From understanding the origin of the University to developing alternative fuels, ASU is certainly on its way to becoming a household name as one of the most ambitious research institutes around.
Although we could have taken a breather from being innovative and basked in our solar energy glow for a bit, it’s no quick-fix walk in the park to recruit and hire some of the best names out there. And the recent hiring of Werner Dahm as a mechanical and aerospace engineering professor has New American University written all over it.
Not only is Dahm the first director of Security and Defense Initiative at ASU, but he also brings with him his reputation as the Pentagon’s Chief Scientist of the U.S. Air Force. His mission at ASU, which will be heavily funded by the government, will take a unique approach to national and global issues from a multi-faceted angle that combines the goals of multiple disciplines. Dahm’s ASU Directory bio says he will focus on the “legal and policy implications and the root socio-economic causes of security issues.”
If anything will help unify the visions of ASU students and give a more practical feel to an education being touted as “mill-like” or “mass-produced,” this institute will.
The only downfall is that the institute isn’t expected to be up and running for another five years.
There’s no telling where the state of the nation will be in five years, but we’re excited about the addition nonetheless.
The Security and Defense Initiative serves as a great example of the long-term goals and research-based branding that President Michael Crow has really pushed for at ASU.
The institute is expected to research border issues like arms and drug trafficking as well as other security issues that will most likely be top-secret but rake in millions upon millions of research dollars, which is always a good sigh of relief for a University that is trying to boost its reputation and research output in the face of budget crunches.
More importantly, Dahm’s institute will bring another masthead of tackling global as well as domestic issues and get along perfectly with its other pioneering bedfellows.
The University is already earning a name for itself through cutting-edge projects like the Global Institute of Sustainability, the Biodesign Institute, the Flexible Display Center and the Mars Space Flight Facility. While they all have different missions, each project has the common goal of solving complex issues.
It’s important to study these topics and even more important to build a foundation of understanding between disciplines. The more interdisciplinary research that we can encourage, the better ASU undergrads, grads and profs can serve the public, which is what the whole vision of the New American University is all about.
