Dean's Message
"It is time we educate the engineers of the future, those who possess the skills, desire and sense of duty to protect the earth and to ensure its fruitfulness for coming generations." Pope Francis issued this call to action last June in his encyclical letter concerning the drastic state of the environment and the need to address climate change. Stirring in its urgency, this imperative only deepens our resolve at Santa Clara University to adhere to the Jesuit philosophies guiding our efforts to educate leaders of intellectual and ethical excellence.
In the School of Engineering we offer a number of programs and extracurricular activities to do just that. Our interdisciplinary graduate programs in sustainable energy and our undergraduate Latimer Energy Laboratory research opportunities are designed to train the next generation of energy gurus. Our active Engineers Without Borders chapter has students partnering with communities across the globe to build a more just, humane, and sustainable world.
Another example of our effort to involve students in effecting change is our participation in the 2016 Tiny House competition to be held in Sacramento, California, next October. Our team of undergraduates is currently designing a 238-square-foot, solar-powered home that they will then build on a trailer in competition against other universities from California. This type of hands-on, project-based learning is central to our mission to educate the steward-engineers of the future, and you can read more about the team and some of our other efforts in this issue.
Happy reading!
Godfrey Mungal
Dean
School of Engineering