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June 06, 2013

Personal Mention

Following a nine-month national search, Daniel P. Siewiorek has been named director of the Quality of Life Technology (QoLT) Center — a National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Center at Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh that is focused on creating intelligent systems that improve quality of life for everyone while enabling older adults and people with disabilities. Siewiorek, the Buhl University Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science at CMU, is a world-leading expert in computer system architecture and design of intelligent human-computer interfaces. He served as the QoLT Center’s acting director since fall 2011. "I am honored to take up leadership of the Quality of Life Technology Center as I have long been enthusiastic about the personal opportunities QoLT provides to help our older adults retain their dignity and independence," Siewiorek said. "The challenges of aging and disability are inspiring a whole cadre of interdisciplinary-minded researchers — engineers, scientists, and clinicians — who are highly collaborative, well-integrated, and driven to produce QoLTs – an exciting new field of intelligent systems that will ultimately enable better quality of life for all." Read the full announcement

Rochelle Athey, director of the Office of Sponsored Programs Administration at Iowa State University, has been named Carnegie Mellon’s new Associate Vice Provost of Sponsored Programs, effective Aug. 1. Athey will oversee the operations of the Office of Sponsored Programs and the Office of Research Integrity and Compliance. Athey has served as a research administrator for 24 years, and has extensive experience in pre- and post-award research administration, and in research compliance. She has expertise in federal contracting, corporate contracting, business process review and design, negotiation of F&A rate agreements, sponsored programs office management, and policy development. She began her career at The Ohio State University, where she was a sponsored programs officer for the OSU Research Foundation and later the budget manager for a large National Science Foundation project. She subsequently held management positions at the California Polytechnic State University Foundation, the University of Akron, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

Josh Centor has been named interim director of Athletics and Physical Education, effective July 1. Centor will be assuming the duties of Susan Bassett, who has announced she will be leaving CMU to become director of Athletics at Ithaca College, her alma mater. Centor joined CMU five years ago as assistant director and was promoted to associate director of Athletics in July 2012. "He is deeply committed to the vision and mission of the department, while exemplifying our core values and being of profound support throughout to our students, staff and coaches. I am very pleased that Josh has agreed to take on this critical role, building on the foundation of success of the entire staff during Susan’s tenure as director," said Vice President for Campus Affairs Michael Murphy. Murphy said a search committee for Bassett's full-time successor will be established and that he hopes the search will be finalized by March 2014.

Gabriela Hug will receive the Outstanding Young Engineer Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' (IEEE) Power and Energy Society (PES) July 23 in Vancouver, British Columbia at the IEEE PES annual meeting. Hug, an assistant professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) and Engineering and Public Policy (EPP), has been working on various topics in the field of optimization and control in electric power systems with the overall goal to provide the computational methods required for the integration of large-scale renewable generation. Hug recently received the National Science Foundation’s Early Career Development Award, its most prestigious award for junior faculty.

Gregory Wheeler, a visiting associate professor in the Philosophy Department, participated in the World Science Festival in New York City, May 29-June 2. Wheeler was a panelist in one of the festival’s premier sessions titled “Architects of the Mind: A Blueprint for the Human Brain,” which was moderated by Bill Weir of ABC News. Wheeler has been a research scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin, a senior research scientist in artificial intelligence and member of the board of directors at the Center for Artificial Intelligence Research at the New University of Lisbon. For more on the festival, including a video of the panel session, go to http://www.worldsciencefestival.com/events/architects_of_the_mind

Obituary:

Bryan Rogers, former head of Carnegie Mellon's School of Art, died Tuesday, May 28, after a long fight with cancer. He was 72. Rogers is survived by his wife, Cynthi, and son, Kyle. Rogers, who left CMU in 2000 to become dean of the Stamps School of Art and Design at the University of Michigan, was a visionary of what an art education can be and had a deep and lasting effect on CMU's School of Art. He retired in 2012 as the longest-serving art school dean at Michigan. A University of Michigan obituary read: "His pioneering vision — honed during his time at Carnegie Mellon and fully realized at the University of Michigan — has led the way in transforming art-design education at American universities and in championing the critical role of creativity in education. His work has inspired a generation of creative thinkers and practitioners to move beyond centuries-old conventions and embrace new paradigms grounded in critical engagement, community and global awareness, and an understanding of the significant role artists and designers play in society." Memorial plans are pending, but cards and notes for the Rogers family may be sent to: The Stamps School Dean's Office, 2000 Bonisteel Blvd., Ann Arbor, MI. Read more.