Spectra Newsletter

College of Engineering and Computer Science

A message from the Dean

Ramesh-pic.pngWelcome to the latest edition of Spectra! It has been another exciting year in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, and I am delighted to share the successes of our students and faculty. Student success is our top priority at CSUN, and under President Harrison’s leadership, we are doing everything we can to support our students to be successful in their lives and careers. Our students are doing a spectacular job in regional and national competitions, earning laurels for their hard work and dedication. Industry has noticed, and the headline stories in this issue highlight the value and significance of our partnerships, which are a strong testament to the quality of our academic programs.[Read more…]

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Industry partnerships - HAAS

haasLab.jpgHAAS Automation

In 1997, Stewart Prince, professor of mechanical engineering, was awarded an NSF grant to develop a paperless machine design facility—one where students could do all their design work on computers and then produce the parts using CNC machines and rapid prototypers. In shopping for the CNC machines, Prince approached Haas Automation, the largest machine tool builder in the United States, to see how far the grant funds would stretch. The company, located in Oxnard and founded by CSUN alumnus Gene Haas, responded with a unique proposition: instead of selling the machines, it would entrust them to the college, as long as they were incorporated into the curriculum. And thus the Gene Haas Machine Design and Manufacturing Lab—and a fruitful ongoing partnership—were born. [Read more…]

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Industry Partnerships - Jet Propulsion Laboratory

DSC01580.jpgJet Propulsion Laboratory, like Haas, has longstanding ties with CSUN, but as part of a larger initiative to ramp up its partnerships with universities, it is seeking to expand the relationship.

“What JPL is trying to do is develop relationships with universities so we actually can get to know the professors and the curriculum and see if we can target certain areas for involvement,” explains Naomi Palmer, section manager for JPL’s power and sensor systems and its newly appointed university relationship manager for CSUN. [Read more…]

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Industry Partnerships - LEAP Employer- Educator Compact

In 2012, a group consisting of presidents from all sectors of higher education initiated the LEAP Employer-Educator Compact, an effort to bring together college presidents and leading employers of college graduates in order to support the goals of the Association of American Colleges and Universities’ LEAP (Liberal Education & America’s Promise) initiative. At a forum held in Washington, D.C., last April, more than 200 leaders in business, higher education and the nonprofit sector gathered to endorse the compact, which affirms their shared commitment to 1) the learning college students most need both for the economy and for democracy; 2) 21st-century designs for high-quality, hands-on learning that prepare students to deal with complexity, diversity and change; and 3) the development of meaningful evidence about students’ actual achievement in college.

At CSUN, the compact has gained traction with two longtime CECS partners: Aerojet Rocketdyne and Boston Scientific. To some extent, though, it is merely putting a formal name to what both companies have been doing for some time.

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