University of Nevada, Reno Engineering Dean Manos Maragakis attended a White House event Wednesday, Feb. 8 to celebrate the efforts of engineering deans for their commitment to retain and graduate more students in the field of engineering.

"It is indeed a great honor to participate in this event representing an institution which values and fosters excellence in engineering education," Maragakis said. "This participation is yet another affirmation of our new directions of the past few years, focusing on retaining and graduating more globally competitive students in the engineering field, which is not only good for the University, but good for the diversification of the Nevada economy."

Energy Secretary Steven Chu, the President's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness and the CEO of Intel have invited select engineering deans to attend the White House Engineering Education reception to announce the creation of a unique partnership to measure, evaluate and celebrate excellence in retention, graduation and diversity in engineering education.

Graduating more engineering students has been identified as a critical national priority for the country to be able to maintain its world leadership and improve its economy," Maragakis said. "Producing engineers contributes to the advancement of technology and the quality of life and establishes a solid foundation for the long-term vitality of the economy."

The University of Nevada, Reno is committed to providing our students with a first-class globally competitive engineering education and to conducting research that advances the state-of-the-art in several engineering disciplines,"  he said. "Our college presents a unique opportunity to our state and we are committed to establishing ourselves as a major, nationally-recognized institution for engineering education and research. I am looking forward to participating in this event and celebrating this very important announcement."

The American Society for Engineering Education, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, other senior White House and National Science Foundation officials will be in attendance. The event is part of a public-private initiative to address the nation's shortage of engineers.

U.S. News and World Report ranks the University of Nevada, Reno College of Engineering among the "best undergraduate engineering programs" and among the "best graduate schools." To be ranked among the "best undergraduate engineering programs," the highest degree awarded through the college must be a doctoral degree and the college must have at least one program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Seven College of Engineering programs at the University are ABET accredited.