Kevin Parker
Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Kevin J. Parker is the Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS). He oversees the direction and growth of engineering programs, including research, education, outreach, and development programs.
In 2005, Dean Parker was named as the William F. May Professor of Engineering. The Professorship was established in 1980 to honor William F. May, a University of Rochester Chemistry alumnus, University Life Trustee, and member of our School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Visiting Committee. Upon its establishment, then-University President Sproull stated that it "permanently associates Bill May's name with the University, with the eminent faculty who will occupy the chair, and with a high quality of teaching and research. Moreover, the Professorship will be linked with the engineering disciplines that are keys to meeting many of the nations' present and future challenges."
Dean Parker received a B.S. degree in engineering science, summa cum laude, from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1976. Graduate work was completed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with M.S. and Ph.D. degrees received in 1978 and 1981 for work in electrical engineering with a concentration in bioengineering. Dean Parker is a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Radiology, and Bioengineering at the University of Rochester, where he has held positions since 1981. From 1992 to 1998, he served as Chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering, as well as University Associate Vice Provost for Research and Graduate Affairs. In 1998, Dr. Parker was named Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. For the past 10 years, he has also served as Director of the Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound.
Dean Parker has received awards from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (1979), the Lilly Teaching Endowment (1982), the Whitaker Foundation-Biomedical Engineering Grant (1983), the IBM Supercomputing Competition (1989), the World Federation of Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (1991), the Eastman Kodak Company Outstanding Innovation Award (1991), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Award for New Technical Concepts in Electrical Engineering (1992), and the Joseph P. Holmes Pioneer Award from the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) (1999). He is a member of the IEEE, the Acoustical Society of America, and the AIUM; he was named a fellow in both the IEEE and the AIUM for his work in medical imaging, and the ASA for his work in acoustics. In addition, he recently completed a three-year term on the Board of Governors of the AIUM.
Dean Parker is an expert in medical imaging, linear and nonlinear acoustics, and image processing; his teaching has earned him plaudits from undergraduates, and his research has been cited as among the world's best by his peers. In the field of ultrasound imaging, Dr. Parker developed a new system aimed at detecting minute tumors of the liver, prostate and spleen. The research describing the system was cited as the best paper in 1990 by the World Federation of Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology. More than a dozen companies have licensed several of the 13 patents he holds for his innovations.