Edmund T. Pratt Jr. School of Engineering
Encyclopedia
The Edmund T. Pratt Jr. School of Engineering is one of two undergraduate schools at Duke University
in Durham
, North Carolina
, USA. The other is the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences
. It is also one of ten graduate and professional schools at Duke. The school is best known for its Biomedical Engineering Department.
Pratt awards undergraduate degrees in biomedical engineering
, civil
and environmental engineering
, electrical
and computer engineering
, and mechanical engineering
and materials science
. A Master of Engineering Management
degree is also offered. The degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy are awarded by the Duke Graduate School
for all four departments.
The majority of Pratt's faculty, labs, and courses can be found in Hudson Hall, the Nello L. Teer Library Building, the Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences
(also known as CIEMAS), and the LSRC
. In 2006, the Pratt School's graduate program was ranked as the second best engineering graduate program in the country by The Princeton Review
. Until 2007, Kristina M. Johnson
was the dean of Pratt, becoming the first woman to hold the position in 1999. After Johnson left to become the provost
of Johns Hopkins University
, Robert L. Clark became dean pending a national search for Johnson's replacement. Thomas Katsouleas of the University of Southern California
was announced as the new dean in Spring of 2008 and started on July 1, 2008.
, North Carolina
. At that time, engineering was included in a Classical course for seniors. A course in engineering was later introduced in 1887, eventually becoming a regular course offering in 1903. At that time, engineering courses were limited to such fields as architecture and surveying, until 1924 when Trinity College was renamed to Duke University. Engineering then underwent a major change becoming separate departments of civil and electrical engineering. Seven years later, in 1931, a mechanical engineering department was created. Duke's Board of Trustees then decided to create the College of Engineering in 1939, with William H. Hall becoming its first dean.
The College of Engineering graduated its first class of women in 1946. The next year, the three departments moved from East Campus to their current location on West Campus. The college was then named the School of Engineering in 1966. Two years later, in 1968, the school's first black students graduated. The Division of Biomedical Engineering was created in 1967, becoming the first accredited biomedical engineering department of a U.S. university in September 1972
Later, in 1997, the Master of Engineering Management was established. The Duke University School of Engineering was renamed the Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. School of Engineering in 1999, in honor of Edmund T. Pratt, Jr.
, a 1947 graduate of the school and former CEO of Pfizer
.
building at Duke University, serving as the main hub for the School of Engineering. Constructed in 1948, Hudson Hall was renamed to honor Fitzgerald S. "Jerry" Hudson (E'46) in 1992.
The Nello L. Teer Library Building opened in 1984. Located directly next to Hudson Hall, the Teer Building houses a library for engineering
, mathematics
, and physics
, the Dean's office, a computing
lab
as well as circuits
labs, an auditorium, a student lounge, and student activities offices.
The Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences - often referred to as CIEMAS - opened in August 2004. Research
facilities focus on the fields of photonics
, bioengineering, communications, and materials science
and materials engineering. The aim of the building was to emphasize interdisciplinary activities and encourage cross-departmental interactions. The building houses numerous wet bench laboratories
(highlighted by a world-class nanotechnology
research wing), offices, teaching spaces, and a café. CIEMAS is also home to the Master of Engineering Management Program. The construction of CIEMAS took more than three years and cost more than $97 million.
The Levine Science Research Center (LSRC) is a 341000 square feet (31,679.9 m²) facility. When it was opened in 1994, the LSRC was the largest single-site interdisciplinary research facility in the U.S.
. Its classrooms are shared by several departments, but the majority of its offices and laboratories are utilized by the Nicholas School of the Environment
, the Pratt School of Engineering, the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience
and Developmental and the departments of Computer Science
, Pharmacology
and Cancer
Biology
and Cell
and Molecular Biology
. The building was named for Leon Levine
, the CEO of Family Dollar Stores.
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
in Durham
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, USA. The other is the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences
Trinity College of Arts and Sciences
Trinity College of Arts and Sciences is the undergraduate liberal arts college at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. The college is currently one of two undergraduate divisions at Duke, the other being the Edmund T...
. It is also one of ten graduate and professional schools at Duke. The school is best known for its Biomedical Engineering Department.
Pratt awards undergraduate degrees in biomedical engineering
Biomedical engineering
Biomedical Engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology. This field seeks to close the gap between engineering and medicine: It combines the design and problem solving skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve...
, civil
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
and environmental engineering
Environmental engineering
Environmental engineering is the application of science and engineering principles to improve the natural environment , to provide healthy water, air, and land for human habitation and for other organisms, and to remediate polluted sites...
, electrical
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
and computer engineering
Computer engineering
Computer engineering, also called computer systems engineering, is a discipline that integrates several fields of electrical engineering and computer science required to develop computer systems. Computer engineers usually have training in electronic engineering, software design, and...
, and mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
and materials science
Materials science
Materials science is an interdisciplinary field applying the properties of matter to various areas of science and engineering. This scientific field investigates the relationship between the structure of materials at atomic or molecular scales and their macroscopic properties. It incorporates...
. A Master of Engineering Management
Engineering management
Engineering Management or Management Engineering is a specialized form of management and engineering that is concerned with the application of engineering principles to business practice...
degree is also offered. The degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy are awarded by the Duke Graduate School
Graduate School of Duke University
The Graduate School of Duke University is currently one of ten graduate and professional schools that make up the university. Established in 1926, the Graduate School offers the degrees of Master of Arts, Master of Science, Master of Arts in Teaching, Master of Public Policy, and the Doctor of...
for all four departments.
The majority of Pratt's faculty, labs, and courses can be found in Hudson Hall, the Nello L. Teer Library Building, the Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences
Fitzpatrick Center
The Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences—colloquially referred to as CIEMAS —opened in August 2004 on the campus of Duke University. Research facilities focus on the fields of photonics, bioengineering, communications, and materials science...
(also known as CIEMAS), and the LSRC
Levine Science Research Center
The Levine Science Research Center is a facility on Duke University's west campus located at 450 Research Drive Durham, NC 27708. The LSRC is currently the largest single-site interdisciplinary research facility in the U.S...
. In 2006, the Pratt School's graduate program was ranked as the second best engineering graduate program in the country by The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review is an American-based standardized test preparation and admissions consulting company. The Princeton Review operates in 41 states and 22 countries across the globe. It offers test preparation for standardized aptitude tests such as the SAT and advice regarding college...
. Until 2007, Kristina M. Johnson
Kristina M. Johnson
Kristina M. Johnson was the undersecretary for Energy at the United States Department of Energy until she stepped down Nov. 5, 2010. She has previously been the provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Johns Hopkins University since September 1, 2007. Previously, she had been the...
was the dean of Pratt, becoming the first woman to hold the position in 1999. After Johnson left to become the provost
Provost (education)
A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....
of Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
, Robert L. Clark became dean pending a national search for Johnson's replacement. Thomas Katsouleas of the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
was announced as the new dean in Spring of 2008 and started on July 1, 2008.
History
The precursor to the school of engineering dates back to 1851, when Duke was known as Normal College and located in Randolph CountyRandolph County, North Carolina
-Notable people:*Naomi Wise, murder victim*Richard Petty - Nascar driver.*Lee Petty - Nascar pioneer. Richard Petty's father.*Kyle Petty - Nascar driver. Son of Richard Petty*Adam Petty - Nascar driver. Kyle Petty's son...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. At that time, engineering was included in a Classical course for seniors. A course in engineering was later introduced in 1887, eventually becoming a regular course offering in 1903. At that time, engineering courses were limited to such fields as architecture and surveying, until 1924 when Trinity College was renamed to Duke University. Engineering then underwent a major change becoming separate departments of civil and electrical engineering. Seven years later, in 1931, a mechanical engineering department was created. Duke's Board of Trustees then decided to create the College of Engineering in 1939, with William H. Hall becoming its first dean.
The College of Engineering graduated its first class of women in 1946. The next year, the three departments moved from East Campus to their current location on West Campus. The college was then named the School of Engineering in 1966. Two years later, in 1968, the school's first black students graduated. The Division of Biomedical Engineering was created in 1967, becoming the first accredited biomedical engineering department of a U.S. university in September 1972
Later, in 1997, the Master of Engineering Management was established. The Duke University School of Engineering was renamed the Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. School of Engineering in 1999, in honor of Edmund T. Pratt, Jr.
Edmund T. Pratt, Jr.
Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. was the Chairman and CEO of Pfizer Inc.. He served as President from 1971 to 1972, CEO from 1972 to 1991, and Chairman from 1972 to 1992. He is the namesake of Duke University's Engineering School.-Early life:...
, a 1947 graduate of the school and former CEO of Pfizer
Pfizer
Pfizer, Inc. is an American multinational pharmaceutical corporation. The company is based in New York City, New York with its research headquarters in Groton, Connecticut, United States...
.
Buildings
Hudson Hall is the oldest engineeringEngineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
building at Duke University, serving as the main hub for the School of Engineering. Constructed in 1948, Hudson Hall was renamed to honor Fitzgerald S. "Jerry" Hudson (E'46) in 1992.
The Nello L. Teer Library Building opened in 1984. Located directly next to Hudson Hall, the Teer Building houses a library for engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
, mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, and physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, the Dean's office, a computing
Computing
Computing is usually defined as the activity of using and improving computer hardware and software. It is the computer-specific part of information technology...
lab
Laboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
as well as circuits
Electronic circuit
An electronic circuit is composed of individual electronic components, such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, inductors and diodes, connected by conductive wires or traces through which electric current can flow...
labs, an auditorium, a student lounge, and student activities offices.
The Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences - often referred to as CIEMAS - opened in August 2004. Research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
facilities focus on the fields of photonics
Photonics
The science of photonics includes the generation, emission, transmission, modulation, signal processing, switching, amplification, detection and sensing of light. The term photonics thereby emphasizes that photons are neither particles nor waves — they are different in that they have both particle...
, bioengineering, communications, and materials science
Materials science
Materials science is an interdisciplinary field applying the properties of matter to various areas of science and engineering. This scientific field investigates the relationship between the structure of materials at atomic or molecular scales and their macroscopic properties. It incorporates...
and materials engineering. The aim of the building was to emphasize interdisciplinary activities and encourage cross-departmental interactions. The building houses numerous wet bench laboratories
Laboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
(highlighted by a world-class nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
research wing), offices, teaching spaces, and a café. CIEMAS is also home to the Master of Engineering Management Program. The construction of CIEMAS took more than three years and cost more than $97 million.
The Levine Science Research Center (LSRC) is a 341000 square feet (31,679.9 m²) facility. When it was opened in 1994, the LSRC was the largest single-site interdisciplinary research facility in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Its classrooms are shared by several departments, but the majority of its offices and laboratories are utilized by the Nicholas School of the Environment
Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences
The Nicholas School of the Environment is one of ten graduate and professional schools at Duke University. The Levine Science Research Center is home to the vast majority of its programs, while a secondary facility is maintained in the coastal town of Beaufort, North Carolina...
, the Pratt School of Engineering, the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience
Neuroscience
Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
and Developmental and the departments of Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
, Pharmacology
Pharmacology
Pharmacology is the branch of medicine and biology concerned with the study of drug action. More specifically, it is the study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and chemicals that affect normal or abnormal biochemical function...
and Cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
and Cell
Cell (biology)
The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. It is the smallest unit of life that is classified as a living thing, and is often called the building block of life. The Alberts text discusses how the "cellular building blocks" move to shape developing embryos....
and Molecular Biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
. The building was named for Leon Levine
Leon Levine
Leon Levine is an American businessman and philanthropist that founded the Family Dollar chain of discount stores.-Early life:...
, the CEO of Family Dollar Stores.
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Deans
- William H. Hall, 1939-1953
- Walter J. Seeley, 1953-1962
- James L. Meriam, 1962-1969
- George Pearsall, 1969-1974, 1982-1983
- Aleksandar Vesic, 1974-1982
- Earl Dowell, 1983-1999
- Kristina M. Johnson, 1999-2007
- Robert L. Clark, 2007-2008
- Thomas Katsouleas, 2008-present