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2025 in review: Breaking new ground

Every year brings change. But this year? This year brought transformation. Our college marked the retirement of our longstanding dean, Ian Robertson. We welcomed a new leader whose vision is rooted in collaboration, inclusion and bold ideas. And we began building that future—literally. We broke ground on a new engineering building that will redefine how we teach, learn and innovate. It’s more than steel and glass; it’s a promise to generation of students, and to our great state.

A new era

While work continues to pave the way for our new Phillip A. Levy Engineering Center, the college is charting a bold path for the future, led by new Grainger Dean Devesh Ranjan (MSME ’05, PhDME ’07).

National leaders

Our faculty members are experts in their fields—and you don’t just have to take our word for it! They collected some of the nation’s top honors in 2025.

Building bridges

Through new corporate engagement efforts launched in 2025, we’re accelerating research in strategic areas, translating it more quickly into commercial application, and bolstering workforce development to benefit students, industry and the state.

In the news

Badger Engineers share their expert perspectives with the wider world, appearing in hundreds of media outlets each year on topics ranging from AI to energy systems. Here are just a handful of the places they’ve been featured.

  • The Conversation | Robots run out of energy long before they run out of work to do − feeding them could change that | Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor James Pikul
  • The Conversation | The hidden cost of convenience: How your data pulls in hundreds of billions of dollars for app and social media companies | Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Professor Kassem Fawaz and PhD student Jack West
  • The Washington Post | These buildings use batteries made of ice to stay cool and save money | Mechanical Engineering Assistant Professor Allison Mahvi
  • Popular Science | Swap your boiler for a money-saving heat pump | Mechanical Engineering Assistant Professor Allison Mahvi
  • Bloomberg | An old approach to AI gains new attention after DeepSeek | Electrical and Computer Engineering Assistant Professor Grigorios Chrysos
  • Newsweek | Your smartwatch could carry a hidden health risk | Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Christy Remucal
  • Aerospace America | A ‘fluffy’ trap: These researchers might have figured out why planetary rovers keep getting stuck | Mechanical Engineering Professor Dan Negrut
  • PBS News | Young photographer documents disappearing salt marshes to inspire action | Civil and Environmental Engineering student Soren Goldsmith (worked with Professor Steven Loheide on the project)
  • NBC | Plastic cutting boards: Useful kitchen tool or breeding ground for microplastics? We asked experts | Civil and Environmental Engineering Assistant Professor Haoran Wei
  • Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists | Sébastien Philippe on winning the MacArthur ‘genius’ grant, nuclear war and academic freedom | Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics Assistant Professor Sébastien Philippe
  • IEEE Spectrum | Experts weigh in on $500B Stargate Project for AI | Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Professor Line Roald
  • Wisconsin Watch | Here’s what the return of nuclear power to Kewaunee County means for Wisconsin’s workforce | Nuclear Engineering and Engineering Physics Professor Paul Wilson and Assistant Professor Ben Lindley