50 Years Forward

Since it opened its doors, the College of Engineering has continued to earn its reputation as a world-class research institution. Both the college and the world have undergone incredible changes in that short time, thanks to the powerful imagination and drive of engineers. As we look toward what the next 50 years holds, it’s important we acknowledge where we started.

Here are some major engineering moments that moved the college, and the globe, forward.

1969: Neil Armstrong takes one giant leap for mankind with the US moon landing.

1970: The College of Engineering Technology opens, offering studies in Architectural Design & Construction Technology, Electronics Engineering Technology, and Mechanical Engineering Technology.

Temple establishes a Special Technology Educational Program (STEP) for historically underserved students in the Associate Degree Programs, the first of its kind to offer supportive services like special tutoring, academic advising, and personal counseling.

1973: Temple Professors of rehabilitation medicine and biomedical engineering develop the first brain-controlled, fully mobile prosthetic arm.

1975: The College of Engineering breaks ground for its new building in October. Dr. Marvin Wachman, President of Temple University, presided at the ground-breaking ceremony. Building opened on August 7, 1978.

July, 1976: Apple releases its first model, Apple-1. At the time, Apple was headquartered in the garage of Mr. and Mrs. Jobs.

July, 1977: The first MRI, informed by the work of Isidor Isaac Rabi, is performed on a live patient.

1982: Sony releases the first commercial CD player, catalyzing a revolution in music technology.

1983: The Temple chapter of Society of Women Engineers begins with four students, led by inaugural president, Kathleen Jenkins-Mann.

1989: British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee proposes a global information management system called “the World Web Web.”

1993: Temple’s College of Engineering Technology shortens its name: “College of Engineering.”

1998: Keya Sadeghipour is appointed acting dean of the College of Engineering in 1998. He would become dean in 2003.

2009: John E. Tarka Design & Manufacturing Lab is dedicated, donated by his daughter, Lynne Ewell.

2011: Kimberly Bryant founds Black Girls Code, a training program that has taught basic coding to over 3,000 girls from backgrounds that are typically underrepresented in tech.

2016: Temple University reaches R1 Carnegie classification, indicating its top-tier research, activity, and scholarship.

2016: Temple’s Rome campus opens its engineering program, extending Temple’s reach .

2020: The IDEAS Hub opens, an 8,000-square-foot renovation of the College of Engineering’s second floor into a collaborative, interdisciplinary hub.

Bioengineering student Daniel Jovin becomes Temple University’s second consecutive Goldwater Scholar, following physics and mechanical engineering major Marcus Forst, recognized the previous year.

Temple SWE welcomed 111 members, as one of 18 student professional organizations at the college.

The IDEAS Hub opens in 2020.

The IDEAS Hub opens in 2020.