W / 40.443811; -79.958488

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