I am pleased to announce the reappointment of Professor Deepa Kundur as Chair of the Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering for a five-year term commencing July 1, 2024.
Professor Deepa Kundur first joined the Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering in 1999 as an Assistant Professor. After taking a position at Texas A&M University in 2003, she returned to the University of Toronto in 2012, joining as a Full Professor. She is a triple alumna of the Department. Professor Kundur held the position of Associate Chair, Division of Engineering Science from 2014 to 2016, later becoming Director of the same unit from 2017 to 2019. Under her leadership as Director of the Division of Engineering Science, Professor Kundur spearheaded the creation of Canada’s first engineering major in Machine Intelligence, now the most popular major in Engineering Science. Her tenure also saw a significant expansion of international research opportunities for students and a substantial increase in the enrollment of women.
Since July 2019, Professor Kundur has served as Chair of Electrical & Computer Engineering (ECE), one of the largest departments at the University of Toronto. In this role, she has continued to demonstrate strategic leadership on multiple fronts. Her initiatives have led to significant improvements through lab revitalization, directly enhancing student experiential learning. Through her dedicated efforts, the ECE Department has increased the enrollment of first year women students to approximately 40% and welcomed the largest cohort of incoming women in the history of the Department. Furthermore, under her stewardship, the department has gained prestigious recognitions and resources. It welcomed one of the two Canada Excellence Research Chairs awarded to the University of Toronto, attracted a North York General Hospital Chair, and competitively secured a Provostial Deep Learning faculty position in artificial intelligence. Alumni engagement tripled, and her advancement efforts culminated in a generous $1 million donation for lab modernization.
Throughout her career, Professor Kundur has received numerous recognitions for research and teaching. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Please join me in congratulating Deepa on her reappointment and wishing her a rewarding journey.
I extend my deep appreciation to the following members of the Advisory Committee in this search for their time and thoughtful input:
· Professor John Peever, Vice-Dean Students, School of Graduate Studies (SGS)
· Associate Professor Teaching Stream Khoman Phang, ECE
· Assistant Professor Shurui Zhou, ECE
· Professor Sean Hum, ECE
· Professor Amr Helmy, ECE
· Associate Professor Paul Yoo, ECE and Institute of Biomedical Engineering (BME)
· Professor Eyal de Lara, Chair, Department of Computer Science
· Nelson Lee, Undergraduate Student, ECE
· Osama Zeeshan Ahmad, Graduate Student, ECE
· Chris Balarajah, Director of Administration and Finance, ECE
In accordance with the Policy on Appointment of Academic Administrators, the following Advisory Committee was established to recommend the selection of a Vice-Dean Undergraduate:
- Professor Christopher Yip, Dean, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering (Chair)
- Helen Bright, Faculty Registrar
- Professor Deepa Kundur, Chair, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Professor Teaching Stream, Micah Stickel, ECE
- Professor Markus Bussmann, Chair, Mechanical & Industrial Engineering
- Associate Professor Teaching Stream, Dawn Kilkenny, Vice Dean First Year
- Inho Kim, President, Engineering Society *
- Lisa Camilleri, Chief Administrative Officer
The committee welcomes nominations for the position of Vice Dean Undergraduate. Nominations along with the justification for them, should be submitted to the attention of the Dean at dean.engineering@utoronto.ca by Friday, April 12, 2024. Interested nominees can request a copy of the job description by emailing dean.engineering@utoronto.ca.
Thank you for your input.
*Parker Johnston serves on the committee until his term as President, Engineering Society ends. Inho Kim joins the committee when his term as President, Engineering Society begins.
I am pleased to report that the external review team who visited our Faculty on December 4-6, 2023, have submitted the final FASE External Reviewers’ Report. The report is posted online as a public document.
The next step is for the Office of the Vice-Provost, Academic Programs to send the Request for Administrative Response at the beginning of April. This request will include prioritized points from the report and a table listing all the reviewers’ recommendations.
The provostial review is a critical element of the University’s commitment to quality assurance, providing an unparalleled opportunity to secure the expert advice of leaders in the field concerning academic and administrative issues, assess our performance against leading
international institutions, and receive guidance on key strategic directions. Your continued engagement is of paramount importance as the review process will lead to the development of our next Academic Plan.
I would like to extend my gratitude to the self-study working group, faculty members, the decanal leadership team, staff, graduate and undergraduate students, graduate student associations, the Engineering Society, and alumni for their roles in the planning process.
Thank you, all, for your participation. I look forward to updating you in April once the Request for Administrative Response is received.