Jacobi named head of MechSE Department

8/12/2015 Bill Bowman

MechSE's Anthony JacobiRichard W. Kritzer Distinguished Professor Anthony Jacobi has been named the new Department Head for Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He will begin this appointment on August 16.

Written by Bill Bowman

 

MechSE's Anthony Jacobi
MechSE's Anthony Jacobi
MechSE's Anthony Jacobi

Richard W. Kritzer Distinguished Professor Anthony Jacobi has been named the new Department Head for Mechanical Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He will begin this appointment on August 16.

 

Jacobi will take over this leadership role from Tungchao Julia Lu Professor Placid Ferreira, who has served as Department Head since August 2009.

In a notification to MechSE faculty and staff distributed on July 24, College of Engineering Dean Andreas C. Cangellaris said:

"I am pleased to announce that Anthony (Tony) Jacobi, the Richard W. Kritzer Distinguished Professor in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering (MechSE), has accepted my offer to become its new department head. His appointment is effective August 16, 2015, pending approval of the University’s Board of Trustees.
 
"A Fellow of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (2009) and of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (2011), Tony has been an Illinois faculty member since 1992, and has been honored with numerous faculty teaching and research awards within the College and his department. 
 
"Since 2001, he has shared his effective leadership talents as co-director at the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Center, overseeing a multidisciplinary research program involving more than a dozen faculty members, 60 graduate and undergraduate students, post-doctoral and visiting scholars, and companies from around the world. The ACRC is the largest center in the nation devoted to research in heating, ventilating, air conditioning and refrigeration; its research program is supported by approximately 30 industrial sponsors. Within the MechSE department, Jacobi served as its associate head of graduate programs (2008-2011), and is currently managing those responsibilities in an interim capacity.
 
"Tony is committed to MechSE’s distinction as a top-ranked program in the nation and the world, and he articulated a compelling vision for the department’s path forward. That includes strategic strengthening of specific areas where MechSE can set itself apart, curriculum innovation, diversification and growth of the department’s research portfolio, and special emphasis on alumni engagement and endowment growth. I look forward to working closely with him and the MechSE community to ensure success in their ambitious goals.
 
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Search Committee for their thorough and thoughtful efforts over the past year. 
 
"Also, I want to express my sincere appreciation to Placid Ferreira, who has served as MechSE’s department head since August 2009. In addition to his strong and effective leadership during his tenure as department head, Placid remained engaged in the pursuit of major research opportunities for MechSE and the College, including the successful proposal for the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute in Chicago. We continue to benefit from his leadership on our campus and beyond.
 
"Please join me in thanking Placid for his service to the Department and the College, and congratulating and welcoming Tony as MechSE’s next department head."
 

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This story was published August 12, 2015.