Rensselaer added a new member to the faculty as the school began its first day of the spring semester. Professor Jeffrey Trinkle has been appointed as the new chair of the Computer Science Department.
Trinkle is assuming the position that has been left vacant for almost two years, since the previous chair, Joe Flaherty, was named dean of the School of Science. In the interim, Professor David Spooner served as acting chair of the department.
Trinkle, who is new to the RPI community, is very excited to begin his tenure as the department’s chair.
“I feel honored to have been given the opportunity to lead the CS Department and excited to be a big part of planning the future of RPI in its endeavor to become a world-class institution of higher learning,” said Trinkle.
According to Trinkle, the opportunity to work with top-flight faculty members in a world-class research institution was among his reasons to accept the position.
“The fact that five (now six) of the young CS faculty members received prestigous CAREER awards from NSF was important in the decision,” he said.
The Rensselaer Plan added another reason for him to accept the appointment. The challenge of executing The Plan triggered his interest in “experiencing RPI’s transformation while The Plan is carried out.”
Dean Flaherty remarked, “We are most fortunate to have a scholar of his stature join us at Rensselaer. I look forward to Professor Trinkle leading computer science to the next level of distinction.”
“Professor Trinkle is a leading computer scientist who has been conducting research in the general area of robotics,” Flaherty continued. “His expertise will complement other activities at Rensselaer and enable us to strengthen our programs in this area.”
Among his plans for the department, Trinkle intends “to initiate one or more high-profile research projects and/or centers to improve the educational experience of our students and to improve RPI’s reputation across the nation and throughout the world.”
“Whatever changes are required to most effectively achieve these goals, I will do my best to affect,” he said.
Trinkle was educated at Ursinus College and Georgia Tech. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania with his thesis in robotic grasping and the automatic planning of dexterous manipulation tasks. Before coming to Rensselaer, he was the principle member of technical staff at Sandia National Laboratories.
Besides teaching, Trinkle is also extensively involved in academic writing and conferences in areas involving robotics and rigid body dynamics. His interest lies in rekindling academic discussions between mathematicians, scientists and engineers. “The vigorous dialog of 75 years ago has dropped off significantly,” he said.
