Strategic Vision
In September of 2020, the Yale Engineering Strategic Planning Committee — led by Dean Jeffrey Brock — was charged to chart the bright future for the School of Engineering & Applied Science. The committee was asked questions like:
- How is Yale Engineering positioned to address the global societal challenges of 2020 and beyond?
- How will Yale Engineering enhance the diversity and excellence of our campus?
- How can Yale Engineering be a portal for Yale to industry, entrepreneurship, and innovation?
The report they developed incorporates feedback from around Yale and provides recommendations for how Yale Engineering can grow its influence and deepen its engagements for maximum impact.
We will continue to target our efforts in three broad areas:
Focus on Innovation, Inclusion & Excellence
Yale Engineering is actively building a culture where innovation, inclusion, and excellence reinforce each other through strategic investments and structural changes. From establishing new leadership roles and innovation spaces to implementing data-driven DEI initiatives, we are creating an ecosystem that transforms breakthrough research into real-world impact while fostering an inclusive community that drives innovation forward.
Deepen & Broaden Strategic Research
We believe that transformative research requires both deep expertise and bold collaboration. Through strategic investments in artificial intelligence, materials science, mathematical modeling and scientific computation, and robotics, we're creating an ecosystem where groundbreaking discoveries emerge at the intersection of disciplines, supported by state-of-the-art facilities and cross-university partnerships.
Build Structures for Partnership & Impact
Yale Engineering is expanding its capacity for external engagement and impact through strategic initiatives in education, industry partnerships, and research support. From launching innovative joint degree programs with Yale's other professional schools to creating new frameworks for industry collaboration, strengthening interdisciplinary faculty appointments, supporting postdoctoral innovation, and enhancing research development infrastructure, we are building robust pathways to amplify the real-world impact of our work.
Focus on Innovation, Inclusion & Excellence:
Launch of the Roberts Innovation Fund
Responding to the opportunities identified in our strategic vision for deepening Yale's innovation agenda and expanding entrepreneurial engagement, the Roberts Innovation Fund was established in 2022. The Fund embodies Yale Engineering’s commitment to transforming breakthrough research into real-world impact by providing faculty with targeted funding, mentoring, and strategic support for commercializing their inventions. To date, $2 million in funding and more than $3 million in cloud computing credits have been provided to more than 30 projects, accelerating the translation of Yale Engineering innovations into solutions that benefit society.
Establish a Culture of Innovation
Advancing Yale Engineering’s commitment to fostering a dynamic innovation ecosystem, we appointed our inaugural Deputy Dean for Innovation and Entrepreneurship to the Dean's Office leadership team. This key appointment strengthens our ability to catalyze entrepreneurial activities across the school.
The establishment of a dedicated innovation hub on the Yale Engineering campus, where Yale Ventures maintains an active presence, creates a physical nexus for collaboration and entrepreneurial activity. Building on these foundations, Yale Engineering has partnered with Yale Ventures to lead an NSF I-Corps grant for the university, further expanding our capacity to transform research into impactful innovations.
Advance Excellence through DEI
We recognize that our impact is greatest when we bring together diverse perspectives and experiences. Building on our longstanding commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, we have developed and implemented a comprehensive plan with measurable goals and transparent accountability. This data-driven approach ensures we continue to build an environment where diversity generates innovation and strengthens excellence across our research, teaching, and broader impact. Track our progress and engage with our initiatives here.
Deepen & Broaden Strategic Research:
Artificial Intelligence
Advancing our strategic commitment to shape the future of AI, Yale Engineering has expanded its expertise through strategic faculty appointments while fostering collaborations that span disciplines and departments. The launch of our AI Seed-Funding Grant Program in 2024 exemplifies our approach to nucleating expertise across Yale, bringing together diverse perspectives to explore how AI systems can benefit society while addressing critical technical and societal challenges.
Materials Science
Building on our deep strengths in materials research, the establishment of a new Materials Science Department in 2024 creates a foundation for transformative discoveries across fields from quantum computing to sustainable energy.
The launch of our graduate program in Quantum Materials Science & Engineering advances our commitment to training the next generation of scientists and engineers in this rapidly evolving field, while fostering collaborations across disciplines and departments.
Mathematical Modeling & Scientific Computation
Building on Yale's distinguished legacy in applied mathematics, the new Applied & Computational Mathematics Department establishes a dedicated home for this foundational discipline within Yale Engineering. Now housed in the Leet Oliver Memorial Building, the department amplifies our ability to tackle complex challenges across engineering and science through advanced mathematical modeling and computational approaches, fostering collaborations that bridge theoretical insights with practical applications.
Robotics
The launch of our Robotics for Humanity Initiative exemplifies our distinctive approach to engineering challenges, connecting technical innovation with societal impact. This vision is taking physical form through two key developments: a dedicated space will be allocated on the new lower Hillhouse campus, and the Yale Engineering Tech Tank, a one-of-a-kind, state-of-the-art research facility that supports, among other things, the study of amphibious robots. These facilities enable our researchers to pursue robotics innovations that address critical challenges in healthcare, environmental monitoring, and human-robot interaction.
Build Structures for Partnership & Impact:
Develop New Joint Degree Programs with Other Yale Professional Schools
Advancing our commitment to innovative cross-school partnerships, we have launched three new degree programs with Yale's professional schools. The Personalized Medicine & Applied Engineering Master’s Degree with the School of Medicine opens new pathways at the intersection of engineering and healthcare, while our 4+1 Master's program (available to Yale Engineering graduating students) and new Business-Technology Joint MBA/MS Degree with the School of Management equip engineering students with the business acumen to drive technological innovation.
These programs exemplify our vision of creating educational pathways that leverage Yale's broader strengths to prepare leaders who can address complex societal challenges.
Partner with Industry
Collaboration with industry is critical to bringing innovations from the lab to the market. We have developed partnerships with leading companies across various sectors to form a vital bridge between academic research and real-world application, accelerating the pace of innovation and expanding the impact of our work. These strategic relationships create bridges between academic discovery and real-world impact, fostering integrated research projects, industry-sponsored research initiatives, teaching collaborations, and career pathways for our students.
Foster Joint Faculty Appointments
We have strengthened our interdisciplinary ecosystem through strategic joint faculty appointments in partnership with other Yale Professional Schools and Institutes.
Our recent hires, in partnership with Yale's Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Wu Tsai Institute, Energy Sciences Institute, Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture, and Yale Quantum Institute, demonstrate our commitment to building bridges across disciplines to amplify our collective research impact.
Provide Interdisciplinary Opportunities for Postdocs
In tandem with Yale Ventures, we launched the Yale Engineering Innovation Fellows Program in 2024 to create a new pathway for postdoctoral researchers to translate their technical expertise into market impact. This selective program provides fellows with $50K in salary support while participating in an intensive commercialization bootcamp, connecting them with industry mentors and equipping them with essential business and operational skills. Our inaugural cohort of five fellows, representing diverse engineering disciplines from computer science to biomedical engineering, expands the next generation of technical leaders who can navigate both scientific innovation and business development.
Optimize for Large Center Grants
Responding to the call to expand Yale Engineering’s major research initiatives, we have strengthened our research support infrastructure through two key appointments: Our inaugural Deputy Dean for Research and our first Engineering Research Development Specialist. Working in concert with Yale's expanding Research Development Office, this enhanced support structure positions our faculty to successfully compete for and lead large-scale, center-level grants that can propel entire fields of research.
Committee Members
Members
Jeffrey Brock
Chair, Dean of the School of Engineering & Applied Science; William S. Massey Professor of Mathematics
Menachem Elimelech
Roberto C. Goizueta Professor of Chemical & Environmental Engineering and the Environment
Anna Gilbert, outside member
John C. Malone Professor of Mathematics and Statistics & Data Science
Anjelica Gonzalez, ex officio
Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering; Tsai CITY Faculty Director
Sohrab Ismail-Beigi
Professor of Applied Physics, Physics, & Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science
Rajit Manohar
John C. Malone Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Sarah Miller, Staff
Assistant Dean for Science and Engineering
Laura Niklason
Professor of Anesthesiology & Biomedical Engineering
Corey O’Hern
Professor of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science, Physics, Applied Physics & Graduate Program in Computational Biology & Bioinformatics
Vladimir Rokhlin
Arthur K. Watson Professor of Computer Science and Professor of Mathematics
Nisheeth Vishnoi
A. Bartlett Giamatti Professor of Computer Science
Vincent Wilczynski, Staff
Deputy Dean, SEAS and James S. Tyler Director of the Center for Engineering Innovation & Design