James H. Aylor (EE ’68,’71,’77), Louis T. Rader Professor of Engineering, was named dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science in July 2005. This native son has a lot to say about his alma mater and his plans for its future.

You’re a native of Charlottesville with strong University ties. What is your fi rst memory of the Engineering School?

I grew up in Madison County. My dad taught in the Engineering School for 35 years. He wasn’t an engineer — he had degrees in mathematics and education — but he taught math to the engineering students. I remember coming here as a youngster for an open house. There was a big window above the front door of Thornton Hall, and as we approached the building I could see the top part of a giant robot through the

window. The students had built it, and it fascinated me.

You could have decided to go far away for college. Yet you chose U.Va. and the Engineering School. Why?

I have always loved engineering. As a teenager, I wanted to be an electrical engineer — after all, I was the student who ran the public address system in high school. I was comfortable at U.Va., and that decision made my undergraduate experience positive. When it was time for graduate school, I decided to stay. I had met a young assistant professor named Ed Parrish who was just getting into computer engineering, and he became my mentor. I will always be grateful to the University for hiring me after I finished graduate school so I could help to create the school’s computer engineering program.

How have your experiences prepared you to become dean of the Engineering School?

I know this place — the people, culture, and relationships — so my learning curve has been shorter. I can relate to other alumni. They, like me, have wonderful memories from their days here. I am proud to have this chance to make the School even better. That’s why I view this position as more than a job; it’s an opportunity to improve the value of my degree.

How has your professional life changed?

Well, I’m certainly in more meetings now — and I have much less time for teaching and for my research in complex computer system design. But after 27 years on the faculty and one year as interim dean, I have a pretty good idea of what needs to be done.

What are the Engineering School’s biggest assets?

Our rigorous undergraduate program remains a huge asset. Another is our size. With 2,000 undergraduate and 650 graduate students, 150 tenure-track and 25 to 30 general faculty members, we’re large enough to accomplish some important goals — but not so large that collaboration among academic colleagues is difficult.

Why is collaboration important?

I believe that the most interesting engineering problems are found where academic disciplines intersect. Take engineering and medicine, for example. We are fortunate to have a major teaching hospital at U.Va. We are doing some pretty exciting work with imaging, security and privacy in our biomedical engineering program, which is very interdisciplinary in nature.

What are your goals for the Engineering School?

A marketing initiative to promote student and faculty accomplishments will help improve the School’s stature. We must attract faculty who can make the School even better. We must improve our facilities. While the addition of new buildings for information technology and nanotechnology will boost our programs, we are still limited in what we can do. We must add new facilities and upgrade those that we have.

What are the School’s biggest challenges?

Research is a major issue. I believe we must become more research-focused without undermining our teaching strength. I plan to hire general faculty to teach basic subjects, freeing

tenured faculty to teach engineering courses. Wealready have a number of good, young faculty members; we need to attract more, and to hold on to those we have. Another issue is money. We must raise significant levels of private support. The University will be kicking off a capital campaign next fall, and our fund-raising goal is $300 million.

What do you like best about the job?

I really enjoy meeting with people. Over the next two years I plan to spend two-thirds of my time on the road, talking about the Engineering School and its future with alumni and friends. It’s truly a labor of love, because I share their affection for this place and their conviction that it will continue to educate outstanding engineers.