John Harb, Spencer Magleby are new associate deans
Academic Vice President John S. Tanner has announced the appointment of Alan R. Parkinson as the new dean of the Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology at Brigham Young University.
"Alan received strong support from his colleagues, the search committee and the BYU administration," said Tanner. "He has a wonderful combination of experiences that prepared him well for this new responsibility."
Parkinson replaces Douglas M. Chabries, who will serve a mission with his wife in Croatia for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints this fall. He will work with Parkinson during the transition period.
"I am deeply grateful to Douglas Chabries who has served so well for the past decade," said Tanner. "He has provided excellent service to the college and has brought remarkable insights and skills to our university councils."
Two new associate deans have also been named. John Harb, professor of chemical engineering, will oversee graduate programs and research throughout the college, while Spencer Magleby, professor of mechanical engineering, will direct undergraduate programs.
Parkinson previously served as associate dean of the college and chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. A BYU alumnus, he received his master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Illinois and joined the BYU faculty in 1982.
His research interests center on methods and software to improve engineering design productivity, with a special emphasis on optimization methods, including optimization algorithms, robust design and large-scale optimization.
Writer: Cecelia Fielding
