UA ENGINEERING FACULTY MEMBER NAMED DEAN AT ALMA MATER

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Kraig J. Olejniczak, Ph.D., P.E., a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Arkansas, has been named dean of engineering at Valparaiso University. He assumes the new position August 1.

Olejniczak received a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Valparaiso, and a master of science degree in electrical engineering and Ph.D. from Purdue University. He joined the UA faculty in 1991, where his teaching and research interests have been in the power engineering field. Most recently, he has led the effort within the college's High Density Electronic Center (HiDEC) in power electronic miniaturization and packaging.

"I have been very fortunate to work with outstanding faculty, staff and students during my tenure at the University of Arkansas," Olejniczak said. "I am anxious to apply all that I have learned at the U of A to help make Valparaiso University's College of Engineering the best non-doctoral undergraduate engineering institution in the country."

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Power Engineering Society named Olejniczak the 1998 Walter Fee Outstanding Young Engineer under the age of 35. The IEEE is the largest technical professional society in the world with more than 377,000 members in 150 countries. Olejniczak's innovation in teaching was recognized by the IEEE Power Engineering Education Committee when the group awarded him the 2000 First-Prize Paper Award for his work, "Collaborative Distance Education in Power Engineering."

He has also received the National Science Foundation Research Initiation Award, the College of Engineering Phillips Petroleum Outstanding Faculty Award, and numerous electrical engineering departmental research and teaching awards.

He is the author of chapters in two editions of "The Transforms and Applications Handbook" and is currently completing two chapters for the Edison Electric Institute's "Handbook for Electricity Metering," tenth edition. He is also completing two books with his colleague, Dwight F. Mix, UA professor emeritus of electrical engineering.

Located in northwest Indiana, Valparaiso University is a private institution consistently ranked as one of the best comprehensive universities in the Midwest by U.S. News & World Report in it's annual rankings of "America's Best Colleges." The publication has also selected the Valparaiso College of Engineering as one of the top 20 undergraduate-only engineering schools in the nation.

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Kraig Olejniczak, professor, electrical engineering, (479) 575-2248, kjo@engr.uark.edu

Mary-Ann Bloss, director, engineering publications, (479) 575-6016, mab4@engr.uark.edu