We live at a time when the skills and commitment of engineers are key to solving many of the most important challenges we face, from ensuring our personal and national security to protecting our planet to promoting economic growth. Engineers are the keepers of not simply knowledge, but of know-how—and that know-how fuels our progress, prosperity and quality of life.
At SIU we know the impact engineers can have. We are engaged in research that pushes the state-of-the-art in fascinating new directions and has real-world impact – in areas such as embedded computing system technologies, smart power grids, secure electronic device communications, biomedical imaging, cancer mechanobiology, advanced materials and composites in fuel cells, high-speed mechanical aerospace systems, carbon nanotubes for liquid fuel generation, climate change impacts on water resources, microbial fuel cells and earthquake response prediction.
And as a leader in education, we prepare the kinds of engineers ready to contribute and innovate in important ways. We do so through outstanding bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs, through a college-wide commitment to teaching excellence and through a range of special opportunities for our students.
At SIU, this work is inspired by a belief at the heart of our mission — that the world of tomorrow has to work for everyone. Engineering a civilization that takes into account our differences and diversity — as well as the many things we hold in common — is fundamental to our vision.
Our college’s plans for the years to come build on an already-impressive record of success. Engineers trained at SIU run major companies, hold important patents and have even ridden the space shuttle. Our faculty conduct research projects with support from the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, from many state agencies, and from industry. Our students finish at the top in national robotics tournaments, in NASA “moon buggie” competitions and in contests to construct everything from steel bridges to concrete canoes.
Our aim now is to build on these strengths with the help of new philanthropic support.
Increased Scholarships
Our campaign is focused on students and on expanding their opportunities for success. The most important way we can do so is by lowering the financial barriers to an SIU education in engineering. By increasing investment in scholarships, we intend to meet more of families’ financial need — putting an SIU engineering degree within reach for more students, making our college more attractive to the very best students, and helping advance the key goal of increasing diversity in our field.
SIU has traditionally led the way in opening doors for first-generation students, women, minorities, and those with physical challenges. Sometimes just having the means to pay for their education is the biggest barrier these promising students face.
Through this campaign we will give more future engineers the ability to surmount this obstacle. Increasing the number of scholarships — through both one-time gifts for immediate expenditure and permanent endowments — we will make the difference in many more students’ lives.
Expanded Opportunities
Our college is a nexus where student enthusiasm and professional opportunity meet. Highly motivated engineers-in-training leave SIU not just with a diploma, but with invaluable real-world experience as researchers, innovators and team leaders. Initiatives such as our Leadership Development Program give them a head start, providing internships and insight into the real engineering landscape where they will work.
Equally powerful is the chance for students to attend professional conferences, where they present original research alongside leaders in their fields. Programs like these represent a relatively small investment with a potentially transformative impact. Our goal now is simple: to secure funding so that we can offer opportunities like these to many more of our students.
Enhanced Facilities and Resources
Engineering education is inherently experiential -- students need to actually build what they have designed and observe how well it functions. This means that offering a first-class educational and research program takes first-class equipment and the space to house it. Key facilities within the College of Engineering range from research labs, such as the Consortium for Embedded Systems, to the shops where our students assemble their concrete canoes, Formula 1 race cars, and “moon buggies” for competitions. Just as important are the many instructional labs where we teach basic engineering skills. Simply keeping these facilities maintained is a challenge, but our goal goes beyond that. We must make significant investments in these facilities in order to continue to provide excellent instruction and to attract excellent students and faculty — candidates who will be exposed to impressive new labs as they tour competing institutions.