Up Front by Lango Deen
ldeen@ccgmag.com UDC JOINS HBCU COUNCIL Dr. Ben O. Latigo
UnivErSiTy of ThE DiSTricT of colUMBia School of Engineer- ing & applied Sciences
Location: Washington, DC
Degrees: B.S. : civil engineer- ing, computer science, electri- cal engineering, fire science administration, information technology, mechanical engi- neering
M.S. : computer science, elec- trical engineering
Website:
http://www.udc.edu/ academics/soe
Black Colleges and Universities now has 14 members, with the University of the District of Columbia’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences being the latest to join. With its admis- sion to this group, UDC also joins the ranks of AMIE (Ad- vancing Minorities’ In- terest in Engineering), which represents a co- alition of industry and government agencies, as well as the ABET- accredited historically black schools of engi- neering. For them, a diverse workforce is a competitive advantage and an essential busi- ness strategy.
T Recently, Dr. Ben
O. Latigo, dean and professor of the Uni- versity of the District
of Columbia’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences since 1999, spoke to USBE&IT magazine about what it means to be a new kid on the block of HBCU Schools of Engineering. He also spoke about the school’s newly minted engineering graduates and upcoming academic programs. Below are excerpts from the conversation.
USBE&IT: What does it feel like being the new kid on the block?
Dean Latigo: It’s exciting. It presents a great deal of opportunity. I just wish the [5-year] process had taken a shorter time, because UDC is one of the original science HBCUs with engineering accreditation. So it feels like be- ing a new kid, and yet we’re one of the oldest. Our ABET accreditation dates back to 1974, so in terms of programs engineering accreditation, we’re one of the oldest.
USBE&IT: What are the benefits of joining the HBCU Engineering Deans Council?
Dean Latigo: One of the benefits is being a member of
www.blackengineer.com USBE&IT I Deans Edition SPRING 2010 9
New technologies are pivotal to our national advancement. Matt Roman Photography
he Council of Engineering Deans of the Historically
AMIE [is that] as a member we can now be approached as a bloc by organizations and corporations that want to work with HBCUs. In this bloc, each one of us brings certain areas of expertise. In my school, in addition to the traditional engineering programs, I also have computer science and information technology. So we bring that to the community of all 14 HBCUs. Collectively, and as collaboration, you can tap all of us.
USBE&IT: It was graduation day at UDC on May 8. How many engineering majors were among the 575 degrees awarded at the 2010 Commencement Exercise?
Dean Latigo: UDC restructured this year. And some [2- year applied science and technology associate degree] pro- grams have gone to the community college [of the District of Columbia].
But for the academic year, we graduated a total of about 70 engineering and computer science majors. Some will go to graduate school. Many will seek immediate employ- ment. At this point they are employed not only lo- cally but all over the Unit- ed States…About 20 of our graduates have been employed at the U.S. Pat- ent Office over the years. We also have a number of graduates employed at Lockheed Martin and
HBCU students are more likely to pursue STEM ma- jors than African American students at other colleges. Matt Roman Photography
also at Pepco. In the IT industry, we have a number of our graduates supporting the District of Columbia government. We also have some with the U.S. Corps of Engineers. We’re now trying to build special relationships with employers in the area.
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