News & Events
City Tech Reports Largest Number of New Faculty Hires in 40 Years
City Tech has hired 40 new full-time, tenure-track faculty for the 2007-08 academic year, bringing the total to 344. This represents the largest increase in four decades.
On the student front, the College is expecting a one to two percent increase in fall 2007 enrollment over last year's 13,370 students, which will mean a cumulative increase of nearly 20 percent over the past four years. This pattern of increase is, in part, a reflection of the importance of the College in supplying the high-tech workforce necessary for New York to compete in a global marketplace.
From left to right: Professors Matthew K. Gold (English), Rosalyn Forbes (Nursing) and Iem Heng (Computer Engineering Technology) attend new faculty orientation.
The new City Tech professors mirror the diversity of the student body, hailing from all over the globe, including Egypt, Russia, India, China, Ireland, Italy, Turkey, Canada and Bangladesh. “Included in this group are several newly-minted PhDs who are actively involved in research and/or in their industries," said Provost Bonne August, in announcing the appointments.
"They represent our present and our future since they will be teaching here well into the 21st century," she added. "And, I'm delighted to report that the first female faculty members were hired in non-traditional areas -- construction/civil engineering technology and computer engineering technology."
The new professors are divided among the College's three schools -- Arts & Sciences, Professional Studies and Technology & Design. More than half of the new hires are women.
The significant addition of new professorial lines at City Tech is part of a CUNY-wide effort to increase The University's full-time faculty with diverse mix of educators who have impressive research and teaching credentials. This influx of faculty is in response to a growing student population and the introduction of new academic programs and related initiatives.
Among the 40 faculty members hired for the spring semester are:
* Rachele Arrigoni-Restrepo (biology), who received her PhD in molecular genetics from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Her research focuses on a cellular process involving proteins that have been linked to cancer and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson and Alzheimer.
* Sharda Del Rio (construction/civil engineering technology), who has served as a full-time field representative for the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York.
* Anne Leonhardt (architectural technology), who graduated with a master's of architecture degree from Yale University and has run her own architectural design company for six years.
* Rathika Rajaravivarma (computer engineering technology), who has extensive industry experience both in India and the U.S., most recently with IBM Global Services.
* Gerarda M. Shields (construction/civil engineering technology), who was honored with the American Society of Civil Engineers' (ASCE) 2007 Young Government Civil Engineer of the Year Award. She specializes in the field of bridge scour engineering.
* Simboonath Singh (humanities), whose research is on race, ethnicity and urban sociology, specifically new ethnic communities and congregations in the U.S. He received an award in recognition of his scholarship in Indo-Caribbean Studies in Canada from the Ontario Society for Services to Indo-Carribean Canadians.
* Selwyn Williams (biological sciences), who just finished a three-year stint as a research fellow in molecular biology at Princetown University.
* Geoff Zylstra (history), whose expertise is in the intersection of the history of technology and environmental and urban history.
Refurbished and retooled facilities will greet new and returning City Tech faculty, students and staff this fall, with other capital projects in various stages of development. These include:
* a major renovation of Namm Hall's façade, including the replacement of all windows;
* a new student computer lab featuring both Macs and PCs now commanding the entire sixth floor of the General Building;
* a facelift underway at Voorhees Hall, one of City Tech's primary classroom buildings and home to its engineering technology and related design programs;
* a New Student Welcome Center scheduled to open during this academic year;
* a new college bookstore and café will open this fall on Tech Place, between Jay and Adams Streets;
* a new building is on the drawing boards that will replace Klitgord Center (at Tillary and Jay Streets), providing much-needed classroom and lab space.
"The new and renovated facilities and expanded faculty will support City Tech's rapidly growing student population," concludes Provost August. "They will ensure that the College continues to play an increasing role in meeting New York City and the region's workforce development needs in a 21st century high-tech economy."
8/23/07
