Dear Colleagues and Friends,
As I reflect on this academic year, I see so much in Notre Dame Engineering that inspires confidence and pride, not only in our College, but all engineering colleges and schools that seek to shape A Better World for All.
In April, our students hosted the 2025 ASCE Indiana-Kentucky Student Symposium, earning 11 podium finishes. When not excelling in their club activities, undergraduates were getting hands-on research experience in areas such as biomechanics, additive manufacturing, and prosthetics. Our students’ talents also received national recognition: two were awarded prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowships and will pursue Ph.D. programs in robotics and aerospace engineering.
This has been a remarkable year of recognition for faculty in the College of Engineering. Two of the three university-wide Joyce Awards for excellence in undergraduate teaching went to members of our faculty, and another was recognized externally for excellence in advising. Multiple junior faculty members earned prestigious early-career and rising star honors for their research. In the realm of innovation, three faculty were recognized by the National Academy of Inventors. Faculty were also honored internationally for leadership in storm surge modeling, pioneering work in infrastructure resilience, and advances in aerospace, as well as new diagnostic and microfluidic technologies.
We continue to attract internationally recognized experts to our community. Steven Koester, an innovator in nanotechnology and proven leader in the field, will take up the directorship of our Nanoscience and Technology (NDnano) Interdisciplinary Research Center on July 1.
Pivotal to our success in all these areas are our graduate students, who continue to distinguish themselves not only through their research, but through their dedication to mentorship, teaching, and service. This year, two of our graduate students won prestigious IBM Ph.D. fellowships: one using graph machine learning to discover new materials and another designing computer frameworks that democratize AI.
We continue to celebrate the expertise and commitment of our dedicated staff, who go above and beyond to make our College the exceptionally cohesive, efficient, and friendly workplace it is. This year, we formally recognized eight staff members for their outstanding contributions—four in the spring and four in the fall—highlighting the vital role they play in our success.
Commencement gave us a chance to witness the culmination of so much hard work. This May, the College conferred 557 degrees, 446 undergraduate degrees and 111 graduate degrees. I can’t wait to see what this diverse and talented group will accomplish next.
I hope you will enjoy this selection of top stories from the 2024-25 academic year.
Best regards,
