IIT is pleased to welcome Dr. Natacha DePaola to the position of Dean of the Armour College of Engineering. Her experience with strategic development will be invaluable to IIT and Armour as the university prepares to launch its new strategic plan this summer. DePaola joined IIT in August 2009.
DePaola had been chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering at RPI since 2005, and on the faculty since 1994. Before RPI, she was assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Northwestern University. As chair of biomedical engineering, DePaola led a targeted effort to grow the faculty body, diversify the undergraduate and graduate curricula, and expand research focus areas and funding. She developed a departmental vision, mission, and strategic plan, formed a new departmental advisory council, led the department through a successful ABET accreditation process, and created the BME Undergraduate Advising and Student Affairs Office.
“Natacha DePaola brings the experience, energy, and innovative thinking needed to continue Armour College’s tradition as an internationally recognized engineering school,” says President Anderson. “Her demonstrated success in maintaining excellent undergraduate programs while growing graduate and research studies, and her commitment to developing interdisciplinary opportunities, make her a perfect fit for IIT.”
DePaola received a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from Universidad Simon Bolivar in 1984, and a Master of Science in mechanical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1987. She completed her Ph.D. degree in Medical Engineering and Medical Physics from the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology (1991) and Postdoctoral training at Columbia University (1992). DePaola received a National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award, is a Frontiers Alumna of the National Academy of Engineering, and is a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering.
