Julia Ross, Ph.D.

Julia Ross, who becomes dean of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech on July 31, has been named the Paul and Dorothea Torgersen Dean of Engineering by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.

The Paul and Dorothea Torgersen Dean’s Chair in Engineering was established in 2006 by Eric E. Schmidt, chairman and chief executive officer of Google, to honor the Torgersens for their many years of service to Virginia Tech. Paul Torgersen was dean of the College of Engineering from 1970 to 1990 and president of the university from 1993 to 2000. Torgersen died in 2015.

The dean’s chair provides discretionary funds for engineering deans to use in developing outstanding academic programs. Ross will become the second engineering dean to hold the chair, succeeding Richard Benson, who left Virginia Tech last year to become the president of the University of Texas at Dallas.

Ross currently serves as dean of engineering and information technology at University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). When she becomes dean of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, she will hold tenured appointments in the departments of chemical engineering and engineering education.

Since joining the UMBC faculty in 1995, Ross has served in various roles, including chair of chemical, biochemical, and environmental engineering, and supported inter-institutional research initiatives as a special assistant to the provost… Continue reading.

UMBC is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Julia Ross as Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology (COEIT). Dr. Ross will begin her new role on August 4, 2014.

Dr. Ross received her Ph.D. from Rice University and joined UMBC’s faculty in 1995. Dr. Ross is currently the Constellation Professor of Information Technology and Engineering and professor of chemical, biochemical and environmental engineering. From 2006 to 2013, Dr. Ross served as chair of her department and one of her many accomplishments was a successful merger of two academic programs to form the Department of Chemical, Biochemical and Environmental Engineering. Most recently, Dr. Ross served as Special Assistant to the Provost for Inter-Institutional Research Initiatives and has been instrumental in enhancing research relationships and collaborations between UMBC and the University of Maryland, Baltimore, including the development of the UMB-UMBC seed grant program.

“UMBC is very fortunate to have someone of Dr. Julia Ross’s impressive experience and talent to serve as our next Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology,” says Provost Philip Rous.