Effective July 1, 2021, Douglas Blough, professor and associate chair for faculty development, will serve as interim chair for the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Blough will begin his interim role as Magnus Egerstedt leaves for his new position as dean of the Henry Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Irvine.

“Doug has devoted more than 20 years of his professional career to the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering,” said Raheem Beyah, dean and Southern Company chair of the College of Engineering. “He has been an integral part of the School’s leadership team and is very well acquainted with the operational aspects of the School. I know Doug will continue the upward trajectory of the School, as we look to develop academic programs and innovative opportunities for both students and faculty.”  

Blough’s research currently focuses on wireless networks and, in the past, also covered dependable/secure computing. He has more than 160 archival publications in these areas and has led 37 federally-funded or industry-sponsored research projects, with a total funding level of more than $8M. Currently, his research is funded by two NSF grants in the area of next-generation wireless networks that explore the design challenges for networks operating in the millimeter-wave bands. In addition to his academic roles, he previously held fellowship positions with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. 

“I am honored to be given the opportunity to work with our faculty, staff and students to lead the School during this transition period,” said Blough. “In the past few years, there have been several new and important programs introduced in the School, including a diversity and inclusion initiative, a threaded undergraduate degree program, and a Master's degree with an emphasis on entrepreneurship. These programs are really in their infancy, and I would like to nurture each of them, so they can reach their full potential during this critical period.”

Blough attended the Johns Hopkins University where he received the B.S.E.E. degree and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Computer Science in 1984, 1986, and 1988, respectively.
 

Search Committee Named

Dr. Susan Margulies, Chair of the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory, will chair the search committee tasked with finding a permanent chair. An External Advisors group of alumni and supporters is also being formed to help guide the search process. This will be an international search.

The Search Committee includes:

Azadeh Ansari – Assistant Professor

Teresa Askew – Unit Administrative Officer

Chance Brown – Director – Business Operations

Jeff Colburn – Director of Development

John Cressler – Professor

Mark Davenport – Associate Professor

Joy Harris – Academic Professional

Maya Kelly – Undergraduate Student

Asif Khan – Assistant Professor

Tushar Krishna – Associate Professor

Saibal Mukhopadhyay – Professor

Moin Qureshi – Professor, Computer Science – External Member

Gabriel Rincon-Mora – Professor

Maryam Saeedifard – Associate Professor

La’Darius Thomas – Graduate Student

Ying Zhang – Professor