The mechanical engineering department at the University of Colorado at Boulder plans to celebrate its centennial with a yearlong series of events.
The discipline has shown a great evolution from the early years of the Industrial Revolution to the present day development of micro- and nano-scale technologies. Likewise, CU-Boulder's mechanical engineering department, established in 1902, has grown from a small class of nine students to an enrollment of 460 undergraduate and 99 graduate students in 2002.
Mechanical engineering is one of seven departments in the College of Engineering and Applied Science. Host to three major interdisciplinary research centers and a participant in two additional centers, the mechanical engineering faculty's total research expenditures exceeded $3.6 million in 2001-2002. The department's history includes a number of prestigious awards to faculty, students and alumni, and the department maintains an outstanding published reputation in engineering and scientific journals.
The first in the series of centennial events will be an Oct. 5 picnic on CU-Boulder's homecoming weekend where Front Range alumni are invited back to celebrate a "100-year tradition of excellence and innovation" with faculty, staff and members of the department's Industrial Advisory Council.
Alumni and friends also are invited to attend a department open house the morning of Oct. 18, prior to the Grand Opening of the college's Â鶹ÊÓƵy Learning Center.
The department plans to host a workshop on mechanical engineering in the 21st century, a guest lecture and a dinner on May 8.
For more information, contact department chair Subhendu Datta at (303) 492-0287, or Roop Mahajan, chair of the Centennial Celebration Committee, (303) 492-7750.