Dear Faculty, Staff and Students:

I am pleased to name Andreas Cangellaris, dean of the College of Engineering and the M.E. Van Valkenburg Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering, as the vice chancellor for academic affairs and provost designate. His appointment in the new role will be effective on Jan. 16, pending approval by the Board of Trustees.

Dean Cangellaris has earned an international reputation for excellence as an academic leader, a teacher and a researcher. His career here at Illinois has provided him with vast institutional knowledge and deep personal connections with faculty members, staff and students. This combination set him apart from the rest of a very deep pool of candidates and made him the clear choice to fill this critical leadership position.

I want to thank the search committee, chaired by College of Law Dean Vikram Amar, for its careful work in recruiting and evaluating an outstanding selection of applicants and in guiding the search process over the past months. I also want to express my gratitude to each of you in the campus community who offered advice and honest feedback about the final candidates.

Dean Cangellaris has provided critical campus leadership at Illinois around a number of major interdisciplinary initiatives and programs. He was among the core group of faculty and administrators who developed the vision that has led to the new Carle Illinois College of Medicine. He was among the initial collaborators in laying the groundwork and securing the private gift for the Siebel Center for Design that will break ground in the spring of 2018. Dean Cangellaris has been instrumental in developing new research, educational and engagement partnerships that range from Chicago to Singapore to mainland China.

Dean Cangellaris has led the College of Engineering since August 2013. Prior to that, he served as the head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He is internationally recognized for his research in applied and computational electromagnetics and its applications to the signal integrity of integrated electronic circuits and systems. Dean Cangellaris’ research has produced several design methods and computer tools that are used widely in the microelectronics industry. He is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He has received a Humboldt Research Award and the U.S. Army Research Laboratory Director's Coin.

I will be working in consultation with Dean Cangellaris, the engineering leadership team and faculty members along with my leadership team to select an interim dean for the College in the coming weeks.

I want to express my deep appreciation to John Wilkin for his leadership as interim vice chancellor for academic affairs and provost. His collaborative and consultative approach has brought stability and strong leadership to the role while the campus searched for a permanent provost. He has been a strong and thoughtful leader throughout this transition.

Please join me in congratulating Dean Cangellaris and in welcoming him to his new role at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Sincerely,

Robert J. Jones
Chancellor