All About Engineering

National Engineers Week is Feb. 16-22, and UTD is kicking off the week a day early with an event on Feb. 15. So what better time to highlight the key moments in the history of the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science?

The school, which was formed in 1986, is named after UT Dallas co-founder Erik Jonsson, who is pictured from left with UT Dallas President Emeritus Robert Rutford and Cecil Green. Jonsson, Green and UTD’s third co-founder, Eugene McDermott, also started the company that became Texas Instruments.

Pictured is one of the Jonsson School’s first graduating classes. The school started with two departments: computer science, which moved from the School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and electrical engineering.

Dr. Blake Cherrington was the first dean of the Jonsson School, serving in the role until 1995.

The first building along the engineering corridor — ECS North (above) — opened in 1992. ECS South (below) followed in 1994.

The Jonsson School has continued to grow, now comprising six departments and an enrollment of about 7,500 students. The third dedicated engineering building — ECS West — debuted in fall 2018.

Dr. Stephanie G. Adams (pictured above) became the fifth dean of the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science in August 2019. She previously served as a professor of engineering management and systems engineering at Old Dominion University and dean of its Frank Batten College of Engineering & Technology.