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NEWS RELEASE
September 6, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A high-quality photo is available for downloading.
Christophe Pierre named Vice President for Academic Affairs
Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at McGill University
URBANA, Ill.— Accomplished scholar and administrator Christophe Pierre – who has held positions at top universities in the U.S. and abroad – has been selected as the vice president for academic affairs, University of Illinois President Michael J. Hogan announced today.
Pierre has served as dean of the Faculty of Engineering at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, since 2005. He is also a professor of mechanical engineering and holds a Canada Research Chair in structural dynamics and vibration. He will begin his post at the University of Illinois on Oct. 16, subject to Board of Trustees approval.
Pierre holds a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from Ecole Centrale des Arts et Manufactures de Paris in France, a master’s degree in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Princeton University, and a doctorate in mechanical engineering and materials science from Duke University.
Hogan praised Pierre for his success in leading McGill University’s Faculty of Engineering as both a scientist and administrator.
"Dr. Pierre is a highly accomplished scientist, with a strong record of administrative leadership," Hogan said. "Through discipline and vision, he led the Faculty of Engineering at McGill University through a period of unprecedented growth, advancing the quality and stature of its programs despite enormous fiscal challenges."
Pierre was active in raising more than $50 million for McGill's Faculty of Engineering. He was also instrumental in increasing the enrollment of high-scoring undergraduate students by 21 percent, increasing doctoral enrollment by 74 percent, increasing research funding by 59 percent and hiring 47 new faculty members. Under his leadership, the number of engineering doctoral fellowships awarded increased from eight in 2003-04 to 128 in 2009-10.
Hogan thanked members of the search advisory committee, chaired by Robert Easter, interim vice president and chancellor of the Urbana-Champaign campus, for their selection. "The committee did a wonderful job recruiting a very talented pool of candidates," he said.
Pierre said he is excited to begin contributing to the university mission. "I am deeply honored and absolutely delighted to join such an internationally preeminent institution as the University of Illinois in the position of vice president for academic affairs," Pierre said. "Academic affairs are at the core of any institution of higher education, and I look forward to working in partnership with this university's three campuses and its external constituents in order to strengthen Illinois' academic leadership in the world and ensure its best-in-class status."
In addition to serving as vice president for academic affairs, Pierre will hold tenured positions in the Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering on the Urbana-Champaign campus and the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering on the Chicago campus.
The recipient of more than 50 extramural research grants and contracts totaling more than $60 million, Pierre is a fellow of the American Academy of Mechanics and the 2005 winner of the N.O. Myklestad Award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Prior to becoming dean at McGill University, Pierre served as associate dean for Academic Programs and Initiatives at the Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies at the University of Michigan. He is the author or co-author of more than 300 reference publications.
McGill University comprises 11 colleges with more than 36,000 students. Its engineering program is classified as one of the top two programs in Canada and ranked 29th by U.S. News and World Report’s listing of the world’s 300 best engineering and technology schools.
As vice president for academic affairs, Pierre will serve as the senior academic officer of the university, where he will advise the president on matters of educational policy, academic programs, personnel actions and capital and operating budget items relating to academics. Pierre will be responsible for the coordination of academic planning and budgeting at the university while working closely with academic leaders on all three University of Illinois campuses in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield.
Several university offices will report to Pierre, including the Institute of Government and Public Affairs, University of Illinois Press, Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois, University Outreach and Public Service, and university-wide student programs.
He will replace current Vice President for Academic Affairs Mrinalini "Meena" C. Rao, who has held the position since 2007. Rao will return to the faculty in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics on the Chicago campus. Hogan commended Rao's service noting, "Meena’s record as vice president for academic affairs has been outstanding. She has been a champion of diversity and has helped advance academic programs across all of our campuses. We all appreciate her unfaltering support for our faculty and students."
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The University of Illinois is a world leader in research and discovery, the largest educational institution in the state with more than 76,000 students, 24,000 faculty and staff, and campuses in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago and Springfield. The U of I awards more than 19,000 undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees annually.