The Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Heads Association                                                                         April  2017
Letter from the Editor
Badri Roysam,
University of Houston
Dear ECEDHA Members, Industry Partners, and Colleagues,

It was wonderful to meet you at the 2017 ECEDHA Annual Conference & ECE xpo in Sandestin, Florida, March 17-21.  The sand was white, soft, and inviting, but most Chairs seemed busy at the conference. The traditional group picture is featured below.  By any measure, the meeting was a grand success, and we learned from each other. ECEDHA's Executive Director, John Janowiak, whose team organized the conference, has penned some notes reflecting on ECEDHA and our conferences.

I was particularly excited by John Booske's presentation about how students really learn.  Much has been said and written about this topic. It is a common topic of hallway conversations among our faculty. Nevertheless, John made this topic come alive, and actually inspired me to start a new Summer Book Reading project in my department.  Please let me elaborate below.

>>  Read more
A Message from the Executive Director
John Janowiak
Executive Director,
ECEDHA

ECEDHA continues to expand and grow, and this year was no exception. The 2017 ECEDHA Annual Conference & ECExpo was the largest meeting to date, thanks to a wide variety of activities and new initiatives. We hope you enjoyed your time in Miramar Beach and found the program to be both valuable and rewarding. 

This year's program was also a turning point for the organization. The ECEDHA Annual Conference has ceremoniously become a meeting place for the entire ECE community, and we have many people to acknowledge for its great success, beginning with our University Hosts: Auburn University, Mississippi State University, Florida A&M University - Florida State University, and the University of Florida.

>>  Read more
ECE in the News
ECEDHA Award Winners Honored at ECEDHA 2017

On the evening of March 20, 2017, ECEDHA honored several deserving award winners for their contributions to the ECE community.  The Awards Banquet, sponsored by Quanser and Synopsys, took place during the 2017 ECEDHA Annual Conference and ECE xpo in Miramar Beach, Florida.  This year's conference had another record attendance, and in turn, a full ballroom to celebrate those listed below. We congratulate all winners for their fantastic accomplishments.

IEEE-HKN Outstanding Student Award:
Emily Hernandez, Auburn University

IEEE-HKN Distinguished Service Award:
Dave Soldan, Kansas State University

ECEDHA Diversity Award:
Athina Petropulu, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey

ECEDHA Industry Award:
Igor Alvarado, National Instruments

ECEDHA Innovative Program Award:
Venkataramanan Balakrishnan, Purdue University
Kenneth Connor, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

ECEDHA Robert M. Janowiak Outstanding Leadership and Service Award:
Tsuhan Chen, Nanyang Technological University
Greg Peters, Keysight Technologies

In the coming issues, we will provide a spotlight on each individual award winner. We begin with our first feature on Tsuhan Chen, seen below.
Tsuhan Chen Honored at ECEDHA 2017 with Prestigious Robert M. Janowiak Outstanding Leadership and Service Award

Tsuhan Chen was awarded the prestigious Robert M. Janowiak Outstanding Leadership and Service Award at the 2017 ECEDHA Annual Conference and ECE xpo in Miramar Beach, Florida this past March.

The Robert M. Janowiak Outstanding Leadership and Service Award is given to an individual with a sustained record of leadership and service to ECEDHA, and to electrical and computer engineering in general.

Tsuhan has a long history with the ECEDHA organization.  He served as President of the ECEDHA Board of Directors during his time at Cornell University.  Prior to his involvement, ECEDHA was a peer to peer organization.  It was through his dedicated efforts and vision that the organization has evolved to its current state today.  Tsuhan had the foresight to involve the entire ECE community and ecosystem, to ensure that ECEDHA remained the organization that both academia and industry looks towards for future direction and guidance. Tsuhan's tremendous leadership has helped to strengthen the organization, and in turn, the field of electrical and computer engineering as a whole.

Above (from left to right): Khalil Najafi, ECEDHA President, Tsuhan Chen, Nanyang Technological University, and Zhihua Qu, ECEDHA Awards Committee Chair

Sponsored Article

National Instruments
The Opportunity for the Electrical & Computer Engineering Class of 2020
By Andy Bell, Director of Academic Programs and Travis Escoffery, Academic Product Marketing Engineering

"To take huge steps forward, students must understand how to build and design engineering systems if they are to keep up with the rapid rate of innovation and deliver on the promise of tomorrow."  In this interview with our Academic Program Director, learn how you can address the biggest challenges and trends in engineering education.

Conference Corner
Thank you for joining us in Miramar Beach, FL last month for the 2017 ECEDHA Annual Conference and ECE xpo !



We look forward to seeing you next year! 
Corporate Feature
ECE Insights

ECE Insights offer in-depth interviews with leading industry executives.

Featured ECE Insights:


Scott Rust
Sr. Vice President of Research & Development
National Instruments



In This Issue
Calendar of Events
June 8, 2017
Webinar: Modeling Capacitive Devices with COMSOL Multiphysics®
Sponsored by COMSOL
October 5-6, 2017
SWECEDHA Regional Meeting
Hosted by the University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM
November 17-19, 2017
WECEDHA Regional Meeting
Hosted by the University of California, San Diego
San Diego, CA
March 16, 2018
ABET Workshop
Presented at the ECEDHA Annual Conference
Hyatt Monterey - Monterey, CA
March 16-20, 2018
ECEDHA Annual Conference and ECE xpo
Hyatt Monterey - Monterey, CA
On Demand Webinar
Sponsored by National Instruments
On Demand Webinar
Sponsored by Keysight Technologies
On Demand Webinar
Sponsored by National Instruments
On Demand Webinar
Sponsored by Quanser
On Demand Webinar
Sponsored by COMSOL
On Demand Webinar
Sponsored by National Instruments
ECEDHA News
Renew your 2017 ECEDHA Membership today!

2017 ECEDHA membership renewal for ECEDHA department heads is now underway.  Renew your membership today to keep receiving ECEDHA membership benefits, including: 
  • Access to the ECEDHA Annual Conference and ECExpo
  • Complimentary registration for ECEDHA's ECE Webinars
  • The opportunity to participate in the ECEDHA Annual Survey, a valuable tool in benchmarking your organization in lab and office space, faculty and department head salaries, research budgets, student retention, graduation rates, and much more.
  • Complimentary job posting service via the ECEDHA website
  • And much more!

For questions, please contact Megan Bekolay at mbekolay@ecedha.org or 312.559.3724
Ideas/Comments/Suggestions?

We're interested in hearing from you!

We welcome all feedback - drop us a line at:
ECEDHA Member and Partner News
2017 IEEE Educational Activities Board Awards

Please consider nominating a colleague or deserving individual for one of EAB's prestigious awards.

Deadline: May 1, 2017

Call for Papers: IEEE Communications Magazine

The IEEE Communications Magazine is calling for short articles concerning innovation in the planning and delivery of communications-oriented curricula, courses, and projects.  This special feature will be framed within the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning framework.

Deadline: May 1, 2017


At the ECE Source, we strive to cover topics that are relevant and timely to ECE  department heads.  We welcome your comments, feedback, and suggestions of topics t o cover in our next issue.  Thank you.