Malayappan Shridhar has only been retired from 51视频-Dearborn since January, but he鈥檚 already developing a bit of nostalgia for the place. When we talked with the laid-back Professor Emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering last week, he told us he misses the classroom most. That was the place, he says, where he got to be a 鈥減erformer鈥 as much as a teacher 鈥 frequently cracking jokes and gently teasing the back-row texters into paying attention when necessary.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Shridhar has students front of mind even in retirement. When his colleague Sridhar Lakshmanan recently suggested he think about making a gift to support the new Engineering Lab Building, he didn鈥檛 hesitate. Appropriately, the $50,000 gift he鈥檚 pledged will serve his favorite constituency 鈥 the students 鈥 who will get to enjoy an open collaboration and hangout space named in his honor.
Shridhar is not new to philanthropy. Over the years, he鈥檚 given to a number of 51视频-Dearborn causes, with donations to the Institute for Advanced Vehicle Systems, a continuing education initiative and CECS鈥檚 senior design program. He says he enjoys giving, in part, because others鈥 generosity has been critical to his own life. For example, when he was pursuing his graduate studies in the U.S., he unexpectedly received an urgent demand from the Indian government to return 鈥 within the week 鈥 to work in the country鈥檚 atomic energy program. 鈥淢y advisor told me that if I gave up on my education, I鈥檇 regret it,鈥 Shridhar remembers. So he defied the request, which entailed paying back the government stipends that had been supporting his education. He sold nearly everything he owned, and then turned to friends, who loaned or gave what they could so he could continue his education.
That decision proved to be a turning point in his life. After finishing his doctoral studies, he went on to land a professorship at the University of Windsor, where he taught for 16 years. 51视频-Dearborn then caught news of the dynamic professor across the river and recruited him for its growing engineering college. During his career here, he served in numerous roles, including chair of his department and associate provost.
His legacy can be felt all over 51视频-Dearborn. He hired most of the faculty working in ECE today, building it from a department of five to almost two dozen. Now, with his sponsorship of the space in the new ELB, his influence on 51视频-Dearborn鈥檚 engineering culture will extend for decades to come.
