February | 2023

Engineering And... News

Dean's Message

Greetings GW Engineering community,

Welcome to GW Engineering’s new monthly newsletter!

We live in an increasingly interconnected world, and the future of our school and the field of engineering in general depends on our connections. So with all of the amazing things happening around our school, we wanted to re-launch a communication platform to keep everyone in our community engaged and connected.

This revised edition of the GW Engineering newsletter has a new structure and purpose. In addition to sharing faculty news and projects across the school, we want this newsletter to serve as a forum for highlighting the great work occurring throughout our entire network. Each month we will share school-wide updates, press releases, faculty news, new projects, upcoming events, student news, alumni news, staff highlights, and more.

I know each of you has something to contribute, and I look forward to reading about and celebrating your accomplishments and journeys. We plan to have monthly issues of the newsletter throughout the year and will feature your good work as often as possible. Send your news and stories to seasmarcomm@gwu.edu. We invite you to share your accomplishments, community initiatives, and your reflections on what being a member of the GW Engineering community means to you.

I’m excited for the continued growth and developments at GW Engineering.

Best,

John Lach, Dean

GW Engineering

Faculty News

Dr. Lorena Barba featured in Universidad Técnica Federico Santa Maria's "Vidas Sansanas en el Mundo"

Dr. Lorena Barba, GW Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, was featured in an episode of Técnica Federico Santa Maria's "Vidas Sansanas en el Mundo." This video series follows university alumni who have made their life and career abroad.

Watch Video

Professor Timothy Wood Named New Interim Computer Science Chair

Congratulations to Professor Timothy Wood on being named the Interim Computer Science Chair! As of January 1, Professor Wood stepped into this position to bridge the gap between Robert Pless and the new Computer Science Department Chair.

Upcoming Events

March 1-3: 8th Annual Diversity Summit

March 2, 2-3pm: Dept. of Computer Science Colloquium Series

March 2, 8-10pm: Trivia Night

March 3, 11am-12pm: Art-Architecture-Engineering Policy in the United States

March 3, 2-5pm: Waste Lab Mini Makeathon

March 4-5: Horizons Social Justice Retreat

March 6, 6:30-8pm: Resume Workshop

March 8, 12-1pm: Climate and Health Connection Series

March 10 12-1pm: Faculty Media Training

March 14 5-6pm: USGBC NCR: Emerging Professionals Career Spotlight

March 21, 9am-1pm: March University Photo Day

View All Events

GW to Advance Next Generation Chip Technologies as Part of $32.7M Center

The Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC)’s Joint University Microelectronics Program 2.0 (JUMP 2.0), a consortium of industrial partners in cooperation with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), has announced the creation of the $32.7 million Center for Heterogeneous Integration of Micro Electronic Systems (CHIMES). Led by Penn State, the new center will bring together 14 U.S. university partners, including GW, to explore next generation chip technologies that will support & accelerate the next wave of chip manufacturing and prototyping.

Department Highlights

Biomedical Engineering

Using Light and Human Stem-Cell Derived Heart Cells to Advance Personalized Medicine

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Professor Tianshu Li's New Research Grant: Energy Frontier Research Center

Electrical & Computer Engineering

Combating Wildfires in the Arctic: An Energy Resilience Approach

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering

Creating Trustworthy AI Systems to Ensure Equity in the Real World

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

Reproducibility and Open Science

Computer Science

Cyber@GW: Cybersecurity & Privacy at GW Research and Education Day

Research Spotlight

Professor Kausik Sarkar, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, aims to use microbubbles to improve a popular diagnostic tool, ultrasounds, and targeted drug delivery with the help of two R01 grants from the National Institutes of Health. He is researching injecting microbubbles into a patient’s bloodstream to enhance the contrast of ultrasound images as well as researching the design of a type of ultrasound reflecting nanometer-sized particles that will preserve and contain medications until they reach the sicks cells.

Student News

Innovative Student Groups Pitch Startup Ideas at GW Competition

2023 Commencement Student Speaker Competition Open

GW Serves: Junior Finds Power in Being Voice for Others

Alumni Supporters of the University Recognized for Their Contributions to GW

Alumni Feature: Ban Shoukeir

Open Doors: GW Alumnus Endows Opportunity for Future Engineers

Ellen Granberg: GW Community's Ambition is 'Inspiring'

GW Releases Guiding Principles for the Selection of the New Moniker

Several Major Changes Coming to New Venture Competition

January's Local Hero

Every person in the GW Engineering community contributes to the fabric and the culture of what makes us great and unique. As an institution of higher education, we often celebrate the achievements of our students and staff. However, without the tireless work of the GW Engineering administrative team, nothing would be possible. From our facilities, to our technology to supporting our events, the administrative team at GW Engineering keeps our school moving forward. Each month we will highlight one of the members of the admin team in our Local Hero editorial feature. Take the time to meet the people who are at the foundation of our school.

Sandra Little

You may know Sandra as the Executive Special Assistant to the Dean, and yes, that is her, but there is also so much more! Read below to learn more about January’s Local Hero, Sandra Little!

Q: How long have you been working at GW and what is your position?

A: I have been with GW for over 30 years and at GW Engineering as the Executive Special Assistant to the Dean since 2004. Or, as my daughter would say when she was little, I am the “assistant principal of the school”.

Q:What led you to this career?

A: I was studying at GW (MA in Economics) when I got a part-time job in the GW Medical Center for the tuition benefits. So the benefits took me farther than I thought they would, and I am very thankful.

Read Full Q&A Here!

Monthly Rewind

MLK Day of Service

Vice President of the United States Kamala Harris and other Cabinet Members visited GW and talked with student volunteers as they took part in the university's annual MLK Jr. Day of Service. She told students, "I know when I look at the students here, our future is bright. Keep doing what you are doing, and our nation and our world are counting on your leadership."

For a Distinguished Lecture, Dr. Mike Roco visited the Science and Engineering Hall to give this presentation. It was filled with amazing insights into how the convergence method is beneficial and can be seen and use across disciplines such as engineering, policy, art, business, health, etc.

The "City of the Future" Conference was a 3-day discussion that brought in leaders from across the country to speak on solutions to the myriad of challenges Dean Lach spoke of in his opening remarks. They left participants with one mission, go forth and create limitless futures!