Colleagues, President Broderick, Pay Tribute to ODU Engineering Dean Oktay Baysal
May 02, 2016
President John R. Broderick and acting Provost Chandra de Silva present Oktay Baysal with an award in recognition of his service to Old Dominion University engineering.
Faculty and staff of the Frank Batten College of Engineering and Technology, as well as other Old Dominion deans, gathered April 29 to pay tribute to Oktay Baysal for his 14 years as dean of engineering at the University.
Baysal, who is leaving the dean's post he has held since 2002, and returning to faculty as a professor of aerospace engineering, was the guest of honor in an informal luncheon in Webb University Center.
In remarks to attendees at the sendoff, President John R. Broderick said Baysal's time in the Batten College has coincided with tremendous growth in the profile and stature of engineering at Old Dominion University.
"Dean Baysal has overseen a transformation of the Batten College, and we thank him for his service to the University, and the community," Broderick said.
Baysal said he is looking forward to going back to being a faculty member, following 14 years as dean and three years as associate dean.
Baysal thanked the many colleagues with whom he has shared experiences at Old Dominion University.
"This University, and this engineering college, have been tremendously rewarding to work for, and to lead. I am grateful for the hard work of my faculty, staff and students every day," he said.
Baysal was presented with a crystal award by President Broderick and acting Provost Chandra de Silva for his 17 years of service in the dean's office.
An Eminent Scholar of aerospace engineering, Baysal is the author or co-author of 11 books, 10 book chapters and more than 50 peer-reviewed articles.
During his time as dean of the Batten College, Old Dominion has expanded engineering into new areas for the University, such as biomedical engineering, plasma engineering, photovoltaic engineering and machine vision technology.
The college has also grown, from an inaugural class of 12 students, more than 50 years ago, to an enrollment of more than 3,200 students now, conferring more than 550 degrees each year.
Stephanie G. Adams, professor and engineering education department head at Virginia Tech, was hired last month as the seventh dean of the college. She will assume her new role at ODU this summer.