The Campaign for Engineering Quarterly Report - July 2020

On June 30, the UW’s comprehensive “Be Boundless” campaign officially concluded. As college and departmental committee members, you have been key to our success throughout the campaign, and I am deeply grateful for your advocacy, strategic advice and philanthropy — all of which have propelled the College to new heights in the past decade. Your contributions have helped position us for expanded impact and excellence going forward, even during challenging societal and economic times. We look forward to celebrating the final numbers in early September.

While this issue marks the last of our campaign newsletters, you can expect continued outreach about our strategic planning process, fundraising for the Interdisciplinary Engineering Building, and more. And stay tuned for the fall issue of The Trend in Engineering, which will feature stories of campaign impact across the College.

Thank you, again, for all you do for UW Engineering!

Nancy Allbritton
Dean of Engineering

“With all the Baby Boomers retiring, there aren’t going to be enough people to fill the gaps in the engineering field,” says Tom Delimitros (BSCerE ’63, MSCerE ’66), co-founder of Advanced Material Technologies, LP. He believes that exposing more students to engineering is critical to filling those gaps, expanding opportunities for underserved populations, increasing innovation and growing the economy.

A first-generation Greek American, Tom experienced directly the difference an engineering education can make, and sees his business success as “a direct outgrowth of my degree in what is now Materials Science and Engineering.” As a result, Tom has been involved with his home department since graduation; in fact, he and several other alumni were instrumental in convincing the Ceramic Engineering department to rename itself.

He has also supported the UW over the years through philanthropy and volunteering: he served as the College’s representative on the UW Foundation Board for seven years, and was a Guardian of the Gonfalon for the 2019 graduation ceremony. Now, Tom is focusing his support on facilities: he and his wife Lourdes have made a major gift to the College’s planned Interdisciplinary Engineering Building. He encourages alumni and friends of the UW to join them in helping the College meet its goal. 

BS, Chemical Engineering, BA, Biochemistry, 2020

Recipient of the Boeing ANGLE Scholarship in Chemical Engineering and the Bernice Frank Scholarship in Chemical Engineering

“I chose the University of Washington because I love the welcoming culture the school has for people of different backgrounds and different walks of life. My dream since I was a kid was to apply the beauty and innovation of engineering to medicine.

“My senior year, I served as president of the American Institute of Chemical Engineering (AIChE) for the UW Chapter, and conducted research on nanoparticle transport and toxicity in the brain in the Nance lab. Scholarships allowed me to focus on excelling in my classes with no worries about my living expenses, and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to take full advantage of all that UW had to offer.

“This summer, I will participate in the INSIGHT Pediatric Injury Prevention Training program at Harborview, followed by the two-year Cell Therapy Rotational Program at Celgene. After that I plan to apply to MD/PhD programs with the goal of practicing neurosurgery, researching drug delivery to tumors, and working with Doctors without Borders, to help communities in need around the world.”