In the true spirit of an engineer, Krishnendu “Krish” Roy has always relished the role of a builder—whether that’s assembling an internationally renowned bioengineering center like the one he led prior to coming to Vanderbilt or bringing together experts from a vast array of disciplines to solve what he calls “grand societal challenges.”

So, when presented with the opportunity to build on the strong foundation of Vanderbilt’s School of Engineering, Roy was intrigued.

“Initially, I wasn’t sure if it was the right time or the right place. But then I talked to the provost and chancellor, and heard their visions for the School, and it really seemed like the right fit,” Roy said. “You get a few opportunities in your career to grow and make an impact. I saw this as one of those times and I so took the leap.”

And leap, he has. Following Roy’s appointment as the Bruce and Bridgitt Evans Dean of Engineering and University Distinguished Professor on August 1, 2023, he quickly began exploring areas where Vanderbilt can have a major—and multidisciplinary—impact. Key among those are health and medicine, climate, data science and transportation.

Simply producing academic research around these topics is not enough for Roy. He sees Vanderbilt and the School of Engineering as natural conduits where research, translation, innovation, education and workforce development can coalesce to have a larger, more positive societal impact.

“In my previous role, I brought together researchers from differing backgrounds and disciplines to find effective treatments for cancer and infectious diseases,” Roy said. “I want to facilitate at Vanderbilt similar large centers of discovery and innovation—with engineering partnering closely with scientists, healthcare experts, policy and regulatory experts, businesses, educators, and other key stakeholders.”

Roy was recruited from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he directed three centers conducting pathbreaking biomedical research. He succeeds Philippe Fauchet, who led the School of Engineering through significant and strategic growth for 11 years.