The College of Computing inspired me. … It’s a unique opportunity.
Andy Duan loves his work. Each day, he is excited to begin another day.
“As a professor, I feel I can make a difference. Over the years, I can see the impact I’ve made on my students. Sometimes just one simple word or sentence can impact lives,” he says.
Duan is the new Department of Computer Science chair and professor. He joins the College of Computing from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Missouri at Columbia, where he was a faculty member and director of the Computer Graphics and Image Understanding Lab. Duan replaces Linda Ott, now emerita chair of the computer science department; Ott remains in the department as a professor.
“I am extremely excited to have Andy join our team,” says Dennis Livesay, Dave House Dean of Computing. “The Department of Computer Science is doing really well right now, with significant growth in enrollment, faculty, and externally funded research. I’m confident that the future will be even brighter under Andy’s leadership.”
“The College of Computing inspired me,” Duan says. “As one of only a few academic colleges in the nation dedicated to computing, it’s a unique opportunity.”
Duan holds a PhD in Computer Science from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. His research follows two tracks: computer vision, machine learning, and biomedical imaging; and computer graphics, virtual reality, and augmented reality. He is the principal investigator of research projects with active awards exceeding $1 million, and over $16 million in total external funding.
Duan’s leadership philosophy is based on a consensus-building approach. He says, “I believe that the faculty and chair need to work together to develop successful curricula, attract top-quality students and faculty, generate external research funding, and work with alumni to develop new opportunities for our students.”
“As department chair, I will work to build a strong team focused on a sustainable and strong program and pursue efforts to enhance the standing of the department among our peers,” Duan says.