ODU hires new engineering dean

Old Dominion University announced Tuesday it has hired Jeffrey Fergus to be the next dean of the Batten College of Engineering and Technology, starting Aug. 10.

Fergus is currently the associate dean for undergraduate studies and program assessment in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering at Auburn University in Alabama, where he’s worked as a faculty member since 1992. He will succeed Kenneth Fridley, who was named ODU’s vice president for research in January.

A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Fergus has been principal investigator and co-principal investigator on studies involving materials for gas turbine engines, batteries, fuel cells and chemical sensors, and has served on boards for The Electrochemical Society and The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society, as well as chairing an engineering accreditation commission at the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology.

“It was a great experience leading the Batten College of Engineering and College, and I am excited to see the college continue to thrive under Dr. Fergus’ leadership,” Fridley said in a statement. “I am confident that his experience in growing academic programs and supporting research will promote the college’s success in serving its students, faculty and staff.”