The 2020 Impact Report from the Iowa State University Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering is out now! Take a look back at all that we’ve accomplished in the past year, and join us as we look ahead. Here in ECpE, The Future Is What We Do!
Ashfaq Khokhar, chair of Iowa State University’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, was officially named Palmer Department Chair at the College of Engineering Medallion Presentation Ceremony on March 30. Dean Sarah Rajala and Associate Dean Arun Somani presented the official medallion to Khokhar.
“These medallion ceremonies have become a special tradition at Iowa State, as we formally install new holders of named faculty positions and present them with medallions to symbolize this honor,” Rajala said, before awarding Khokhar his medallion. “We cannot achieve our land-grant mission of providing a high-quality education, conducting groundbreaking research that addresses society’s greatest challenges and serving Iowa and the world without having outstanding faculty leaders.”
The title Palmer Department Chair in Electrical and Computer Engineering began as the Palmer Professorship, established in 1986 through a $1 million gift from Barbara and James Palmer who both graduated from Iowa State in the 1940s, with James earning a degree in electrical engineering. In 2010, that professorship was expanded to the chair position with additional earnings from the endowed faculty position.
“Endowed chairs and professorships are key to our academic excellence,” Rajala said. “They allow us to recruit and retain outstanding faculty members like Ashfaq Khokhar, who help us achieve the level of excellence for which we strive. The title of Palmer Department Chair in Electrical and Computer Engineering is a mark of distinction and an endorsement of Dr. Khokhar’s outstanding leadership skills and academic credentials.”
Khokhar’s appointment at Iowa State began at the first of the year. Previously, he was chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology since 2013. Before that, he was a professor and director of graduate studies in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Khokhar was named an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Fellow in 2009.
Find more information on the Palmer Department Chair here.
During the months of July through September 2016, Iowa State University’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering received many external research awards from the Department of Energy (DOE), the National Science Foundation (NSF) and other groups.
Major grants from the DOE include an award of $1,162,477 for a project entitled “Autonomous Tools for Attack Surface Reduction,” with Manimaran Govindarasu as Principal Investigator (PI) and Venkataramana Ajjarap and Doug Jacobson as Co-Principal Investigators (Co-PI). The total anticipated amount of the award is $2,981,103. The DOE also awarded $1,318,903 for a project called “Novel Light Extraction and Utilization, Organic LED (OLED) Core Technology Research: Enhanced Light Extraction from Low Cost White OLEDs (WOLEDs) Fabricated on Novel Patterned Substrates,” with Ruth Shinar as PI and Rana Biswas and Joseph Shinar as Co-PIs.
A variety of projects received grants from the NSF, with one highlight being $4,054,476 for the project “WI-ECSEL Scholarship Program (Women in Electrical, Computer, and Software Engineering as Leaders,” with Joseph Zambreno as PI and Doug Jacobson, Phillip Harrison Jones, Lisa Larson, Mani Mina, Sarah Rajala, Sarah Rodriguez, Diane Rover and Mack Shelley as Co-PIs.
For more information on grants received during the months of July through September, visit this link: https://www.ece.iastate.edu/external-research-awards-july-september-2016/.