John P. Coulter, Professor and Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Research at P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science at Lehigh University, has begun his term on the Engineering Research Council’s Board of Directors for 2017-2020.
The Engineering Research Council (ERC), part of the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE), is composed of representatives from engineering colleges, industry, and government. The council discusses issues and exchanges information pertaining to the research activities of ASEE society members.
“My role with the ERC enables Lehigh to keep current with the latest engineering research trends and best practices,” said Coulter. “It also gives Lehigh exposure and influence on a national stage.”
Coulter oversees the operation and continuous enhancement of engineering graduate programs and research throughout Lehigh University. He has served as co-chair of the university’s strategic task force that developed its current vision and implementation plan for enhancing Lehigh’s graduate studies and research. He was appointed interim dean of Rossin College in 2004 and again in 2015.
Coulter is a professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics and has nearly 30 years of teaching and research experience at Lehigh. His research focuses on manufacturing science and intelligent mechanical and material systems at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Coulter’s accomplishments have been recognized through numerous teaching and research awards as well as continuous federal, state and industrial research support throughout his career. He has led projects with faculty in all of the Rossin College’s eight engineering departments and across the university, generated more than $9 million in research and teaching grants, has written more than 185 professional papers and holds several patents. He has taught several thousand undergraduate students and mentored 23 doctoral and 65 masters students. He has also won several national awards for curriculum innovation.
Coulter earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical and aerospace engineering from the University of Delaware and completed his doctoral studies in mechanical engineering at Delaware in 1987. He joined the Lehigh faculty in 1990.
-Story by Mary Anne Lynch '16G