Dave Allen, the Norbert Dittrich-Welch Chair in Chemical Engineering, will serve as interim chair effective August 1st as former chair Delia Milliron has accepted the appointment as Anthony C. Lembke Department Chair of chemical engineering at University of Michigan, effective August 25, 2025.
Dave possesses the administrative experience, technical excellence, and international standing to lead the department until a 4-year chair is appointed. He will continue his work in the classroom through courses ‘Design for Environment’ and ‘Sustaining a Planet,’ and as interim chair will step into ChE 102: Introduction to Chemical Engineering. This first-year course introduces curious students, through a series of industry and alumni cameos, to the expanding realm of possibilities a chemical engineering degree affords.
I look forward to widening and deepening engagement with students and the greater Texas ChE community that I have forged while at UT, and look forward to meeting many of you in person, in the classroom and at events like Alumni Weekend and our annual AIChE Annual Meeting Reception.
Dave came to the Forty Acres more than 30 years ago from UCLA where he served as department chair. At UT Austin, he served for 25 years as the director of the Center for Energy and Environmental Resources and currently serves as co-director of the newly formed Center for Energy and Environmental Systems Analysis. He has developed environmental educational materials for engineering curricula and for the University’s core curriculum.
Dave has authored seven books and more than 300 papers, primarily in the areas of urban air quality, the engineering of sustainable systems, and the development of materials for environmental and engineering education. In 2017 he was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering for contributions to improving air quality and for development in the education and practice of sustainable engineering. In 2025 Dave received UT’s 2025 President’s Research Impact Award for his team’s ability to perform extensive measurements of methane emissions from oil and gas production sites.
Please join us in welcoming Dave Allen in this expanded role.
