CRA Congratulates Newly Announced Deans at New Jersey Institute of Technology and Tulane University
By Elora Daniels, Communications Associate
The Computing Research Association (CRA) is delighted to congratulate long-time CRA contributors Jamie Payton on her appointment as Dean of the Ying Wu College of Computing at the New Jersey Institute of Technology and Hridesh Rajan on his appointment as Dean of the School of Science and Engineering at Tulane University.
Jamie Payton – Dean of the Ying Wu College of Computing at the New Jersey Institute of Technology
Payton moved to her new Dean role at NJIT after most recently serving as Professor and Chair of the Department of Computer and Information Sciences at Temple University.
She has been a supporter of multiple CRA programs, most recently as a leader on the NSF LEVEL UP BPC Alliance committee for the inaugural LEVEL UP workshop series, which concluded in April 2024. Payton has shared her expertise with CRA, largely through efforts hosted by CRA-WP, including frequent contributions to the CRA-WP Expanding the Pipeline series in the CRN, mentoring students in the DREU program, and serving as a panelist on many CRA-hosted events, including the CRA Conference at Snowbird and SIGCSE. As Principal Investigator and Director of the STARS Computing Corps Alliance for Broadening Participation in Computing, she has also had the opportunity to work closely with CRA’s Center for Evaluating the Research Pipeline (CERP) on the evaluation of the program.
In a press release from NJIT announcing Payton’s appointment, she said “I’m excited about leading the Ying Wu College of Computing into its next chapter, building on its strengths and prior successes, and bringing a fresh perspective and experience in fostering diversity, equity and inclusion in computing.”
CRA is thrilled to partner with such an innovative and thoughtful individual focused on widening participation in computing. Congratulations, Dr. Payton!
Hridesh Rajan – Dean of the School of Science and Engineering at Tulane University
Rajan comes to his new Dean role at Tulane after most recently serving as the Kingland Professor and Chair of the Department of Computer Science at Iowa State University.
He has been an active member of the CRA Governance Committee, helping to review the CRA governance processes and propose modifications to enable CRA to better fulfill its mission. He also served as a mentor for the 2021 CRA/CCC cohort of Computing Innovation Fellows (CIFellows).
When asked about what he is most excited about in his new role, Rajan said “[w]orking closely with Tulane administration, the SSE Board of Advisors, the SSE executive committee, and our dedicated faculty, staff and students, our collective efforts will focus on enhancing interdisciplinary research, fostering innovation, and growing a strong, inclusive community that supports academic excellence and groundbreaking discoveries.”
CRA looks forward to future collaborations with Dr. Rajan and his leadership at Tulane University!
