Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering | SJSU

Dr. Belle Wei, the Don Beall Dean of Engineering, was appointed dean of the Charles W. Davidson College of Engineering at SJSU in 2002. With nearly 5,000 students, the college is the largest provider of engineers to Silicon Valley companies. It has consistently received top rankings among the nation’s engineering schools offering undergraduate and master’s-level programs.

Dr. Wei has led the college in developing its vision to educate new engineers for the new century, who are technically excellent, broadly educated, and socially responsible. The college advances this vision through initiatives in student success, faculty excellence, and cutting-edge multidisciplinary programs such as biomedical device engineering, green engineering, global experiential learning, and business education for engineers.

Under Dr. Wei’s leadership, the College has initiated a number of global experiential learning programs designed to broaden students’ horizons to an increasingly interdependent and dynamic world. These include the Global Technology Initiative (GTI), the Global Poverty Alleviation/Service Learning Program, and Engineers Without Borders. Since 2004, the college’s GTI program has sent 25 students to Asia each year on a 100%-sponsored, two-week study-tour and industry visit. The study-tour enables the students to witness first-hand the global challenges and opportunities for engineers in the 21st century.

With the support of Silicon Valley industry partners, Dr. Wei has established the Silicon Valley Engineering Scholarships, providing full and partial merit-based scholarships to high-achieving students interested in careers in engineering. She has been instrumental in developing the statewide CSU (California State University) Engineering Academies, which has the goal of increasing the number of California high school graduates who are academically prepared to study engineering in college. She also led special initiatives to increase the number of engineering students from underrepresented groups such as women, African-American, and Latino/Latina students.

During her tenure, the College has doubled its research grants to nearly five million dollars each year. It also doubled its Silicon Valley corporate master’s degree programs from five to ten. In 2007, the College received record-breaking gifts of nearly $19 million dollars. In the same year, Dr. Wei became the first dean in the college's history to hold the honor of an endowed deanship, the Don Beall Dean of Engineering.

Dr. Wei is active in professional and community organizations. She is a member of the Public Policy Committee of the Engineering Deans Council and has served on the program committees of many international technical conferences and National Science Foundation panels. She spoke before Congress on the “Innovation Agenda” aimed to make the U.S. maintain and advance its technological and economic leadership. She also served on the boards of Monte Jade and Vision New America.

Prior to her appointment as dean, Dr. Wei chaired SJSU's Electrical Engineering department from 1998-2002. She began her career at SJSU as an Assistant Professor in EE in 1987. From 1993-1994, she was a visiting associate professor at Stanford University. Dr. Wei holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from UC-Berkeley and an M.S. degree in engineering from Harvard University. Her specialty area is VLSI circuit theory, special architectures, and sensor networks.

She has received many awards including the 2007 EE Times Educator of the Year Award and the 2007 Chancellor Chang-Lin Tien Educational Leadership Award. The Silicon Valley Business Journal awarded her the 2006 Women of Distinction Awards. In 2004, she received a Special Congressional Recognition in Recognition of Outstanding and Invaluable Service to the Community and the Public Service Award from the Committee of 100, Northern California. She also received a U.S. Congressional Commendation in 2003.