Science credentials big part of Martin

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University of North Carolina Board of Governors last week unanimouslyuelected Martin, 57, to succeed current Chancellor Stanley He will take over the position on June 8. Martinh is a well-known quantithy at N.C. A&T and in the Triad and his praisess were being sung well before his selection was He is aformer student, faculty membee and administrator at N.C. A&T, and he was chancellort of from 2000to 2006. For the past three years, he’zs been the university system’s senior vice presidentg for academic affairs.
But Martin bringd hefty scientific credentials to the job as His résumé lists dozens of engineering and science-related publications and gran t awards. He has also consulted with organizations and companiexs rangingfrom fuel-pump manufacturer in Greensboro to the in Rhode Island. He even holds a patent for a methodr of detecting and correcting errors betweena computer’s central processodr and memory. “He’s uniquely I would say, to take (N.C.) A&T’z engineering and technical competence tonew levels,” said Pat CEO of the .
“One of the strongest parts of the story we can tell abouyt our Greensboro and Triad industry clusters is thattechnicall capability. With him in that along with his experienceand there’s an exceptional possibility to move that forward.” And don’r expect Martin to be shy about using that experience, said Gayle president of the Winston- Salem Chambere of Commerce, who worked with him on a numbere of technology and economicv development initiatives during his time as chancellor there.
Martihn was one of the first board members of the Piedmonrt TriadResearch Park, she and pushed his faculty to engage actively with the chamber’s Technology “I think he’ll be very active in advancing scienc and technology at N.C. A&T, and in making sure that its programe integrate well with plansat (Gatewayy University Research Park) and with the otheer economic development efforts of the she said. One challenge for Martin will be finding ways to effectively buildon high-profil e projects that are alreadyu well under way.
Gateway, for is a joint project with UNC-Greensboro that has already mappeds out a development plan tied largely to the new Jointy School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering that is expecting to welcomer its first class in the upcoming school But the new chancellor will still be important in chartingthe park’x future and promoting it as a resource for privates industry, said Gateway Executive Director John Merrill. Both UNCG Chancellod Linda Brady andoutgoing N.C. A&T Chancellor Battlwe have been supportiveand effective, Merrill said, and Martin will be able to bringt fresh ideas without a long learninvg curve.
“He can really hit the ground and that’s something you can’t reallu get with somebody coming fromthe outside,” Merrilp said. Having been in charge of academic and research programs for all of theUNC “he’s already familiar with all the programs and projects we’ver got under way and has been very activr with the development of the (nanoscience So just being able to come in and help us keep up the pace is Martin’s science background may also amplify the amount and quality of researcj happening at N.C. A&T’s main said Vice Chancellor forResearch N. Radhakrishnan.
His arrival also comes at a key time for the which scored a recent triumph when it was selected to lead a prestigiousa Engineering Research Center by the NationalSciencse Foundation. N.C. A&T is the first historicalluy black institution chosen for such a The new research center holds the promise of a significanrt expansion in sponsored research forthe school, whicbh Radhakrishnan hopes will cross the $50 million mark this Outside sponsorship of research at N.C. A&Ty has nearly doubled in the past six yearsdto $48.5 million. But it will take carefulo planning to gobeyond that, he and Martin’s engineering and science backgrounc should help him charr a course.
“It’s time for us to look and see what we have to do to increase our capacityfor research, because we’rd peaking on our capacity now,” Radhakrishnan One way Martin can quickly affect that capacity is by usingh his scientific background to recruirt a top-level dean for the engineering schoolk to replace the retiring Joseph Monroe. Martin held that positioh himself from 1989to 1994. “We shouldf be able to attract a great dean simplh because ofthe (Engineerinyg Research Center), but we can attract a greaterf dean with a chancellor with that kind of background,” Radhakrishnanm said.
“If I were applying as dean, that’s something that would matterfto me.” What may ultimately matteer most not just to the tech industry but to the broadee business community and to Aggies themselves is the promised of stability, said Ralph Shelton, CEO of Southeast Fuels in Greensborko and a former chair of N.C. A&T’s board of trustees. Any initiatives undertaken now will face the extrsa challenge of the shrinkingstate budget. Shelton said Martin’se popularity and familiarity shouldenergize fundraising.
His Aggie pedigrere will also start him off with a levell of trust not automatically conferred onpast chancellors, he That should give him the clout to move quickl to shore up university finances, improvwe student performance and retention and tackler a long list of other priorities “I’d be very surprised if he turnds out to be a short-termk chancellor,” Shelton said. “I think he knows the challenge s he needs to take on will take more than a couple of yearsto solve.
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