Engineering Dean plans move to faculty

Dean Wai-Fah Chen will step down from dean's position when a successor has been named

College of Engineering Dean Wai-Fah Chen has informed Manoa Chancellor Peter Englert of his intent to step down from the dean‘s post after a search has identified a successor. Chen will take a faculty position in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering focusing on research and mentoring doctoral students.

"Dean Chen has filled a critical leadership role for the College of Engineering, and I respect his wish to return to the faculty," Chancellor Englert said. "We are grateful for the initiatives that have taken root during his tenure as dean, especially the aggressive manner in which he has cultivated partnerships for the College‘s industrial affiliates program."

Chen has been Dean since September, 1999. He came to the Manoa campus from Purdue University with a well-established reputation in the field of civil engineering. He is a member of the US National Academy of Engineering.

"We have been able to move ahead on the strategic plan goals we outlined in 2002," Dean Chen said. "We have the active support of engineering professionals in Hawaiʻi, and I look forward to opportunities to move the college forward in my new role as a faculty member."

Formation of a dean‘s search advisory committee will begin immediately under the direction of UH Manoa Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Neal Smatresk. The search for a successor to Chen will be conducted on a national and international scale.