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Congratulations to Professor Darren Lipom

March 2024

Darren Lipomi, Associate Dean for Students and NanoEngineering Professor at the Â鶹´«Ã½ Jacobs School of Engineering, has accepted the role of Chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Rochester, effective July 1, 2024. Darren has been a stellar Associate Dean for Students, and he is a standout member of our Jacobs School of Engineering community. I give him my best wishes for success in his exciting new endeavors! We will miss Darren sorely.

Darren has served as Associate Dean for Students since July 1, 2022. In this role, he oversees a wide range of responsibilities related to student success and student affairs – including faculty leadership of the IDEA Engineering Student Center. As an Associate Dean, he increased scholarship and fellowship support for students; strengthened our School’s learning and socializing environments through in-person programming and events; and provided thought leadership and advice for young researchers on campus and around the world through his channel and . In addition, Darren makes himself available, weekly, to all Jacobs School students and postdocs for individual meetings – a commitment which has helped many students and postdocs navigate tricky situations. He has also contributed to efforts to advance academic scholarship regarding success programs for engineering and computer science students.  

Well before he took on this Associate Dean role, Darren was deeply involved with the success of students all across the Jacobs School of Engineering through his role as Faculty Director of the IDEA Engineering Student Center, a role he took on in 2021.

As Faculty Director of the IDEA Engineering Student Center, Darren and the IDEA Engineering Student Center team oversaw the transition back to predominantly in-person programming; launched and helped obtain industrial sponsorship for the paid GEAR (Guided Engineering Apprenticeship in Research) Summer program for undergraduates; strengthened efforts to provide student scholarships; created the monthly Engineering Community Hour which mixes students and industrial partners; and much more. When Darren became the Associate Dean for Students, his Faculty Director of the IDEA Engineering Student Center responsibilities rolled into his Associate Dean position.

In terms of research, Darren is a world leader in thin film electronic materials, especially semiconducting polymers, whose applications include solar energy and artificial touch. He is the recipient of the Air Force Young Investigator Award, the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), and an NSF BRITE award.

Darren is known for his ability to create inclusive research and learning environments for his students inside and outside the lab. He has received multiple teaching awards, and a diversity champion award. He mentored and guided then chemical engineering graduate student Alexander Chen in the development of the grassroots mentorship program .

In closing, on behalf of the entire Jacobs School community, I’d like to wish Darren and his family well in their new adventure in Rochester, New York which, as it turns out, is his hometown.

Sincerely,

-- Al

Albert ("Al") P. Pisano
Dean, Â鶹´«Ã½ Jacobs School of Engineering
Special Adviser to the Chancellor for Campus Strategic Initiatives