Dean of Drexel Engineering Named 2010 Delaware Valley Engineer of the Year

January 3, 2010 Dr. Selçuk Güçeri, dean of Drexel University’s College of Engineering, has been named the 2010 Delaware Valley Engineer of the Year. Güçeri was unanimously selected by the Engineers Club of Philadelphia on behalf of the professional and technical societies in the Delaware Valley.

“This is a great honor and I’m humbled by this recognition. I look forward to promoting the sciences and engineering with the support of the societies in the Delaware Valley” said Güçeri.

Güçeri has lead Drexel’s College of Engineering for 10 years. During his time at Drexel, Güçeri has increased enrollment from 2,500 to more than 3,600 students, increased the number of American Ph.D. students by 125 percent and he has lead Drexel’s College of Engineering in becoming the largest private College of Engineering in the country. He supports initiatives to promote science and engineering by sponsoring the FIRST Robotics Program regional competition held for grade school students; he partners with the US Navy to run the annual SeaPerch underwater program for middle school students and teachers; he hosts and supports National Engineers Week events at Drexel and he supports the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Teachers, GK-12, IGERT, Department of Education GAANN programs and the PA State Math and Science Partnership.

A native of Turkey, Güçeri received his B.Sc. and M.S. from the Middle East Technical University.  He received his Pd.D. from North Carolina State University. Güçeri’s research is in the field of high performance material fabrication. He developed a laser-assisted manufacturing technology for thermoplastic composites and established a science basis for resin transfer technology. Güçeri is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and is the founding editor of professional journals Thermoplastic Composite Materials and Materials Processing & Manufacturing Science. He has organized two NATO conferences that include NATO Advanced Study Institute (ASI) on Engineered Nanofibrous Materials and NATO ASI on Plasma Decontamination. Güçeri is author/coauthor of over 100 technical publications. He has served as a consultant to organizations in China, Korea and Turkey and as a technical expert for the United Nations. 

Güçeri received the award for his outstanding leadership and remarkable contributions to the engineering profession. Since 1953, the Delaware Valley Engineers Week Council has honored 51 registered professional engineers who have worked in private industry, government and education roles in the greater Philadelphia region.