Winston Oluwole Soboyejo was appointed president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute in Utica, New York. When he takes office on October 2, Dr. Soboyejo will be the institution’s seventh president.
Established in 1966, SUNY Polytechnic Institute currently enrolls about 2,000 undergraduate students and just under 900 graduate students, according to the most recent data available from the U.S. Department of Education. African Americans make up 8 percent of the undergraduate student body.
“It’s an honor to be selected to lead such an esteemed research institution,” Dr. Soboyejo said. “SUNY Poly is an essential resource for both the Mohawk Valley and New York State. I believe that by leveraging our existing partnerships and collaborations with other institutions and local workforce partners, we can continue to expand and build more opportunities for our students to succeed.”
A member of the National Academy of Engineering, Dr. Soboyejo is a well-published American materials scientist who has been serving at Worchester Polytechnic Institute since 2017, first as dean of engineering, then provost and senior vice president, and later interim president. Earlier, Dr. Soboyejo was a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at Princeton University for 17 years. He has also served as president and provost of the African University of Science and Technology in Abuja, Nigeria.
Dr. Soboyejo’s research focuses on biomaterials and the use of nanoparticles for the detection and treatment of disease, the mechanical properties of materials, and the use of materials science to promote global development.
Dr. Winston Soboyejo holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from King’s College in London and a Ph.D. in materials science and metallurgy from the University of Cambridge in England.
