Engineering Education Leader Aims To Break Down Barriers

Engineering was an unlikely career path for Dr. Nandika D'Souza, who recently joined The University of Texas at Dallas as associate dean of strategic initiatives in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.

Engineering was considered an unconventional field for girls when she was growing up. Her father's death when she was 5 left her family impoverished. Nonetheless, her mother, who worked as an administrative assistant, encouraged her daughter to study engineering in college as a path to financial security. It was in a statics class, which involved the design of structures such as cellphone towers, that engineering captured her imagination.

"I seek to break down barriers that enable people to transform their economic trajectory. Engineering was that path for me."

Dr. Nandika D'Souza, associate dean of strategic initiatives in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science

"The world of shapes in structures appealed to me," D'Souza said. "The idea that one could quantify artistic structures was so creative, I committed fully to engineering."

D'Souza has spent her career as an instructor, researcher and administrator focused on expanding access to engineering education for students from all backgrounds. She spent 28 years at the University of North Texas (UNT), where she held faculty and leadership positions, most recently as associate dean for academic affairs for the College of Engineering. She was named a UNT Regents Professor in 2015, a fellow of the Society of Plastics Engineers in 2015 and a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in 2023.

"The work Nandika has done over the course of her career to date has illustrated a fervent belief in the value of encouraging growth and opening students' eyes to the possibilities academia can offer," said Dr. Stephanie G. Adams, Jonsson School dean and Lars Magnus Ericsson Chair. "That passion, coupled with her visibility in the mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering communities, and her advocacy for broadening participation in engineering and computer science, makes her an exemplary fit for this position."

In her new role, D'Souza will work to build flexible pathways for community college students and working professionals to engage with the academic strengths of the Jonsson School, ensure that every student, faculty and staff member is valued, and monitor the school's progress attaining benchmarks for excellence and national recognition. As a professor of mechanical engineering, D'Souza will also teach and continue her research in sustainable high-performance products.

D'Souza's mother, who died in 2019, was able to see her daughter's engineering career advance over the years.

"Mum was very proud and would find a way to mention it every single day of her life to any stranger or person she met," she said. In her mother's name, D'Souza established the Mina Prakash Kapadia Service in Engineering Award at UNT for staff members emulating her mother's values of positivity and excellence.

At UT Dallas, D'Souza said she is excited to create paths for others to become engineers, as so many did for her.

"I seek to break down barriers that enable people to transform their economic trajectory," D'Souza said. "Engineering was that path for me, and I am aware how unlikely it was for me to become one, were it not for a proactive mum, encouraging family, and faculty and community mentors."

D'Souza earned her bachelor's degree in polymer engineering from the University of Poona (now the Savitribai Phule Pune University) in India, a Master of Science in mechanical engineering from Auburn University and a PhD in mechanical engineering from Texas A&M University.