Editor’s Note: Since 2017, Dean and Professor JoAnn S. Lighty has led the College of Engineering through transformative growth and the unprecedented challenges of a global pandemic. Lighty will step down as dean on Jan. 17, 2025, and has agreed to take on assignments as a Special Assistant to the Provost, focusing on STEM initiatives and opportunities within the CHIPS and Science Act, as well as a transition back to the Department of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering. She sat down with Boise State’s Jamie Fink for a conversation to reflect on her tenure as dean.
Question: What do you see as the college’s biggest impacts during your tenure as the dean?
Answer: “During my tenure, I am proud to have led the COEN through a period of transformative growth in enrollment, graduates, and research. Together, we built exceptional teams and infrastructure, tripling our research expenditures to fuel groundbreaking solutions for global challenges. At the same time, we’ve steadfastly prioritized student success, culminating in the creation of the Micron Student Success Center. We have expanded scholarships, enhanced learning opportunities, and fostered an inclusive environment where every student can thrive. This impact could not have been done without the dedication of our faculty, staff, students, and partners.”
Q: How important are the ties you’ve made between COEN and its industrial partners for research and education, and how did you try to strengthen those ties during your tenure?
A: “COEN was founded over 25 years ago. Our college’s current successes are a direct result of early industry support. During my first semester at Boise State, I met with every Industry Advisory Board member to discuss how we could further strengthen our board and its impact on faculty and students. Over the past seven years, we expanded the board, transformed biannual meetings into full-day events, and established subcommittees focused on membership, advocacy, and experiential learning. Additionally, we’ve grown our department boards. These collective efforts have significantly strengthened our college and its future. Together we’re ensuring that COEN students gain relevant, practical skills that complement their classroom learning.”
Q: How important are alumni to COEN’s success?
A: “As a relatively young college, our alumni are crucial to our future success. These graduates will continue to represent our college throughout their lives, giving back through networking, mentoring, and hiring future COEN students. Whether they’re in Idaho or around the globe, I hope we maintain strong connections with our alumni to foster a tradition of supporting our alma mater for the next 25 years and beyond.”
Q: Where do you think COEN goes in the next 10 to 20 years in terms of growth or student success? Are we setting a good trajectory for those goals now?
A: “The next decade holds immense promise for our College of Engineering. Building upon our 25-year history of innovation, we’re poised for significant growth and student success. However, realizing our full potential requires strategic investments, particularly in our world-class faculty. We must increase our faculty and staff support to expand student capacity and research impact. It’s not just about numbers – it’s about the transformative opportunities we can create for students, our university, our communities, and our future. Leveraging our strong industry and government partnerships, I’m confident we can achieve this vision in the years to come.”
Q: What are you going to miss most about being the dean?
A: “What I’ll miss most about being dean is the privilege of building strong relationships with our students, alumni, donors, staff, and faculty. Learning their stories, celebrating their successes, and supporting their impactful journeys has been incredibly rewarding. These relationships have shaped my time as dean and provided invaluable insights into our collective potential. I’ll cherish these personal connections most as I transition from this role.”
Q: What do you see as the college’s biggest achievement during your tenure as the dean?
A: “My proudest achievement as dean is our unrelenting commitment to improving educational access and student success. The Micron Student Success Center is a testament to this commitment, providing a dedicated, student-centered space for all to thrive personally and academically. Additionally, securing grants like the Broadening Participation in Engineering grant reinforces our dedication to serving all Idahoans who aspire to pursue degrees from COEN and Boise State. I’m incredibly proud of the foundation we’ve laid for future generations of engineers, computer scientists, and construction professionals.”
Q: What are you looking forward to the most in your next transition phase?
A: “As I transition to the next chapter, I look forward to welcoming Dean Fleischer and supporting her as she assumes leadership of our exceptional college. Ensuring a smooth transition is important to me, and I’m committed to providing her with the insights and resources she needs to build on our successes and find fulfillment in this role. I’m confident that Dean Fleischer will bring a distinct vision to the college and drive impactful advancements for years to come.”
Dean Lighty spearheaded significant impacts in student success and scholarship, relentless faculty innovation, and more during her tenure. Here are some highlights:
- Thanks to Catherine and Bob Palmer, COEN ESTABLISHED ITS FIRST ENDOWED CHAIR – the William H. McMurren Endowed Chair in Construction Management. Anthony Perrenoud was first appointed to the role in 2024.
- COEN’s undergraduate and graduate programs climbed into the U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT RANKINGS, for the first time in program history.
- Since 2017, COEN faculty members earned 15 NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION CAREER AWARDS supporting early-career researchers.
- With support from corporations as lead sponsors, the MICRON STUDENT SUCCESS CENTER was established delivering a student-centered approach to student success, hiring its inaugural director in 2023.
- COEN established TWO NEW DOCTORAL DEGREE PROGRAMS in Biomedical Engineering and Engineering, providing more faculty the ability to contribute to COEN’s growing research.
- COEN more than TRIPLED AWARDED SCHOLARSHIPS to nearly $600,000 per year in the last seven years.
- The Idaho State Board of Education approved a NEW ONLINE DEGREE PROGRAM and the SCHOOL OF COMPUTING reflecting the considerable growth since the college was founded in 1997, as well as of what COEN will be in the future.
- Under Dean Lighty the college HIRED 42 NEW FACULTY members across its nine departments and schools.
- Under Dean Lighty’s leadership, 21 FACULTY MEMBERS RECEIVED PROMOTION to full professor and 35 RECEIVED TENURE.
- The Idaho Associated General Contractors AWARDED THE 19TH MEMBER SERVICES AWARD to Dean Lighty for her dedication and impact on the construction industry in Idaho. Lighty was the first non-member and non-staff recipient of the award from Boise State University.
- The $50 million MICRON CENTER FOR MATERIALS RESEARCH opened at Boise State in 2020. State-of-the-art research lab spaces and classrooms are included among its 97,000 square feet.
- In 2017, the Engineering Building was renamed the RUCH ENGINEERING BUILDING, in honor of Boise State’s fifth president Charles Ruch.