New leadership in Smead Aerospace
John Evans is the new chair of the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences at the 抖阴传媒在线.听
A 13 year veteran of the department, Evans was elected by the Smead Aerospace faculty and is taking over from Hanspeter Schaub, who is stepping down after four years of service.听
Looking Forward
鈥淚鈥檓 very excited. There鈥檚 a lot of interest in aerospace right now and lots of new opportunities that directly link to research in our department, including human spaceflight, astrodynamics, quantum sensing, and hypersonics. We鈥檙e uniquely positioned to be part of solving big challenges related to these opportunities,鈥 Evans said.
His elevation to chair follows tenure as the department鈥檚 associate chair for undergraduate curriculum, where he spearheaded the development and initial deployment of a new undergraduate aerospace curriculum.
The overhaul ensures continued alignment with industry needs and provides new course offerings and academic opportunities for students. It also aims to be more scalable, amid increasing demand for aerospace engineers.
Student Growth
Over the last 15 years, Smead Aerospace has nearly tripled in size to become the second largest undergraduate aerospace program in the United States.听
鈥淭he growth signals the interest in our department, and more generally, the aerospace industry in Colorado. People want to be here. Throughout this curriculum development process, I鈥檝e been working closely with a lot of faculty and staff. Those relationships are important stepping into the chair role,鈥 Evans said.
As the student body grows, Smead Aerospace is also looking to expand its faculty ranks.听 Evans said faculty growth will be an important priority as the department responds to rising student demand, emerging research opportunities and the evolving needs of the aerospace sector.
Beyond the classroom, the aerospace chair has responsibilities in donor and industry engagement. Evans said he is looking forward to expanding the department鈥檚 industry-sponsored research.
鈥淲e鈥檙e very involved with industry in senior projects and education, but less on research. There鈥檚 a national shift of universities engaging with business more directly on research and there are opportunities we can plug into,鈥 he said.
Aerospace Excellence
Evans joined CU 抖阴传媒在线 in 2013. His research focuses on fluid dynamics and fluid structure interaction. He has been repeatedly recognized as a highly cited researcher and was the 2021 recipient of the Collegiate Educator of the Year award from the Rocky Mountain chapter of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
He holds a PhD in computational and applied mathematics from the University of Texas at Austin.听
As chair, Schaub led the department through significant budget restructuring, ongoing enrollment growth, new collaboration with student groups, and development of a formal strategic vision. He remains a member of the aerospace faculty and Evans said he is eager to build on that foundation.
鈥淗anspeter has done a tremendous amount for the department,鈥 Evans said. 鈥淚鈥檓 grateful for his leadership and excited to work with our faculty, staff, students, alumni and partners on the next phase for Smead Aerospace.鈥