President Raj Echambadi Welcomes Back Illinois Tech Community
New University Leader Highlights Vision in First Communication to the Community as the Fall 2021 Semester Begins
TRANSCRIPT
Raj Echambadi: As we embark on a new academic year, I extend a warm welcome to each of you.
I'm honored to have the opportunity to lead such an extraordinary institution founded on the noble mission of providing quality technological education for all.
When minister Frank Wakeley Gunsaulus called for support to build a school in which students from diverse backgrounds could prepare for meaningful roles in a changing industrial society, he set our institution—and each of us as individuals—on an ambitious path toward a more equitable future through education.
This purpose is more important now than ever before for two reasons: one, we are emerging from a once-in-a-century pandemic that requires us to reimagine our futures. Two, breakthrough technologies such as AI, robotics, and IoT are changing the way we live, learn, and work.
Illinois Tech has an opportunity through our relevance-inspired research and teaching to position ourselves as the key technological institution that prepares Chicago, our state, and the world for the grand challenges of the future. Let us seize the moment and renew our mission for the twenty-first century economy.
As we start this new semester, I believe that we can do great things and achieve great things when we work together. I look forward to working with all of you to develop new pathways and infinite possibilities for our students, faculty, and staff to help create a more inclusive future through technology. Thank you.
