Dr. Zorica Pantic, President, Wentworth Institute of Technology
Abstract
In order to ensure that American-trained engineers are well-prepared to compete in the marketplace, the model for engineering education must be updated to meet the demands of a global economy. Educators must now consider growing diversity within the student body and workforce, and the resulting impact on teaching and learning styles. Increasingly, methods of service delivery must also be adapted to cross geographic, language, cultural and political boundaries. The composition of work teams is changing to include governmental, corporate and multi-country partnerships and collaborations. Dr. Pantic’s talk will explore the considerations that educators must factor into curricula decisions to compete in the evolving marketplace.
Biographical Sketch
Dr. Zorica Pantic is the fourth, and first female, president in Wentworth's century-long history, and the only woman engineer to lead an institute of technology in the U.S. She leads and manages efforts related to 3,600 students and 375 faculty and staff, and oversees the institute's operating budget of $70 million and endowment of $80 million.
During her 30 years in academia, Dr. Pantic has been an agent of change and a champion for excellence and diversity. As the engineering dean at the University of Texas at San Antonio (2001-2005), she spearheaded the university's efforts to become a flagship university in the state of Texas and a top-tier research university in the U.S. She developed three doctoral programs and one master's program, doubled the number of faculty, increased research funding tenfold to $7 million, and raised more than $5 million through strategic partnerships. As the director of the School of Engineering at San Francisco State University (1997-2001), she helped the school climb into the country's top 50 undergraduate programs and cooperated with fellow California State University engineering deans on a $10-million California Workforce Initiative.
Dr. Pantic's leadership has been recognized with honors and awards from numerous organizations including the 2003 Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award by the San Antonio Women's Chamber of Commerce, and the 2006 Women of Excellence Award by the Boston National Association of Women Business Owners.
Dr. Pantic earned her bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Nis in Serbia.
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