School of Engineering
ENGR 162: Introduction to Engineering ECE 310: Electromechanical Energy Conversion
Q: What was your educational path like?
A: I went to Carnegie Tech, as it was called then, to study electrical engineering. I then went to law school, but it didn't take so I didn't stay there very long. I went to work for Westinghouse as an engineer for a couple years, but this was in middle of the Vietnam War, and I was strongly opposed to the war. I didn't like the fact that my work was contributing to the war so I decided to teach high school for three years before earning a Masters of History at the University of Maryland. I then attended the University of Chicago for my Ph.D. in education. I came to U.Va. for my Masters in electrical engineering and joined the faculty here in 1987.
Q: How did you become interested in electrical engineering?
A: My second love is history, and history in a way led me to electrical engineering. The degree to which the world has been changed by electricity fascinated me. When we started facing the issue of fuel shortages and global warming I became interested in what we would do for electricity and energy when we don't have fossil fuels anymore.
Q: If you could teach a history course at U.Va., what would you teach?
A: My first choice would be a course in pre-history and the development of early technologies and social organizations that led to civilization. I'm an engineer because I'm interested in technology, and that leads me to be interested in the role of technology in human history.
Q: What special projects are you involved in?
A: I am involved in the Solar Decathlon house that our students sent to Washington, D.C. This was a joint program of the Engineering and Architecture school, which we've been working on for two years. The Decathlon attempts to show the public that all the energy needs of a normal family can be provided by the sun, including driving a car.
Q: How would you improve
childhood education?
A: Psychologists have demonstrated that the most formative years are before age 6, and society only takes responsibility for educating children at age 5, leaving parents and children in a "catch as catch can" situation. In general, day care centers are underfunded, with overworked and underpaid staff. I think we ought to have publicly provided school available from age 0 to elementary. My daughter took off 3 months and then went back to work when her child was 3 years old, so I've been following this subject closely. She's worked hard to find good schools and realizes they aren't available to everybody.
Q: As a dean, what are your responsibilities?
A: I'm essentially responsible for things going right in our undergraduate program. I set up orientations and am involved from the very beginning to administer rules and regulations. It's sort of a catch-all position, and I do everything that needs to be done. I see my role as an advocate for students. Sometimes that means that I have to be stern, and sometimes I think it's in their best interest to be suspended and take some time away. But I try to be open to every student's problems and help them to the extent that I can.
Q: As a dean and a professor, what are your feelings on the honor system?
A: I became very involved with honor after a case involving one of our very fine students. She was an immigrant from Bolivia who came to America when she was 10 years old, and she was just remarkable. She was always helping out other students, and then one day she was convicted of an honor offense and thrown out of school. That upset me greatly. She said she was not guilty and I trusted her. This is a fine person, and she made a mistake and shouldn't have been expelled. It concerns me when I see other cases of people who beat up their girlfriend and are not expelled, and I feel these are worse offenses. I like the honor system, but I don't like the single sanction. I believe young people deserve a second chance.
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