I am pleased to announce NanoEngineering Professor Darren Lipomi as the new Faculty Director of the IDEA Engineering Student Center at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering as of July 1, 2021.
Over the past decade, the IDEA Engineering Student Center has supported thousands of UC San Diego engineering and computer science students through to graduation. IDEA stands for Inclusion, Diversity, Excellence, Achievement; and IDEA Engineering Student Center programs include summer prep and mentorship programs, peer-led engineering learning communities, support for student diversity organizations, community and culture-building efforts and much more.
The IDEA Engineering Student Center’s mission is to support all students on the challenging path of an engineering and computer science education at UC San Diego, with specific programs that build community, and provide academic and peer support for students traditionally underrepresented in the engineering and computer science fields including Black, Latinx and Native American students, women, first-generation college students, LGBTQ+ students, and low-income students.
Professor Lipomi will build on the incredible momentum and achievements that the IDEA Engineering Student Center has made over the last six years under the leadership of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Professor Olivia Graeve. I am incredibly grateful to Professor Graeve for her vision and leadership, and I am proud of the entire IDEA Engineering Student Center team. Their collective efforts have propelled the IDEA Center to new heights, directly benefiting our students. Some of the accomplishments of the IDEA Center under her leadership are outlined on IDEA’s 10th year anniversary website and in the Center's annual reports.
At the Jacobs School, Professor Lipomi is known for his ability to create inclusive research and learning environments for his students inside and outside the lab. In 2017, he received a campus Diversity Champion award. He has extended his ability to facilitate important STEM conversations and empower young researchers across the nation and around the world through his podcast, which is called "Molecular Podcasting with Darren Lipomi." Many of his podcast episodes relate directly or indirectly to equity, diversity and inclusion.
In terms of research, Professor Lipomi is a world leader in thin film electronic materials, whose applications include solar energy and artificial touch. Like many high-impact engineering professors, he engages in the virtuous cycle between fundamental and applied research. He is the recipient of the Air Force Young Investigator Award, the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, and the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE).
Please join me in welcoming Professor Lipomi to the position of Faculty Director of the IDEA Engineering Student Center. Also, please join me in wholeheartedly thanking Professor Graeve for all her work and accomplishments in this role, and for all that she does for the campus community, including running the ENLACE summer research program.
Together, we are working harder than ever to make the Jacobs School a place where all students, staff and faculty have the resources, support, and community connections inside and outside the classroom that empower them to succeed and thrive.
Sincerely,
