Nominations and applications are being solicited for the position of Head of the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at Virginia Tech. The Department Head's principal responsibility is to provide leadership and management of the programs, faculty, staff, and students. This entails leadership of departmental programs and administrative responsibility for planning, fiscal management, human resources, and communication within the department. The successful candidate is expected to:
- Have a clear understanding of the role and mission of the department and a vision for its future direction. This will involve further development of existing strengths, fostering new disciplines in emerging fields within computer and electrical engineering, and strengthening interdisciplinary efforts across the university;
- Have demonstrated leadership and management skills to lead the department to become one of the premier ECE departments in the nation;
- Effectively advocate for the department to the college and university administration, industry, and government;
- Encourage development, creativity, and scholarship among the faculty, staff, and students;
- Lead fund-raising efforts by promotion of sponsored research and cultivating corporate, governmental, alumni, and other private support; and,
- Have the ability to communicate effectively, concisely, and clearly at all levels.
Required Qualifications
- Applicants must have an earned doctorate in electrical or computer engineering or a closely related field with the experience and credentials appropriate for a tenured academic faculty appointment at the professor level at Virginia Tech;
- Experience in enhancing the representation and success of underrepresented populations;
- Excellent writing and oral communication skills;
- Strong interpersonal skills;
- Demonstrated commitment to high academic standards;
- Successful administrative experience including personnel supervision and evaluation;
- Ability to effectively communicate one-on-one, within small groups and to large audiences;
- Collaborative approach to resolving complex problems and forming solutions; and
- Development and expansion of sponsored research programs.
Preferred Qualifications
- Previous successful administrative and research leadership experience; and
- Familiarity with ABET engineering accreditation processes.
The ECE Department
The ECE Department offers B.S., M.S., M.Eng., and Ph.D. degree programs in both Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering with an enrollment of about 600 full-time undergraduate students and 500 graduate students. In addition to the main Blacksburg campus, an active research program and a full- and part-time graduate program are located in the National Capital Region (Washington, DC area), with 10 full-time ECE faculty who interact closely with faculty in Blacksburg.
In the most recent US News & World Report rankings, our electrical engineering graduate program is tied for 21st and our computer engineering graduate program is tied for 24th and our electrical engineering undergraduate program is tied for 14th. The department's external research expenditures were ranked 13th among ECE and similar departments based on data from the most recent (2011) ASEE profile of colleges of engineering.
The ECE Department has 73 tenured or tenure-track faculty members and external research expenditures exceeding $29 million annually. The department has programs that are among the nation's largest and strongest in power electronics, power systems, wireless communications and networking, space science and engineering, remote sensing, fiber optics and photonics, and computational biology. The department has additional emerging areas of strength in autonomous systems, biomedical applications, cybersecurity, embedded systems, and semiconductors. The department is the beneficiary of the Bradley Endowment which provides scholarships, fellowships, professorships, and other support for the department. For more information about the ECE Department and the College of Engineering, please visit www.ece.vt.edu and www.eng.vt.edu.
The University
Through a combination of its three missions of discovery, learning, and engagement, Virginia Tech continually strives to accomplish the charge of its motto Ut Prosim (That I May Serve). Virginia Tech is the Commonwealth's senior land-grant institution. Highly selective in admissions, the University enrolls approximately 23,700 undergraduate and 7,300 graduate and professional students, and has more than 3,100 faculty members and researchers. The university offers 65 bachelor's degree programs through its seven undergraduate academic colleges: Agriculture and Life Sciences, Architecture and Urban Studies, Engineering, Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, Natural Resources and Environment, Pamplin College of Business, and Science. At the graduate level, the university offers 150 master's and doctoral degree programs through the Graduate School and a professional degree from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. Through a public-private partnership, Virginia Tech and the Carilion Clinic have created the Virginia-Tech Carilion School of Medicine and the Virginia Tech-Carilion Research Institute. For more information about the university, please visit www.vt.edu.
The Community
Virginia Tech is located in Blacksburg in the scenic mountains of southwestern Virginia, about 40 miles west of Roanoke. Bloomberg Businessweek recently ranked Blacksburg as the "Best Place in the U.S. to Raise Kids." Livability.com has given Blacksburg the title of one of the ten best college towns for 2012. Blacksburg also has a growing and active community of young professionals who work at Virginia Tech, small companies in the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center, and elsewhere in the area. For more information about the Town of Blacksburg, please visit www.blacksburg.va.us.
Nominations
Nominations for the position are welcome and should include statements regarding the nominee's relevant credentials. Please address these to:
Dr. Peter Athanas
Chair, Search Committee
Virginia Tech
Bradley Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
302 Whittemore Hall (0111)
Blacksburg, VA 24061
athanas@vt.edu (Subject Line: ECE Department Head Search)
The Application Process
Qualified applicants must submit a letter of application, a curriculum vita, a statement of one's interests and vision, and a list of at least three professional references, including affiliations, contact information (including email and telephone number) and permission to contact them. Please apply electronically to jobs.vt.edu to posting number 0122299. Please follow carefully the instructions found on the employment website regarding the application submission process. Unfortunately, we are unable to accept paper applications or electronic applications sent via e-mail. These types of applications cannot be considered. Review of applications will begin January 1, 2013 and will continue until the position is filled with an appropriate candidate. The anticipated start date is August 10, 2013.
Applications from women and other underrepresented populations in engineering are especially encouraged. Virginia Tech has a program designed to support the retention and advancement of female faculty; see www.advance.vt.edu. Individuals with disabilities desiring accommodation in the application process should notify K. Atkins, ECE Dept, (540) 231-4136 or TDD/PC 1-800-828-1120 or Voice 1-800-828-1140.
Virginia Tech is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.