Final dean candidate for School of Engineering to present Nov. 2
LAWRENCE — Atul Kelkar, the fourth and final candidate for the University of Kansas School of Engineering dean position, will give a public presentation on his vision for the school.
His presentation will take place 9:30-10:30 a.m. Nov. 2 in Burge Union Forum A. The event will additionally be livestreamed, and the passcode is 367292.
Kelkar is the D.W. Reynolds distinguished professor and department chair of mechanical engineering at Clemson University.
A candidate feedback survey will be open for two business days following the conclusion of Kelkar’s visit. Members of the KU community are encouraged to attend the presentation and provide feedback to the search committee.
The survey and a recording of Kelkar’s presentation will be available after the presentation on the search page until the survey closes.
Additional search information, including Kelkar’s CV, is also available on the search page.
In his current role, Kelkar manages the largest department at Clemson University, including personnel, research enterprise, development, curriculum and finances.
Prior to joining Clemson in 2018, Kelkar served as a program director at the National Science Foundation, helping lead the dynamics, control and system diagnostics program in the Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation. He previously worked as the associate chair for research and technology transfer and professor-in-charge of industry research and entrepreneurship for the College of Engineering at Iowa State University.
Early in his career, Kelkar was a faculty member in the Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Energy at Kansas State University.
In addition to co-founding and serving as the chief executive of five technology startups that specialize in areas from smart materials to educational software, Kelkar is a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He is a steering committee member of the World Manufacturing Foundation and serves on the board of directors for Intelligent Manufacturing Systems International.
Within the ASME and IEEE, Kelkar has served as an associate editor for organizational journals and on conference-related program committees, as well as organized and chaired multiple technical sessions at these conferences. He previously received the National Science Foundation Career award and the 1997 NASA Creativity and Innovation Program award.
Kelkar has more than 170 archival publications, including a book titled “Control of Nonlinear Multibody Flexible Space Structures.” He holds six patents or patents-pending.
Kelkar earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Pune in India and his master’s degree and doctorate in mechanical engineering from Old Dominion University.