October 30, 2017

Dear members of the Hajim School community,

Hajim students interested in becoming Grand Challenges Scholars can now visit our website to learn more about this exciting program and how to apply. Sponsored by the National Academy of Engineering, the program recognizes students who successfully combine research, community engaged learning, internships, entrepreneurship, and global experiences to address one of 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering in the 21st Century. This is a great opportunity for students to proactively take ownership of their learning experience here, and receive recognition that will help them find jobs and fellowships.

A DAAD-Rise summer research internship, studying with doctoral students at top research institutes in Germany, is a great example of the kind of experience that can be part of the quest to become a Grand Challenges Scholar. Several Hajim school students have completed DAAD-Rise summer research internships over the years. You can learn more about the program at an information session at 5 p.m. Thursday in Douglass 401. Appropriately enough, German treats will be served!

We’ve also launched a new website for our Hajim Young Leadership Council (HYLC). These 21 recent Hajim alumni provide invaluable feedback and advice to me and our staff. This helps us keep our educational programs relevant to the current workplace, connect with other recent graduates, and build mentoring and internship opportunities for current students. HYLC members, in turn, are kept abreast of what’s happening at the school and enjoy networking opportunities that can be useful for their own professional development. I enjoyed meeting with the council during Meliora Weekend, and encourage more or our recent alumni to join, by contacting Derek Swanson.

Congratulations to five Hajim School sophomores who will be presented Suzanne J. O’Brien Book Awards, formerly called Iota Book Awards, at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Welles-Brown Room. They are Myles Duval, Marcos Dos Santos, and Noah Meyers of mechanical engineering, Anthony Pericolo of engineering science, and Yunke Ren of biomedical engineering. The College deans and the Iota Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa present the awards to recognize outstanding members of the previous year’s freshman class. Just 16 members out of a freshman class of 1,340 were selected this year based on scholarly achievement, humanistic values, co-curricular activity, and leadership potential. Well done!

Congratulations as well to:

Marvin Doyley, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, who is PI of an NIH-funded project to develop an integrated system of shear wave ultrasound elastography and optical fluorescence tomography to provide better imaging of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. This hard-to-treat cancer has a 5-year survival rate of less than 6 percent. Marvin is working with Scott Gerber and Bradley Mills in the Department of Surgery. Better imaging of this cancer’s unique tumor microenvironment, including its mechanical properties and vascular permeability, would allow oncologists and clinical researchers to develop patient-specific therapies, and better evaluate the effectiveness of new treatments. Read more here.
Hajim faculty who helped organize and who participated in Optifab 2017, North America’s largest optical manufacturing conference and exhibition, with 2,000 attendees and 186 exhibiting companies. The conference, organized by SPIE and APOMA (the American Precision Optics Manufacturers Association), was held in Rochester earlier this month. Julie Bentley, associate professor of optics, was chair of the conference and also chaired a plenary session. Julie has been active in SPIE for many years, and was named a Fellow in 2012 for developing courses in lens design with real-world student projects. Jennifer Kruschwitz, assistant professor of optics, chaired the conference’s session on coating and cleaning. John Lambropoulos, professor and chair of mechanical engineering, chaired a session on grinding and polishing, and made two presentations, including one in collaboration with Jing Xu, Thomas Smith, and Michael Pomerantz.
Robert Boyd, professor of optics, who is co-author of an article, “Ultraslow Waves on the Nanoscale,” in the current issue of Science. The authors conclude that “The broadband, ultraslow-wave regime in subdiffraction-limited nanostructures is essentially a new regime for nanophotonics, acoustics, and 2D materials, as in all three fields we have been accustomed to using fast propagating waves for diverse operations and devices. Many surprises are waiting to be revealed and further exciting applications to emerge in this new regime.” You can read the article here.

This sounds like someone worth listening to: Yohav Medan of Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, and former vice president and chief systems architect at InSightec Ltd. will speak on engineering and innovation this Thursday from 3:30 to 4:45 p.m. in Schlegel Hall, Room 102. Yohav and his team of scientists, doctors, and researchers used focused ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging technologies to target brain lesions, which avoided having to make any cuts into skin or delicate tissues. The event, presented by the Ain Center for Entrepreneurship, is free and open to the University community and the general public. Attendees must register online in advance or call 276-3500.

Have a great week!

Your dean,
Wendi Heinzelman