Betsy Dell appointed Paul A. Miller Professor for 2010-2012

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College of Applied Science and Technology

Betsy Dell

Faculty member Betsy Dell has recently been named the Paul A. Miller Professor in the College of Applied Science and Technology at Rochester Institute of Technology. She assumes the new role starting this summer.

The Paul A. Miller Professor endowed chair was established in 1981 and is named after RIT president Paul Miller who served the university from 1969-1979. As part of her academic and administrative responsibilities, Dell will focus on the growth of the college’s Women in Technology program.

“Women in Technology has played a pivotal role in increasing the retention of our women students in the college,” says Dell, an assistant professor in the manufacturing and mechanical engineering technology and packaging science department. “I look forward to growing the program with an emphasis on recruiting a more diverse group of incoming students into the engineering technology programs.”

A member of the RIT faculty since 2006, Dell mentors first- and second-year students in the program and serves as undeclared engineering technology program chair. In 2009, RIT was one of 12 colleges to be awarded a Campus Action Project grant from the American Association of University Women to alleviate the barriers for young women entering and staying in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. Dell led the effort to acquire the grant and has organized numerous educational and mentoring activities for the project, most recently an Equal Pay Awareness activity at the college.

Dell participates in the college’s K-12 outreach programming, working with local schools to assist with diversity initiatives in science and technology education. She received the “Volunteer of the Year” award this year from the Fairport School District Technology program for her work with assisting with the development of single-gender technology classes.

Dell is director of the Women in Technology Steering Committee and is an active member of the American Society of Engineering Education, the Society of Plastics Engineers and the Society of Women Engineers. Her research areas include characterization of biodegradable plastics and environmental consideration in materials selection for production design.

Dell succeeds Maureen Valentine who was named the College of Applied Science and Technology associate dean this past academic year.