Dear Members of the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science Community,
I am delighted to announce the reappointment of Jeff Brock, Zhao and Ji Professor of Mathematics, as dean of the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science (SEAS) for a second term of five years, effective July 1, 2024. This renewal recognizes Dean Brock’s success in advancing the school’s strategic vision, deepening interdisciplinary research priorities, and optimizing organizational structures for partnership and impact.
In July 2022, SEAS began to operate as an autonomous school in the university with a distinct faculty, led by Dean Brock, who has since overseen the implementation of the university’s historic investments in it. Part of a broader effort to strengthen science and engineering, these investments will provide for the hiring of over thirty new faculty positions and revitalize the school’s physical infrastructure. Planning for the state-of-the-art Physical Sciences and Engineering Building on Science Hill is well underway, and we have unveiled plans for several other major construction projects supporting SEAS. Lower Hillhouse projects will serve as a hub for the school at the heart of Yale’s campus, underscoring an ambition for it to be integrally engaged with the broader university.
Under Dean Brock’s leadership, SEAS has made significant progress in enhancing the breadth of faculty research and teaching. For example, responding to the surge in demand for fields such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, he expanded the Computer Science department. His efforts led to welcoming eighteen new faculty members, nearly doubling the department’s size.
In the past several years, Dean Brock has focused on philanthropic work that provides faculty with a primary or secondary appointment in the school and access to support for the development of novel, scalable solutions to real-world problems. The Roberts Innovation Fund, one such new initiative, supplies awardees with seed grants, mentorship, and access to entrepreneurial leadership. The fund also represents a historic partnership with Yale Ventures and a unique new way for schools to engage with technology transfer.
Dean Brock has placed similar emphases on collaboration across campus and additional learning opportunities for students and early-career investigators. He has developed new joint MS degree programs with the Schools of Environment, Management, and Medicine, as well as a new postdoctoral fellows program with the School of Architecture.
I would like to thank all those who informed the reappointment review process with their thoughtful comments about Dean Brock. Many of those who contacted me spoke of his deep commitment to enhancing the school’s culture of collaboration and his wise leadership during a period of transition and growth. I also received numerous notes about Dean Brock’s efforts to build stronger ties between SEAS and industry by cultivating strategic conversations with leaders from different sectors, including the Dean’s Invited Speaker Series.
I am grateful to Dean Brock for his bold vision for SEAS, his strong record of accomplishment, and his willingness to continue serving in this role. Please join me in congratulating him on his reappointment and in thanking him for his hard work on behalf of the school and Yale.
Sincerely,
Peter Salovey
President
Chris Argyris Professor of Psychology
Announcement - Reappointment of Dean Jeff Brock
Dear Members of the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science Community,
I am delighted to announce the reappointment of Jeff Brock, Zhao and Ji Professor of Mathematics, as dean of the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science (SEAS) for a second term of five years, effective July 1, 2024. This renewal recognizes Dean Brock’s success in advancing the school’s strategic vision, deepening interdisciplinary research priorities, and optimizing organizational structures for partnership and impact.
In July 2022, SEAS began to operate as an autonomous school in the university with a distinct faculty, led by Dean Brock, who has since overseen the implementation of the university’s historic investments in it. Part of a broader effort to strengthen science and engineering, these investments will provide for the hiring of over thirty new faculty positions and revitalize the school’s physical infrastructure. Planning for the state-of-the-art Physical Sciences and Engineering Building on Science Hill is well underway, and we have unveiled plans for several other major construction projects supporting SEAS. Lower Hillhouse projects will serve as a hub for the school at the heart of Yale’s campus, underscoring an ambition for it to be integrally engaged with the broader university.
Under Dean Brock’s leadership, SEAS has made significant progress in enhancing the breadth of faculty research and teaching. For example, responding to the surge in demand for fields such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, he expanded the Computer Science department. His efforts led to welcoming eighteen new faculty members, nearly doubling the department’s size.
In the past several years, Dean Brock has focused on philanthropic work that provides faculty with a primary or secondary appointment in the school and access to support for the development of novel, scalable solutions to real-world problems. The Roberts Innovation Fund, one such new initiative, supplies awardees with seed grants, mentorship, and access to entrepreneurial leadership. The fund also represents a historic partnership with Yale Ventures and a unique new way for schools to engage with technology transfer.
Dean Brock has placed similar emphases on collaboration across campus and additional learning opportunities for students and early-career investigators. He has developed new joint MS degree programs with the Schools of Environment, Management, and Medicine, as well as a new postdoctoral fellows program with the School of Architecture.
I would like to thank all those who informed the reappointment review process with their thoughtful comments about Dean Brock. Many of those who contacted me spoke of his deep commitment to enhancing the school’s culture of collaboration and his wise leadership during a period of transition and growth. I also received numerous notes about Dean Brock’s efforts to build stronger ties between SEAS and industry by cultivating strategic conversations with leaders from different sectors, including the Dean’s Invited Speaker Series.
I am grateful to Dean Brock for his bold vision for SEAS, his strong record of accomplishment, and his willingness to continue serving in this role. Please join me in congratulating him on his reappointment and in thanking him for his hard work on behalf of the school and Yale.
Sincerely,
Peter Salovey
President
Chris Argyris Professor of Psychology