NATION'S LEADING COMPUTATONAL ENGINEERING PROGRAM ESTABLISHED AT UT CHATTANOOGA
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga received approval today to
move forward with what some outside evaluators have called "the most
advanced computational modeling and simulation center in the nation."
The University of Tennessee Board of Trustees unanimously passed
a proposal for UTC to begin offering a doctorate in computational
engineering, the first Ph.D. program for the campus. The new
doctorate will draw upon the resources of the UTC College of
Engineering and Computer Science, the UTC Graduate School in
Computational Engineering, and the UTC SimCenter.
"We are very grateful for this vote of confidence in our campus
and our community," said UTC Chancellor Bill Stacy. "We have been
deliberate in every step in this process to ensure that the first
Ph.D. program in Chattanooga is of top quality, and I believe that
this vote is a recognition of the attention to those details."
The field of computational engineering encompasses practical
engineering analysis and design problems that require supercomputer
simulations. It is multidisciplinary employing engineering,
mathematics, and computer science. Examples of its application
include hydrodynamics, aerodynamics, propulsion, heat transfer, and
structure and it is used to support activities of government agencies
such as the Department of Defense, NASA, the Environmental Protection
Agency and their industrial partners.
The UTC SimCenter conducts research with a high-speed connection
to Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Candidates in the Ph.D. program
will work with SimCenter faculty as they explore research projects.
It was announced earlier this week that the SimCenter will support
the federal government's FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program
with a $250,000 effort to model and enhance air flow for new
hydrogen-powered buses.
In a recent evaluation of the proposed doctorate conducted for
the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, Dr. L.S. Fletcher, a NASA
mechanical engineer on the faculty of Texas A&M University, wrote
that the UTC SimCenter "is the most advanced computational modeling
and simulation center in the nation, with outstanding teaching and
research faculty."
Only a handful of computational engineering programs exist in
the world, and Fletcher said that with the establishment of the new
program, UTC "will be leading the development of a new doctoral
program that other institutions will emulate."
The program will be housed in a new $40 million Engineering,
Mathematics and Computer Science building on the UTC campus. The UTC
SimCenter will be located in the campus's first dedicated research
facility when renovations are completed later this fall.
"The Ph.D. in computational engineering will significantly
advance the College of Engineering and Computer Science and provide
us the opportunity to be on the forefront of a new dimension of
engineering design and simulation," according to Dr. Phil Kazemersky,
Acting Dean of Engineering and Computer Science.
The UTC SimCenter and the associated Ph.D. program have received
tremendous support from the Chattanooga community and are seen as
vital elements in the city's efforts to establish itself as the
center of a high-tech research and development hub.
"Today's accomplishment is a very important milestone not only
for UTC, but for our entire region," said Mayor Bob Corker. "This
opens up significant science and research possibilities that have the
potential to lead to the creation of new business and new jobs for
our citizens. We appreciate the decision of the UT Board of Trustees
and congratulate the SimCenter, Dr. Stacy, and his entire staff for
the hard work they have devoted to making this Ph.D. program a
reality."
UTC currently offers a clinical doctorate in physical therapy
and a master's degree in computational engineering, among other
graduate programs. For more information on the UTC College of
Engineering and Computer Science and the Graduate School in
Computational Engineering, visit www.utc.edu or call 423-425-4363.
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