Texas Southern Names Engineering Research Leader and Innovator as New Dean of College of Science, Engineering and Technology

HOUSTON, Feb. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Texas Southern University (TSU) has selected longtime engineering and research leader Mark Weatherspoon, Ph.D., as the next Dean of the University's College of Science, Engineering, and Technology (COSET) following a nationwide search.

Weatherspoon is the first dean hired under President J.W. Crawford III, who assumed leadership of TSU in June.

"Dr. Weatherspoon's experience as an innovative leader, strategic thinker, researcher, scholar, and leader will take the college to a new level of achievement for our students and the University. I expect great things from Dr. Weatherspoon," said President Crawford.

Weatherspoon joins TSU from the joint Florida A&M University-Florida State University (FAMU-FSU) College of Engineering (COE) where he has served as a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE). He brings over 10 years of experience in various administrative roles in higher education, including serving as the inaugural Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs and Academic Innovation, ECE Associate Department Chair, and ECE Director of Undergraduate Programs all at the FAMU-FSU COE.

Dr. Weatherspoon has maintained an active research lab and has served as research director or co-advisor for 17 graduate students (awarded 4 Ph.D., 11 M.S.; currently advising 2 Ph.D.) and more than 20 undergraduate students. He has authored or co-authored over 65 publications (journal articles, conference papers, etc.). His research expertise is in modeling and simulation at the device, circuit and system level. His scholarly activities have been funded by more than $5.5 million in sponsored research awards from various government and commercial organizations, including the National Science Foundation, National Security Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Naval Research, Northrup Grumman Foundation, and Intel Corporation.

Dr. Weatherspoon was the founding director of the innovative NSF FREEDM Research and Education Program (REP) from 2008 to 2020, which promoted student research through experiential learning. In the summer of 2023, as director and principal investigator, he launched a new innovative $1.5 million REP across three STEM-based colleges/schools with support from Northrup Grumman.

In industry, Dr. Weatherspoon worked with Raytheon Systems-ECI Division in St. Petersburg, FL, designing RF/microwave low noise amplifiers and had several research visitations to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Microwave Metrology in Boulder, CO, and Raytheon-RF Components in Andover, MA where he performed noise temperature measurement techniques.

Dr. Weatherspoon received B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering (EE) at the FAMU-FSU COE via Florida State University and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of South Florida.

He will assume the role of Dean effective March 10.

Kerrigan Williams
713-313-7421
832-253-8482 [cell]
[email protected]

SOURCE Texas Southern University