A. James Clark School of Engineering
Encyclopedia
The A. James Clark School of Engineering is the engineering
college of the University of Maryland, College Park
. The Clark School of Engineering is nationally ranked and consistently considered to be among the Top 20 engineering programs in the United States. The school consists of fourteen buildings on the College Park campus that cover over 750000 sq ft (69,677.3 m²). The school's location in close proximity to Washington, D.C.
, Baltimore
, and technology-driven institutions such as NASA
's Goddard Space Flight Center
, gives students extraordinary opportunities to perform state of the art research and propel their entrepreneurial ambitions.
is a 1950 engineering graduate of the university who is chairman and chief executive officer of Clark Enterprises, Inc. Clark's financial gifts to the university were honored, in return, with the name of the Engineering School.
ranked the Clark School as the sixth-best engineering program in the nation. The 2007 U.S. News and World Report placed it at 10th in the nation among public engineering schools and 16th among all engineering schools. Additionally, the Institute of Higher Education and Center for World-Class Universities ranked the A. James Clark School thirteenth worldwide.
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
college of the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
. The Clark School of Engineering is nationally ranked and consistently considered to be among the Top 20 engineering programs in the United States. The school consists of fourteen buildings on the College Park campus that cover over 750000 sq ft (69,677.3 m²). The school's location in close proximity to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, and technology-driven institutions such as NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's Goddard Space Flight Center
Goddard Space Flight Center
The Goddard Space Flight Center is a major NASA space research laboratory established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center. GSFC employs approximately 10,000 civil servants and contractors, and is located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA. GSFC,...
, gives students extraordinary opportunities to perform state of the art research and propel their entrepreneurial ambitions.
History
The engineering school was originally founded in 1894 under the name The College of Engineering at what was then known as the Maryland Agricultural College. In 1949, the school was renamed the Glenn L. Martin College of Engineering and Aeronautical Sciences. In 1994, the college took its current name, the A. James Clark School of Engineering. A. James ClarkA. James Clark
A. James Clark, an engineer and business executive, is chairman and chief executive officer of Clark Enterprises, Inc., headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland...
is a 1950 engineering graduate of the university who is chairman and chief executive officer of Clark Enterprises, Inc. Clark's financial gifts to the university were honored, in return, with the name of the Engineering School.
Reputation
In 2007, The Princeton ReviewThe Princeton Review
The Princeton Review is an American-based standardized test preparation and admissions consulting company. The Princeton Review operates in 41 states and 22 countries across the globe. It offers test preparation for standardized aptitude tests such as the SAT and advice regarding college...
ranked the Clark School as the sixth-best engineering program in the nation. The 2007 U.S. News and World Report placed it at 10th in the nation among public engineering schools and 16th among all engineering schools. Additionally, the Institute of Higher Education and Center for World-Class Universities ranked the A. James Clark School thirteenth worldwide.
Departments
- Aerospace EngineeringAerospace engineeringAerospace engineering is the primary branch of engineering concerned with the design, construction and science of aircraft and spacecraft. It is divided into two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering...
- Bioengineering
- ChemicalChemical engineeringChemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science , and life sciences with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms...
and Biomolecular Engineering - CivilCivil engineeringCivil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
and Environmental EngineeringEnvironmental engineeringEnvironmental engineering is the application of science and engineering principles to improve the natural environment , to provide healthy water, air, and land for human habitation and for other organisms, and to remediate polluted sites... - ElectricalElectrical engineeringElectrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
and Computer EngineeringComputer engineeringComputer engineering, also called computer systems engineering, is a discipline that integrates several fields of electrical engineering and computer science required to develop computer systems. Computer engineers usually have training in electronic engineering, software design, and... - Fire Protection EngineeringFire protection engineeringFire Protection Engineering is the application of science and engineering principles to protect people and their environments from the destructive effects of fire and smoke....
– The A. James Clark School is home to the only fully accredited undergraduate program in the nation and one of two graduate degree programs in fire protection engineering. - Materials Science and EngineeringMaterials scienceMaterials science is an interdisciplinary field applying the properties of matter to various areas of science and engineering. This scientific field investigates the relationship between the structure of materials at atomic or molecular scales and their macroscopic properties. It incorporates...
- Mechanical EngineeringMechanical engineeringMechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
Alumni
The following individuals are alumni of the School of Engineering at the University of Maryland. Graduating class year is denoted in parentheses.- Frederick S. BilligFrederick S. BilligFrederick Stucky Billig was a pioneer in the development of scramjet propulsion.Billig’s primary research was in the area of high-speed, air-breathing propulsion for advanced flight vehicles including pioneering work in external burning and supersonic combustion. He was responsible for highspeed...
(M.S. 1958, Ph.D. 1964) – pioneer of scramjetScramjetA scramjet is a variant of a ramjet airbreathing jet engine in which combustion takes place in supersonic airflow...
technology - Adisai Bodharamik (1971) - Telecommunications entrepreneur, served as Thailand's minister of tourism, commerce, and education.
- Robert BriskmanRobert BriskmanRobert D. Briskman was the Chief Technical Officer and Executive Vice President, Engineering of Sirius Satellite Radio since its founding in 1991 and is currently Technical Executive of Sirius XM Radio....
(1961) – Co-founder of Sirius Radio - Harry Clifton Byrd (1908) - President of the University of Maryland from 1935 to 1954
- A. James ClarkA. James ClarkA. James Clark, an engineer and business executive, is chairman and chief executive officer of Clark Enterprises, Inc., headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland...
(1950) – Chairman and CEO of Clark Enterprises, Inc., benefactor - William P. Cole, Jr.William Purington Cole, Jr.William Purington Cole, Jr. was an American jurist and politician. From 1927 to 1929 and from 1931 to 1942, Cole was a U.S. Congressman who represented the second district of Maryland....
(1910) - Lawyer and U.S. Congressman - Gordon England (1961) – Deputy Secretary of DefenseUnited States Deputy Secretary of DefenseThe Deputy Secretary of Defense is the second-highest ranking official in the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Deputy Secretary of Defense is appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate...
- Michael D. GriffinMichael D. GriffinMichael Douglas Griffin is an American physicist and aerospace engineer. From April 13, 2005 to January 20, 2009 he served as Administrator of NASA, the space agency of the United States...
(1977) – Director of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) - Brian HinmanBrian HinmanBrian L. Hinman is an entrepreneur and investor in high technology businesses and specifically a pioneer in the computer based communications industry. Hinman founded three successful high technology companies; PictureTel Corp...
(1982) – Entrepreneur and educational innovator, benefactor - Jeong H. KimJeong H. KimDr. Jeong-Hoon Kim is a Korean-American electrical engineer and administrator who, since 2005, has served as president of Bell Labs.Jeong Kim was born in Seoul, South Korea. He came to the U.S. from Korea with his father and stepmother at the age of 14. He began school in Anne Arundel County,...
(1991) – President of Bell LabsBell LabsBell Laboratories is the research and development subsidiary of the French-owned Alcatel-Lucent and previously of the American Telephone & Telegraph Company , half-owned through its Western Electric manufacturing subsidiary.Bell Laboratories operates its...
, benefactor - George J. LaurerGeorge J. LaurerGeorge Joseph Laurer developed the Universal Product Code in 1973. As an engineer at IBM he was asked to develop the pattern used for the Universal Product Code....
(1951) – Developed the Universal Product CodeUniversal Product CodeThe Universal Product Code is a barcode symbology , that is widely used in North America, and in countries including the UK, Australia, and New Zealand for tracking trade items in stores. Its most common form, the UPC-A, consists of 12 numerical digits, which are uniquely assigned to each trade item...
(UPC) - Edward A. Miller (1950) – 2005 Charles Stark Draper PrizeCharles Stark Draper PrizeThe National Academy of Engineering annually awards the Charles Stark Draper Prize, which is given for the advancement of engineering and the education of the public about engineering. It is one of three prizes that constitute the "Nobel Prizes of Engineering" - the others being the Academy's Russ...
recipient, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Research and DevelopmentUnited States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and TechnologyThe Office of the United States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology is known as OASA... - James W. PlummerJames W. PlummerJames W. Plummer is a retired engineer who served as the fifth Director of the National Reconnaissance Office. Mr. Plummer was the first Director NRO to come from private industry. He previously served as the Lockheed Corporation program manager for the CORONA and LANYARD imaging systems. Mr....
(1953) – 2005 Charles Stark Draper Prize recipient, Director of the National Reconnaissance Office - Judith Resnick (1977) - Astronaut killed aboard the Challenger space shuttle
- Millard TydingsMillard TydingsMillard Evelyn Tydings was an attorney, author, soldier, state legislator, and served as a Democratic Representative and Senator in the United States Congress from Maryland.-Early life:...
(1910) - U.S. Congressman and Senator
Benefactors
The following individuals are notable benefactors, but are not alumni of the A. James Clark School of Engineering.- Robert FischellRobert FischellDr. Robert Fischell is a physicist, inventor, and holder of more than 200 U.S. and foreign medical patents. His inventions have led to the creation of several biotechnology companies. He worked at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory full time for 25 years, and part time for an...
– Medical instruments inventor, earned an M.S. in physics from the University of Maryland in 1953. - Glenn L. Martin – Aerospace industry pioneer