Message from the Dean

Dear Friends,

“Become what you are not yet.”

This decree from St. Augustine is woven into the mission and culture of Villanova University. There is always room to expand our hearts and minds as we work toward a brighter future.

Last year, the College of Engineering took a major step toward that future as we broke ground on our new home. Set to open in Fall 2024, the 150,000-square-foot expansion of the Center for Engineering Education and Research will foster the type of collaborative innovations required to tackle society’s biggest challenges head-on, while preparing the next generation of Villanova engineers for success.

The future can also be seen in other spaces and faces we’ve introduced over the past year. In the fall, we launched the Center for Human-Environmental Systems, an interdisciplinary lab led by Wenqing Xu, PhD, aimed at addressing environmental concerns through biomimicry. We also welcomed a new associate dean for Undergraduate Affairs, David Jamison, PhD, whose background in industry and academia affords him a unique perspective that will serve students well as they navigate their engineering education.

Rooted in our foundation of academic excellence, we created two development programs for faculty members, supporting them as they expand their teaching and research portfolios. Several other faculty members—including Drs. Sylvie Lorente, Pritpal Singh, Al Ortega and Ahmad Hoorfar—have been honored recently on national and international stages. Meanwhile, our students and alumni have continued to impress—whether by founding successful companies, like Sandro Roco ’09 ChE, or by forging paths to success, like Dallianny Perez Lantigua ’25 CE and Taylor McDermott ’23 CpE. There’s no limit to the potential of a Villanova Engineer.

I encourage you to learn more about these engineers and others in the pages ahead. I look forward to continuing to build our future, and becoming what we are not yet.

Michele Marcolongo, PhD, PE

Drosdick Endowed Dean of Engineering

Professor of Mechanical Engineering