by Avinash S. Patil
The formation of a new department in Biomedical Engineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) is currently under discussion. Currently, the bioengineering department at SEAS is made of of a bioengineering committee, headed by Professor Edward Leonard. The proposed plans would give bioengineers their own department, as well as space and funding to carry out specialized teaching and research. There has been discussion among the top administrators in the University, including President Rupp and Provost Cole, towards this goal. In fact, President Rupp articulated the need for such a department in a report signifying the importance of bioengineering in the 21st century, and Columbia's own need for such a department in the field. In addition, Dean Galil of SEAS also approved of temporary plans to create the department. However, the formation of the department still needs the approval by various members of the faculty of SEAS.
The new department is to be made up of three tracks: Bio-Mechanics, Quantitative Physiology and Cellular Engineering, and Medical Imaging. The chief organizer of the new department will be Dr. Van Mow, a professor of Mechanical Engineering currently engaged in biomechanical research at the College of Physicians and Surgeons. He is the designated director of the new department. Professor Edward Leonard will be the vice director of the department. There is also an ongoing search for the faculty who will teach in the department. There is a search for two faculty members from the Chemical Engineering department and the Mechanical Engineering department. Also, there is also a search for eight other professors from outside of Columbia.
According to Professor Leonard, the bioengineering department is now "oversubscribed, but underserved." Currently, some bioengineering students at SEAS plan to go to medical school after graduating from the program. It is hoped that with the increased resources of the new department, more students will decide to stay in the bioengineering field to make breakthroughs in engineering, rather than simply becoming joining the many ranks of medical students. It is also hoped that the new program will draw high school students to SEAS, as there are many young students interested in the field of bioengineering throughout the country.
The proposed department is to be funded by both the Whitaker Foundation and Columbia University. The Whitaker Foundation is a private, nonprofit organization that primarily supports research and education in bioengineering. Columbia University plans to match the $1 million Whitaker grant with $1.2 million. The proposed department expects to receive continued funds from Whitaker, as well as federal funds, through the upcoming years. Columbia aims to join first-rate bioengineering programs at schools such as University of Califormia San Diego, Case Western Reserve, RPI, University of Pennsylvania, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Johns Hopkins.
The proposed department will also have access to the vast resources of Columbia's School of Physicians and Surgeons. For example, the medical school currently has a very powerful (4.23 Tesla) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine. Also, many bioengineering students will be able to take courses in the medical center at the Health Science campus.
Other details of the proposed department have been tentatively released. Eight positions for new tenure track faculty are being sought. Currently, there are ongiong searches for two of the candidates. They foresee the bioengineering department becoming a major new recruitment factor, bringing in as many as 50 additional freshmen per year. Although the exact location of the department is yet to be decided, it will be part of SEAS and cover approximately 13,000 square feet.