For
any of us who receives a quarterly report from TIAA on retirement
funds or an investment report from the likes of Merrill Lynch
or Fidelity, the words "economic slowdown" have taken on greater
meaning this past year. Is the boom economy bust or is this just
a downturn, and if so, how much further down do we go? If those
with retirement funds are wondering and affected, so are those
about to enter the job market. The article "An Economy in Turmoil"
examines the effects of retrenchment in high tech and what it
can mean to new engineering graduates. Can students still expect
multiple offers and signing bonuses, and if so, or even if not,
what are the options for the Class of 2001? The article also takes
a look at how corporations like Cisco, Boeing, and Accenture are
being creative with programs and packages to mitigate morale-killing
layoffs.
With the
economy shifting, together with the fact that today's economy
is global, the question arises about the major role that foreign
talent plays on U.S. campuses. In "Looking Inward for I.T. Workers,"
we examine the brain drain in developing countries and ask if
the brain gain the U.S. has been experiencing is necessarily a
good thing.
Our profile
this month features Denice Denton, the first female dean of a
major research university. Her mission at the University of Washington
is to improve the engineering education experience, particularly
for women and minorities. I think you will agree that she is a
remarkable individual.
"A First-Class
Partnership" is the second in a series about the launching of
the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering. The school's administrators
have managed to be quite innovative in dealing with what could
have been a major setback at the new engineering school. Olin
opens not with the initial blueprint of a traditional freshman
class of 100, but with a pioneering group of 30 students called
"Olin partners," who will join faculty and administrators in helping
to shape the higher education start-up. Even Olin was surprised
at its success in attracting young men and women who could go
anywhere. The average SAT score for Olin partners is 1450, and
there are students who chose Olin over MIT and Harvard.
I don't
think it's giving away too much if I say the last line of the
article "Mission Almost Impossible" on the trials and triumphs
of running an engineering department advises, "...if you are asked
to be a department head, run. But if you're caught, make it a
good life experience." This tell-it-like-it-is story concludes
that the crucial post of department head or department chair may
be the most rewarding, challenging-- and yet thankless-- job on
American university campuses today.
This issue
of Prism, I believe, provides a particularly provocative
and thoughtful group of articles of current interest. I also call
to your attention that Prism continues to undergo improvements
in design and layout. The publications department's art staff
and editors work hard to make your magazine ever more readable,
attractive, and useful. I welcome your comments and suggestions.
