IEC Presents Fellow Award to Dr. Eli Fromm

Date: November 17, 2003
Contact: Marilyn Grekowicz
Phone: +1-312-559-3656
Fax: +1-312-559-4111

CHICAGO — The International Engineering Consortium (IEC) presented the IEC Fellow Award to Dr. Eli Fromm, Roy A. Brothers Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering, and director of the Center for Educational Research in the College of Engineering at Drexel University in Philadelphia, in a ceremony at the IEC's annual Executive ComForum gathering, held last week in Palm Beach, Florida.

The IEC Fellow Award was established in 1994 to recognize individuals who have provided the information industry with a superior level of sustained and significant service. Areas of service considered for the award include education, technology, and industry leadership.

Dr. Fromm has served Drexel University for 35 years and has held a number of University academic leadership positions including vice president for Educational Research, vice provost for Research and Graduate Studies, interim dean of the College of Engineering, and interim head of the Department of Biosciences.

His career began at General Electric Company in 1962 as an engineer for the missile and space division where he assisted in the study, design, and development of biomedical instrumentation and solar powered telestimulation systems. In 1963 he moved to E. I. DuPont Company as an engineer in the Engineering Physics Laboratory. There he assisted in the development of the non-corneal contact commercial tonometer, "Durham Tonometer", as well as external blood pressure monitoring systems for continuous sensing.

Dr. Fromm left E.I. DuPont to return to graduate school, first at Drexel and then at Jefferson Medical College under a special Fellows program offered by the National Institutes of Health. During that period he served concurrently as a Teaching Assistant in the Physics Department at Drexel and as a Biomedical Engineer for a small research laboratory at a Pennsylvania Hospital. Concurrently with his professorship at Drexel University, Dr. Fromm served the United States House of Representative's Committee on Science and Technology as a congressional science and engineering fellow and as a professional staff member. In 1983, he worked with the National Science Foundation as a program director for the bioengineering program where he provided managerial and technical guidance to strengthen science and engineering education and research. In 1986, the Legislative Office of Research Liaison of the State of Pennsylvania House of Representatives tapped him as a visiting scientist to assist in the state legislature in policy research on scientific and technological issues.

His many years of activities devoted to educational leadership and the engineering educational reform movements include principal investigator of the Drexel E4 project and principal investigator/director of the Gateway Engineering Education Coalition program. In addition, he has been the principal investigator of a number of research projects in biotelemetry, including development of micro-miniature implantable and ingestible transmitters and sensors with experimental use in physiologic measurements of the reproductive, gastrointestinal, and cardiovascular systems.

Dr. Fromm is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a charter fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), and recipient of numerous awards and honors from such organizations as the IEEE, American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), the Smithsonian Institution, Drexel University, and others. He is the inaugural recipient (2002) of the National Academy of Engineering's Bernard M. Gordon Prize, considered the Nobel Prize of U.S. engineering education.

Dr. Fromm received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Drexel University in 1962, as well as his master's in engineering in 1964. In 1967 he earned his doctorate in bioengineering and physiology from the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Penn.

In receiving the IEC Fellow Award, Dr. Fromm joins more than 80 communications and technology trailblazers, including Gordon Moore, former CEO of Intel; David Packard, founder of Hewlett-Packard; Robert Galvin, former Motorola CEO; Vinton Cerf, senior vice president of MCI; Jack S. Kilby, Nobel Laureate and a pioneer in the development of the integrated circuit; and John Chambers, President and CEO of Cisco Systems.

More information about the IEC Fellow Award may be obtained by calling the International Engineering Consortium at +1-312-559-4100.

The International Engineering Consortium (IEC) is a cooperative public-service organization dedicated to positive change in the information industry and university communities. For nearly 60 years, IEC has provided educational opportunities for industry professionals, university professors and promising students. Executives from throughout the industry continue to build strong business and technical foundations for the future through knowledge gained from IEC Forums and publications.

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