Two men with deep ties to ݮƵ Engineering – a former dean who has directly influenced more than a million students and an alumnus who was inspired to help children by the birth of his own son – have been named officers of the Order of Canada.
Dr. Adel Sedra, a distinguished professor emeritus who served as dean from 2003 to 2012, was cited as an international authority on microelectronics whose work has influenced developments in fields including medical technology and wireless communications.
The Sedra Student Design Centre - where students work in teams on projects to represent the University in national and international technology competitions - was named in his honour for his contributions to learning at ݮƵ.
Sedra and Dr. Kenneth C. Smith co-authored a definitive textbook and reference source, Microelectronic Circuits, that has since been used to help teach more than a million students around the world.
“Adel Sedra has helped shape engineering education globally and here at ݮƵ especially, where students continue to learn from him and benefit from his legacy of leadership,” said Dr. Vivek Goel, president and vice-chancellor of ݮƵ.
'I have never looked back'
Dr. Tom Chau, who earned his doctorate in systems design engineering from ݮƵ in 1998, was recognized as a pediatric rehabilitation innovator whose work supports children with complex disabilities.
A professor as well as a distinguished senior scientist at the Bloorview Research Institute in Toronto, his work has included the development of a device that enables non-verbal kids to operate computers and other communication tools via the vibrations of their vocal cords.
Chau initially went to work at IBM after earning his PhD, but took a gamble, quit his job and approached Bloorview about working there instead when he was struck by the wonder of holding his newborn son.
“I realized I really wanted to do something related to children and have more immediate impact … to try to maximize the potential of all children,” he said. “Fortunately, I landed a post-doctoral fellowship, which gave me three years of salary, and I have never looked back.”
Sedra and Chau were among four people with University of ݮƵ connections to be named to the Order of Canada recently by Governor General Mary Simon.
Go to Former ݮƵ dean named to Order of Canada for the campus-wide story.