- Dr. Mark Tehranipoor will become the dean of UF's Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering on July 20, succeeding Dr. Warren Dixon.
- Tehranipoor has published 700 papers, holds 26 patents, and leads research in hardware and IoT security among other areas at UF.
A new dean has been selected to lead the University of Florida’s Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering.
In an administrative memo sent on Monday, Joe Glover, UF’s interim provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, announced that Dr. Mark Tehranipoor, Sachio Semmoto chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at UF, has been chosen as the next dean of the College of Engineering. He will step into the role on July 20.
Tehranipoor succeeds Dr. Warren Dixon, who stepped down as interim dean on July 1 following a one-year appointment. In April, Dixon was named the next dean of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, with his appointment having begun on July 10.
According to Glover, Tehranipoor, Intel Charles E. Young Preeminence Endowed Chair Professor in Cybersecurity and a UF distinguished professor, served as the founding director for the Florida Institute for Cybersecurity Research from 2015 to 2022 and co-director for the AFOSR/AFRL Center of Excellence on Enabling Cyber Defense in Analog and Mixed Signal Domain (CYAN). Tehranipoor also served as the associate chair for Research and Strategic Initiatives for UF’s ECE department from 2017 to 2019 and as program director of cybersecurity in the College of Engineering from 2019 to 2022.
Currently, Glover said Tehranipoor serves as the co-director for the National Microelectronic Security Training Center (MEST).
Glover said Tehranipoor has published 700 journal articles and refereed conference papers. He has also presented 250 invited talks and keynote addresses.
Additionally, Glover said Tehranipoor has 26 patents issued, 27 pending invention disclosures and has published 20 books – two of which are textbooks. Glover added that Tehranipoor’s projects have been sponsored by over 60 companies and government agencies.
“His current research projects include hardware security and trust, electronics supply chain security, IoT [Internet of Things] security, and reliable and testable VLSI [Very Large Scale Integration] design,” Glover said in the memo.
Tehranipoor arrived at UF in 2015 from the University of Connecticut, where Glover said he worked as a faculty member for nine years. Before this, Tehranipoor was an assistant professor at the University of Maryland in Baltimore.
According to Glover, Tehranipoor holds a doctorate in electrical and computer engineering from the University of Texas at Dallas. He also has a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Tehran in Iran and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Tehran Polytechnic University, also in Iran.
The selection of Tehranipoor to lead the College of Engineering comes roughly two months after UF named Kevin Robert Orr the new dean of the College of the Arts. While these roles have been filled, searches remain active for permanent deans of the College of Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, College of Public Health and Health Professions, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and UF Libraries.
In addition to the colleges mentioned above, the Levin College of Law is also currently without a permanent dean. No information has been released regarding a dean search for the College of Law.
Newly confirmed UF President Stuart Bell has made launching dean and provost searches – the ones not currently active – one of his priorities during his first 100 days on the job.
“… We will move quickly to recruit outstanding leaders for several key positions across the university,” Bell wrote in a letter to students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends on Monday. “Great universities are built by great people, and having the right leadership team in place matters. Throughout my career, I have never worked with a Board of Trustees more committed to helping its university reach the next level. That commitment gives me tremendous confidence in what we can accomplish together.”
Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.