Strategic Plan 2021-2026

Dean's Message

We are pleased to present the College of Engineering and Engineering Technology’s Strategic Plan for 2021-2026. It’s an exciting moment for the college, the faculty and the staff. This plan represents an ambitious look forward to the next five years, after tremendous gains we’ve made in the past several years, including the addition of two new bachelor’s programs in biomedical engineering and mechatronics engineering. And we added doctoral programs in electrical engineering, industrial and systems engineering, and mechanical engineering.

Over the past few years, we also have seen a consistent improvement in our national ranking by the U.S. News & World Report for engineering programs whose highest degree is a master’s.

This Strategic Plan charts our course toward additional achievements that are indicative of our commitment to providing quality education and hands-on learning experiences that prepare our students to be impactful in the workplace from day one after graduation.

This plan will be reviewed each year, and a complete analysis and revision will take place at year five. I want to acknowledge and applaud the faculty representatives of the Strategic Plan Committee whose dedication and commitment to our college is evident in this plan.

Donald R. Peterson, Ph.D.
Dean and Professor of Mechanical Engineering

Mission

Provide engineering excellence in education, research, scholarly activities and impactful engagement with industry, government and communities.

Vision

To be the premier choice for a diverse body of students who aspire to
be engineering innovators and leaders for the betterment of the world.

Core Values

CEET values the following:

Education.
- Providing excellence in engineering and technology education.
- Developing experiential and scholarship opportunities for students to bridge theory with practice.
Research and Scholarly Activities.
- Sustaining innovation and translational research.
- Cultivating collaboration with industry partners.
Diversity, Inclusion and Ethics.
- Building on transparency and shared governance.
- Promoting equity, participation and belonging.
- Promoting professional ethical conduct.
Outreach and Engagement.
- Generating employability/internships.
- Providing continuing education for professionals.
- Developing global partnerships.
- Serving our communities.

Strategic Areas

Priority 1:

Foster an educational environment that promotes diverse experiential learning.

Goal:

Create an innovative educational environment that promotes success unique to each incoming student by offering a flexible curriculum with solid foundational coursework, an industry supported innovation center, a variety of cocurricular programming and external activities, and state-of-the-art laboratories, classrooms and technologies.

➤ Initiative 1: Continue to maintain superior classroom environments and laboratory facilities to provide student success in the program.

➤ Initiative 2: Enhance engagement with students before they enter the engineering program, throughout their time on campus and after graduation.

➤ Initiative 3: Increase support for faculty and staff professional development.

➤ Initiative 4: Plan and implement strategies for recruitment and retention to increase student enrollment.

Ethnic Distribution of Undergraduates as of Fall 2020

In the Top Four

Best US Tech Schools for Latinos as ranked by Latino Leaders Magazine, 2018.

Strategic Areas

Priority 2:

Support relevant and innovative research through scholarly activity.

Goal:

Increase research and scholarly productivity of our faculty and students.

➤ Initiative 1: Create a support structure to increase faculty research and scholarly activity.

➤ Initiative 2: Establish collaborative networks for faculty to foster and sustain research and scholarly productivity.

➤ Initiative 3: Actively engage students in collaborative research.

94%
of our teaching staff are faculty with Ph.D.s in their respective fields.

33
as ranked by U.S. News & World Report, 2021 for engineering programs whose highest degree is a master’s.

35
state-of-the-art laboratories and only six classrooms ensure that students get hands-on learning.

Strategic Areas

Priority 3:

Reinforce collaborative links with industry and the community.

Goal:

Foster collaboration with industry, alumni and communities for students and faculty to engage actively in opportunities to advance learning, professional preparedness, and research and development.

➤ Initiative 1: Inform and engage industry regarding CEET capabilities to support their engineering activities and needs.

➤ Initiative 2: Develop long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships with industry in a continuous effort to support applied research and provide our students with real-world learning experiences.

The NIU Supermileage Team placed first in 2019 at the Shell Eco-Marathon competition for its vehicle that can travel 1,888 miles per gallon.

16.9%
of full-time undergraduate and graduate students are female, as of fall 2020.

20+
student organizations, including competitive teams and many student chapters of professional societies and honor societies.

The NIU Supermileage Team placed first in 2019 at the Shell Eco-Marathon competition for its vehicle that can travel 1,888 miles per gallon.

Strategic Plan Committee

The Strategic Planning Task Force Members are the following:

Reinaldo Moraga, Chair

Mansoor Alam

Abul Azad

Gary Chen

Purushothaman Damodaran

Theodore Hogan

Rao Kilaparti

Kate Monteleone,
Strategic Plan Consultant

Donald Peterson

Tariq Shamim

John Shelton

Bobby Sinko

Mansour Tahernezhadi

Donald Zinger

To learn more about the degree programs available at CEET visit niu.edu/ceet.

NIU College of Engineering and Engineering Technology
590 Garden Road, DeKalb, IL 60115

815-753-1442
niu.edu/ceet
ceet@niu.edu

@NIUengineering
#niuceet