Fast Facts
Dr. Neal Charles Gallagher

B.S. Physics Loyola College
M.S.E. and Ph.D Electrical Engineering Princeton University

Colorado State College of Engineering consistently ranks in U.S. News and World Report's "Best Colleges" edition as one of the best in the nation

During the last five years sponsored research funding at Colorado State College of Engineering increased by more than 30 percent to $39.7M.

Won 3.8 million dollar EPA grant at CSU.

Funding to enhance diversity in the college greatly increased, including a new $1 million National Science Foundation grant to encourage diverse populations to attend graduate school, and a $2.5 million renewal for the Colorado Alliance for Minority Participation program.

The college received two National Science Foundation Engineering Research Centers.

Honorary Society Memberships

• Alpha Sigma Nu (Jesuit Colleges)
• Sigma Pi Sigma (Physics)
• Eta Kappa Nu (Electrical Engineering)

Honors and Awards

• “Engineering Gold Medal” for being the top graduating engineering physics major from Loyola College
• Fellow of the IEEE
• Fellow of the Optical Society of America
• Coauthor on the 1986 Best Paper Awarded by the IEEE Signal Processing Society
• Charles Black Evans Professor, an endowed Professorship at the University of Delaware

Click here to view Dr. Gallagher's online course notes

New Dean Named
by: Wayne Weinberg

Neal Gallagher, dean of the College of Engineering at Colorado State University for the past five years, has been appointed dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science.

"I'm really pleased to have hired someone with such exceptional credentials," UCF Provost Terry Hickey said when making the announcement. " Neal Gallagher brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to UCF. He is well respected as a scholar, researcher and administrator."

Gallagher will join UCF April 23. He replaces Dr. Louis Chow, professor of Mechanical Engineering and University Chair who has been acting dean since August, when longtime Dean Marty Wanielista stepped down to return to teaching and to head up the Stormwater Management Academy.

Gallagher specializes in optics, lasers, and holographic information as well as digital signal processing and microwave science.

Exclusive interview with Dr. Neal Gallagher.

Q: Share with us your thoughts about becoming our next Dean?
A: I am eager to start and excited about working together with the faculty and staff in the College of Engineering and Computer Science (CECS). I believe that UCF and the College present a wealth of opportunities for a dean to have an impact. My wife and children are also excited about moving to Orlando.

Q: What opportunities do you see for the College?
A: The size of the college and strength of the faculty mean the international reputation of CECS will make strong advances over the next several years. The reputation of a university is like profits for a business. With a strong reputation, it becomes easier to recruit strong faculty, strong students, and forge important external relationships. Already there exist great areas of strength, and a committed faculty. The college is on the verge of greatness, and it will be exciting to facilitate this process.

Q: What will be your priorities?
A: My personal emphasis will be to do everything I can to improve the reputation of the College - to move ahead without deviation to achieving the status of a top 25 program. To make this happen, we need to recruit and retain top faculty, providing them with the resources they need to be successful as teachers and researchers. We must do all that we can to firm up our reputation as a program that provides quality graduates to the national market of employers. CECS has a great story to tell and we need to tell it.

Q: How will you interact with industry and business in the area?
A: To begin, I must visit the local Orlando and Florida industry. I need to learn about their business, their market, who they view their competition to be. Then I need to understand how we can help them succeed. This might mean adding degree programs, or help them in interacting with faculty, and partnering with us on national projects. By providing industry access to a student body that is second to none, we will move toward our goal of improving our reputation.

Q: What are you looking forward to?
A: I am looking forward to meeting new people, and making new friends. I look forward to meeting the students and working with the college staff. I am looking forward to making a difference. What I most look forward to will not change - I look forward to a positive environment for my family in which to watch my children grow.

Q: Additional thoughts from you.
A: I can't tell you how many times I have been asked "exactly what is it that a dean does." Sometimes a dean must balance many worthy requests against limited resources. This is not too fun. Rather, I would focus on raising new resources in order to provide the best possible environment for our students, faculty and staff. This is fun. This is what a dean must do. A dean must be able to focus the goals and aspirations of the people in the college into a clear vision and path into the future. Click here for more background information

Governor, KSC Director Visit Robotics Competition
by: Chad Binette

Arefin Bari thought of his Fort Lauderdale high school's robotics team as a fun activity two years ago. Now he views the team as a springboard to studying mechanical engineering in college and then a successful career. Bari, a junior at Dillard High School, was the mechanical leader for one of 41 teams at the FIRST Robotics Florida regional competition hosted by the College of Engineering and Computer Science and NASA - KSC.

Skybox View Photo by Marie Aguilar

Students were welcomed by Governor Jeb Bush and Jim Kennedy, director of Kennedy Space Center. Both also visited the pit area to shake hands and pose for photos with students.

"We should hold them up high as examples of what we want our state to be," Bush said during the luncheon.

Gov. Bush with Team 762.......... .Photo by Marie Aguilar

"We brag 'til the sun sets about how great our football teams are. I hope and pray that our state also brags about the young kids who are going to be the engineers, the scientists and the folks that are really going to transform our state.
"During the luncheon, Kennedy
said he's confident that shuttle
flights will resume in about a year. He also talked about the shared services center that NASA intends to build to consolidate services such as human resources and financial management.

Director James Kennedy Photo by Marie Aguilar

The Central Florida Research Park is one of the sites under consideration for the new center, which Kennedy said will employ about 500 at first and eventually could have 1,000 to 1,500
employees. Kennedy said he believes the proposal put together by Central Florida governments, agencies and the Research Park, which is adjacent to the UCF campus, "has a tremendous chance of winning" the new center.

Scholars Galore
by Wayne Weinberg

Nearly 53 impressive scholarship recipients have been recognized at the annual Minority Engineering and Computer Science Program Scholarship and Awards Banquet. The College’s Minority Engineering and Computer Science Program, Society for Hispanic and Professional Engineers and National Society for Black Engineers partnered to host the event. Minority Industrial Advisory Committee member Sally Clark of Adaptec, Inc was honored for her support of the Minority Industrial Advisory Committee and her dedication to diversifying the workforce. Dr. Pamela McCauley-Bell (IE) delivered an inspiring keynote speech. New leadership was introduced for the UCF student chapters of the National Society for Black Engineers and Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers.

Youth Robotics Summer Camp
by: Wayne Weinberg

Registration is underway for students from ages 11 and up for the Robotics Summer Camp at UCF College of Engineering and Computer Science. The Camp is taught by Brett "Buzz" Dawson. Buzz is a BattleBots competitor as well as an announcer and technical color-commentator for BattleBots IQ. Buzz is also a co-host and technical expert on television's Robot Rivals.

Click here for more information

Engineering III Progress
by: Wayne Weinberg



ENG III Building site
Photo by Michelle Berberet

Ground will be broken shortly for the 100,000 square foot four story Engineering III-home to the School of Computer Science and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Eng III will be ready to be occupied for the fall semester 2005.

Click here for more information

Visiting Alumnus Bill Parsons At Kennedy Space Center

Photo by Wayne Weinberg
L- R: Interim Dean Dr. Louis Chow, NASA Launch Director Bill Parsons-MS Engineering '93, Industrial Engineering Chair Dr.
Lesia Crumpton-Young

Return to Shuttle Flight Leader Returns to Campus
by: Wayne Weinberg

When will NASA’s Space Shuttle return to flight? The person who has the inside track, Shuttle Program Manager Bill Parsons, has told about 350 Industrial Engineering students no earlier than March 2005 – about 25 months after the Columbia tragedy. Parsons, who received his Masters in Engineering Management at UCF, returned to campus to visit with students. He said the shuttle could make 31 flights to complete the assembly of the International Space Station before NASA retires the shuttle in 2010.

Click here for more information

Recognizing University's Best

Photo by Marie Aguilar
L-R: Marty Wanielista, Gary Whitehouse, Kay Stanney,
Jayanta Kapat

University Trustee Chair
Dr. Kay M. Stanney (IEMS)

University Distinguished Professor
Dr. Marty Wanielista (CEE/SMA)

University Distinguished Professor
Dr. Gary Whitehouse (IEMS)

Lockheed Martin Professor
Dr. Jayanta Kapat (MMAE)

UCF Engineering & Computer Science
2004 Awards of Excellence

Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
Dr. Alireza Rahrooh (ENT)
Dr. Linwood Jones (ECE)

Excellence in Graduate Teaching
Dr. Jose A. Sepulveda (IEMS)

Distinguished Researcher
Dr. Donald Malocha (ECE)*
Dr. Roger Wayson (CEE)

Distinguished Researcher
Associate Professor Level
Dr. Sudipta Seal (MMAE/AMPAC)

Distinguished Researcher
Assistant Professor Level
Dr. Rajan Vaidyanathan (MMAE/AMPAC)
Dr. Thomas Wu (ECE)

Excellence in Professional Service
Dr. Essam Radwan (CEE)
Dr. Ahmad Elshennawy (IEMS)*

Excellence in Faculty Advising
Dr. William Thompson (IEMS)

Excellence in Academic Advising
Melissa Falls (AAO)*

* Received College and University Awards

The College of Engineering and Computer Science Dean's Student Advisory Council would like to thank the following for making
2004 Engineering and Computer Science Expo a huge success!

Gold Sponsors
DRMP, Inc.
Harris Corporation
Progress Energy

Knight Sponsors
Intersil Corporation
The Boeing Company

Pegasus Sponsors
Black & Veatch
Bowyer Singleton & Associates
Comprehensive Engineering Services, Inc.
GAI Consultants, Inc.
Hensel Phelps Construction Co.
Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.
Miller Einhouse Rymer & Boyd, Inc.
SAIC

Other Sponsors
Creech Engineers, Inc.; Microsoft Corporation; Morris Engineering; NAVAIR; Northrop Grumman Corporation; PBS&J; Reynolds, Smith Hills, Inc.; URS Corporation; US Coast Guard; Wilbur Smith Associates; Florida Engineering Society Professional Section; UCF CECS Dean's Office; UCF Civil and Environmental Department; UCF Electrical and Computer Engineering Department; UCF Engineering Technology Department; UCF Industrial Engineering and Management Systems Department; UCF Mechanical, Materials, and Aerospace Engineering Department

The Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) student chapter won "First Place" in the Construction Safety competition that was held during the ABC National convention Feb 22-26. The convention had a record number of universities attending. Other winners were Texas A&M, and Colorado State.

Ms. Fan Zhang, a graduate student in water resources engineering received an Outstanding Student Paper Award for her presentation at the 2003 American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting in San Francisco.

Computer Science programming team advances to the 28th Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) International Collegiate Programming Contest World Finals in Prague, Czech Republic, after competing and beating 85 teams at the Southeast Regional Contest. Good luck to Casey Thurston, Raymond Ho, Scott Vogelpohl and their faculty adviser computer science associate professor, Dr. Ali Orooji. Click here for more

From a very grateful college we thank our valued contributors for their gifts from January 4, 2004 to March 27, 2004.


(Annual Gifts of $10,000 to $999,000)

Analex Corporation
Gary and Marian Whitehouse
Motorola/i-DEN
NASA/KSC
Walt Disney World Co.
Welbro Building Corporation

(Annual Gifts of $100 to $9,999)
Syed Afghani; Apecor Corporation; Robert Armacost and Julia Pet-Armacost; American Society of Civil Engineers; Adedeji Badiru; Diana Barry; Kevin Becotte; Bobes Associates Consulting Engineers, Inc.; Glenn A. Boyer; Linda Bradley; Trevor Brewer; Burton, Braswell Middlebrooks Associates, Inc.; Maureen Connell; Dale Crosby; Mark DeLorenzo; Donald Demetres; DeVry University Orlando & South Florida Campus; Mahesk Dodani; Jeffrey Earhart; Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission; Bradley R. Fauznacht; George Flatt; FPL Group, Inc.; Joseph Hall, II; Harris Corporation; Brent Hart; IBM Corporation; IBM International Foundation; Jones, Edmunds & Associates, Inc.; Joseph Hall; David Kallsen; Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.; Dale Kallsen; Tryna Knox; William Leap; Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control; Suzanne W. Lore; Dave Mackie; James M. Martin; Woodroe McKeeby; David D. McKinny; Christopher Mercer, Jr.; Miller Sellen Conner & Walsh; Modelbenders, LLC; James B. Murray; National Center for Simulation; David T. Ott; Kenneth Paschall; Rick Pemble; Pertree Constructors, Inc.; Phillip Prigge; Progress Energy; Roger W. and Mrs. Shelley Pynn; Andrew Reho; Debbie Richmond; Saab Training LLC; SAIC; Joanie Schirm; David Seligson; Jack Selter; Siemens Information & Communications Networks, Inc.; Siemens Westinghouse Power Corporation; Grant Simmons; Sypris Test & Measurement; Patty Therrien; URS Corporation; Andy Valiente; Kevin Walsh; Walt Disney Co. Foundation; Roger Wayson; Gerald White; Gary Whitehouse; Yang Enterprises,Inc.; Smokey Yunick It Didn't Say You Couldn't Foundation, Inc.