Lohr College of Engineering announces 3 endowed positions

Three new endowed faculty positions have been announced by the Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering at South Dakota State University. 

That brings to six the number of endowed positions in the college.

Endowed faculty receive a salary stipend and additional funding for their research. Endowed faculty positions have become a point of emphasis at SDSU because of the financial resources, prestige and stability they bring. They range from endowed professors to endowed chairs to endowed deans.

The college’s newest endowed faculty members are Jianlin Qi and Tim Hansen, both in electrical engineering, and Christine Larson, mathematics, who has a joint appointment with the Van D. and Barbara B. Fishback Honors College.

Jianlin Qi

Qi and Hansen are both supported by the Harold C. Hohbach Endowment, which has supported an endowed faculty member since 2011 and has now grown to the point it can support two faculty members.

Qi, an assistant professor, arrived at SDSU Aug. 22 from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, where he researched electric power systems with an aim toward making the power grid more resilient and sustainable.

Qi received his doctorate in electrical engineering from Tsinghua University, China, in 2013 and then did postdoctoral studies at University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Argonne National Laboratory, Chicago, from 2013 to 2017.

“This endowment is one of the main reasons I selected to join SDSU and I am honored to receive this recognition. SDSU has a long tradition of power systems studies and is full of great opportunities to grow and dream big. I am looking forward to contributing to this tradition by providing unique opportunities for students. This endowment is critical and will help me greatly to grow the program,” Qi said.

Tim Hansen

Hansen, an associate professor, has been at SDSU since 2015 and in 2019 became the first SDSU faculty member to be named teacher of the year by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, the world’s largest technical professional organization. In 2020, his alma mater, Milwaukee School of Engineering, named him Graduate of the Last Decade for significant accomplishments achieved at an early stage of his career.

Hansen’s research is focused on computer applications to electric power and energy systems and markets, applying high-performance computing concepts to solve large-scale societal problems.

His most recent award is a four-year, $750,000 grant from the National Science Foundation called “STORM: Data-Driven Approaches for Secure Electric Grids in Communities Disproportionately Impacted by Climate Change.”

He is leading an SDSU group that includes seven other engineering faculty to create new tools and grow research infrastructure, leveraging data science to improve electrical grids and develop more resilient communities across the United States.

Hansen said, “It is my great honor to accept the Harold C. Hohbach Endowed professorship. Since joining the department in August 2015, I saw first-hand the transition of the endowment from Dave Galipeau to Qiquan Qiao and finally to Reinaldo Tonkoski. The impact these three faculty members have made before me within the department, college and university using the prestigious name of Harold C. Hohbach has left a deep impact on me and I will humbly continue this strong line of EECS leaders under the same endowed name.”

Harold C. Hohbach

Hohbach was a 1943 electrical engineering graduate and Palo Alto, California, patent attorney who died at his Atherton, California, home Dec. 28, 2017. He grew up in the Depression studying by kerosene light in the family’s Plankinton farm house and remained loyal to his alma mater even though most of his adult years were spent in the Silicon Valley.

Hohbach spent his career in intellectual property which included extensive litigation and obtaining patents for electronic, semiconductor and medical device fields throughout the world. He was also active in real estate in Palo Alto.

Hohbach was honored as an SDSU Distinguished Engineer in 2001.

Christine Larson

Larson, a professor, has been on the SDSU math faculty since 1992 and is the inaugural holder of the Kemp Endowed Professorship  in Honors Mathematics.

Larson has been teaching the honors calculus sequence since 2018. She served two years as an Honors faculty fellow providing leadership to faculty across the university on educational approaches. She mentors honors students within the classroom, on special projects and as they develop presentations for regional and national honors conferences.

Larson said, “I am honored to be selected as the inaugural Kemp Endowed Professor in Honors Mathematics. I was fortunate to have Dr. Kemp as an Honors mentor, and I knew I had big shoes to fill when he retired. I took over his Honors calculus classes.

“I look forward to working with all Honors students as we continue to advance SDSU’s reputation as a leader in Honors education.”

Rebecca Bott-Knutson, dean of the Honors college, said, “This represents an important evolution in the development of the Fishback Honors Colleges as most of the leading honors colleges in the nation have faculty lines within the college.” 

Sanjeev Kumar, dean of the Lohr College of Engineering, said, “This one of kind endowed faculty appointment is a perfect example of unique collaboration between the Lohr College of Engineering and Fishback Honors College. We sincerely appreciate the generous support provided by Daniel C. and Michele A. Kemp for this position.”

Dan and Michele Kemp

Dan Kemp taught higher education for 51 years, 42 at South Dakota State, before retiring after fall semester 2018. He taught the honors calculus sequence at SDSU for 25 years. A pioneer in honors education within mathematics, Kemp received the inaugural Award for Innovation in the Honors Classroom from the National Collegiate Honors Council in 2016.

Michele Kemp served as the administrative assistant for the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences for 29 years.

Bott-Knutson said, “Dan and Michele have long been beloved members of our honors family at SDSU. Dan’s approaches to honors education were inspiring. I took delight in watching him and his students present at the national conference, only to leave people hungry for more. The audience would quite literally get up from their seats and follow Dr. Kemp and his students out of the room to find a space where they could continue to seek their insights for hours.

“Dan and Michele’s gift will solidify South Dakota State University and the Fishback Honors College as the national leader in honors mathematics for years to come.” 

Ceremony set for Sept. 21

Hansen, Qi and Larson as well as at least seven other new endowment holders will be honored at the University Leadership Honors ceremony Sept. 21 at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center.

An endowed position is the highest academic award that a university can bestow on a faculty member or academic leader, with the fund lasting as long as the university exists. It serves as an honor to the named holder of the appointment and an enduring tribute to the donor who establishes it.

The endowments at SDSU range from $1 million to $5 million and generate an annual flow of revenue that can be used to support the endowment holders’ area of responsibility—from funding graduate students to research support, equipment and travel.