1/31/2017 Rebecca Nash, ECE ILLINOIS
Written by Rebecca Nash, ECE ILLINOIS
David C. Munson Jr., former Robert C. MacClinchie Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Illinois, was introduced as the Rochester Institute of Technology's 10th president.
Munson was introduced to the community by RIT Board Chair Christine Whitman on January 25, 2017 at the Gordon Field House, located in the heart of the university's campus. He will begin his duties as president on July 1, 2017.
“We believe we have identified the ideal leader to continue RIT’s rise to prominence. A leader who shares our commitment to outstanding career-focused education, research and innovation, love of both technology and the arts, and a desire to help students from widely diverse backgrounds succeed,” Whitman said in her opening speech. “This is a leader who has a vision for the future of RIT that will both unite and excite the entire RIT family from around the world.”
The president will oversee one of the nation's top research universities that has over 18,700 students and 121,000 alumni from all over the world. He is responsible for $73 million in sponsored research and an endowment upward of $750 million.
After graduating with his PhD in electrical engineering from Princeton in 1979, Munson joined the ECE ILLINOIS faculty as the Robert C. MacClinchie Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. After teaching for 24 years at Illinois, he moved on to serve two five-year terms as the Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering at the University of Michigan. He is also an entrepreneur, co-founding InstaRecon with Illinois Yoram Bresler, Founder Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering. The company developed and commercialized a suite of fast algorithms for tomographic images.
“The naming of a new president is an exciting time for RIT students, faculty and staff, as well as our alumni, family and friends around the world. Dr. Munson has an impressive record of accomplishments and brings skills, expertise and experience that will greatly benefit this university and further propel RIT as one of the great global universities," current RIT President Bill Destler told the audience.
This story can originally be found at Rochester Institute of Technology's University News.