Strategic Plan | CREOL, The College of Optics & Photonics at the University of Central Florida

College of Optics & Photonics

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Overview: The subject matter of CREOL, The College of Optics and Photonics is inherently multidisciplinary but is now being redefined in the technical community as a distinct discipline. Along with its two research centers, the Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers, CREOL (the primary research arm of the College) and the Florida Photonics Center of Excellence (FPCE), the College is educating the technology leaders of tomorrow and is guiding the way optics is perceived in the US and abroad. Optics and photonics are enabling technologies that permeate many disciplines including physics, electrical engineering, chemistry, materials science and engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science and others. The College faculty engage in research and education in fields utilizing radiation of many wavelengths from millimeter waves, to terahertz, to IR, visible, and EUV to X-rays - including photonic sensors, lithography, remote sensing, crystal growth, glass science, materials processing, imaging, nonlinear optics, wave theory, optical design, solid state lasers, fiber communications, liquid crystals, diffractive optics, nanophotonics, biophotonics, and other related topics.

To support this multi-disciplinary nature of the field, most of the faculty members of the College of Optics and Photonics have joint appointments in other related departments, and there are several joint appointees from other departments on campus. In addition, at any given time there are many (currently ~45) PhD level researchers (visiting scientists and post-doctoral researchers) along with our core of graduate students (currently ~150). An administrative staff (currently ~18) serves these students, faculty, and other researchers.

Our primary goal is to educate. The College has a strong focus on education through research and course work, and provides this education at the MS and PhD levels. We also teach undergraduate courses in several departments on campus, and an undergraduate program is under consideration. In addition, we work with the UCF Engineering Technology program on a 2+2 photonics BSEET degree. In order to properly prepare MS and PhD students for the workforce, we must do state-of-the-art research, which requires that we obtain contract funding (currently ~$17M per year with ~25% from industry) to provide the infrastructure (capital equipment and salaries for the students). We provide a highly educated graduate for the modern-day workforce. Our graduates are highly sought after and demand high salaries in the competitive marketplace.

In a relatively short time by academic standards (now 18 years), we have established CREOL, The College of Optics and Photonics as one of the top educational/research institutions in optics and photonics in the world. We have instituted a strong Industrial Affiliates program, including an annual Industrial Affiliates Day that brings in optics companies from around the world to recruit our students, learn about our research, and discover new partnering opportunities. We are well positioned to take advantage of the revolution taking place in several fields enabled by optics and photonics, including information technology (e.g. fibers, modulators, lasers and detectors), medicine (imaging, displays, sensors, therapeutics, genomics), lighting (LEDs, fiber optics), and many applications in security, defense, aerospace and other areas of optics. We have major new initiatives in nanophotonics and biophotonics, with endowed faculty positions in nanophotonics, biophotonics and imaging/displays made available by the FPCE. We have launched ambitious growth plans in these and other areas of optics and photonics.

Success will be achieved if the College is viewed as the leading optics and photonics institution, is the first choice for applicants to graduate school in the field, and is viewed by industry and academia as the leader in producing well-educated students in optics and photonics as well as in conducting cutting edge research. In order to achieve this world perception, we have developed the following vision, mission, and primary objectives.

Vision

Be the world’s leader in education, research, scholarship, and partnership in optics and photonics.

Mission

Provide the highest quality graduate education in optics and photonics.
Provide the best fundamental and applied research results to the scientific and engineering communities to enable the development of knowledge-based and technology-based industries.
Enhance optics and photonics education at all levels.
Aid the development of Florida and the nation’s technology-based industries.
Partner with industry to meet the research and education goals of the college.

Primary Objectives

Foster an atmosphere of collegiality, cooperation and collaboration conducive to strengthening a faculty member’s balanced performance in education, research, and service.

Academics

Develop and offer the highest quality graduate education programs in optics and photonics to meet the career objectives of students and the employment and continuing education needs of industry.
Expand optics and photonics education offerings and resources for undergraduate students.
Develop and deliver education programs to serve non-degree-seeking professionals, including courses via distance learning technology, to meet the needs of local, national, and international industrial optics professionals.
Attract, develop, and retain a diverse faculty and staff who are among the best in their fields, in both research and teaching.

Research

Create and disseminate new knowledge and innovations in optics, photonics, and related disciplines by conducting, presenting, and publishing cutting-edge optics and photonics research actively involving graduate and undergraduate students.
Create, foster, and sustain mutually beneficial research collaborations and partnerships with industry that support our mission.

Partnerships

Transfer technology developed by faculty, staff, and students to industry, particularly Florida industry.
Assist in forming, recruiting, and retaining optics and optics-related industries in Florida and raise the level of understanding of Florida’s citizens and leaders on the impact optics and photonics makes in the state’s economy.
Strengthen the national and international reputation of Florida’s optics and photonics activities, both industrial and academic.
Work with local and state organizations to assist in the development and delivery of science and technology education programs, with emphasis on optics and photonics, for K-12, technician, and community college students.

Other UCF units that help the College achieve its objectives

The Departments of Physics, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Chemistry, Mechanical, Materials & Aerospace Engineering, math, etc., along with Biomedical Sciences (biomolecular sciences), AMPAC, and the Nanoscience Technology Center often provide courses of interest to our students, well-educated undergraduate students for enrollment in the College, and faculty to team with us in pursuit of large block funding opportunities, e.g. an NSF Engineering Research Center.
The Office of Research provides timely processing of a high volume of research proposals and administration of our many contracts and grants.
Procurement provides support for obtaining needed equipment and materials at low cost and in a timely manner for our research.
Physical Plant provides maintenance and modification of our labs.
Facilities Planning provides expertise and management resources for design and construction of new facilities.
UCF foundation assists in development of programs for donations and endowments.
Marketing and Public Relations helps increase the visibility of the College and our activities.
Development Office helps connect the College to industrial companies and economic development organizations.

The appendices demonstrate the College’s past contributions and their strong connections with the President’s 5 goals as well as UCF’s strategic initiatives.

Appendix A: Summary of the College’s recent accomplishments

We have established an international reputation for the College as one of the best places in the world to get an optics education.
Through our world-renowned faculty and student research activities, we have established an international reputation for leadership in optics and photonics research.
We now have graduate alumni of whom a growing number are remaining in Florida.
Since 2000, we have contributed $78 million to the local economy through the research contracts and grants that we have obtained.
Through our outstanding local, national, and international reputation, we have helped to establish UCF as a major metropolitan research university.
CREOL, with the backing of the Administration, established the School of Optics with authority to grant degrees in Optics and then The College of Optics and Photonics – the first in the nation! Along the way we also established the Florida Photonics Center of Excellence, FPCE, as a second center within the College. The College is the 2nd largest optics and photonics entity in the US that has such a degree program but the first to be designated as a College.
We provided major help and leadership in the formation of the Florida Photonics Cluster (FPC), an organization formed to nurture the growth of this industry in Florida.
We helped establish a 2+2 optics program with Valencia and UCF’s Engineering Technology program to help supply the local industry with this workforce.
The research of our faculty has resulted in the formation of a variety of companies located in central Florida in optics/photonics.
In collaboration with the College of Engineering and Computer Science and the College of Business, we spearheaded the development of a very successful small business incubator located in the Research Park – rated the #1 high-tech business incubator in the country in 2004.
Working toward becoming the leading Partnership University, the College has been a major participant in technology transfer working with the Florida High Technology Corridor Council (FHTCC) and local economic development agencies, and the Mayor of Orlando’s High Technology Advisory Board to attract, retain and grow the optics and photonics industry. One outcome of these interactions is that all these agencies strongly support UCF’s move toward becoming a Tier 1 research university.
We have worked closely with the Office of Research and Commercialization and the Florida High Tech Corridor Council (FHTCC), utilizing their matching funds programs to help increase sponsored research.
We developed the first REU program at UCF, which has spawned others in other UCF colleges.
We developed the first-ever NSF-funded REU program for international students.

Appendix B: President Hitt’s Five Goals for UCF and the College of Optics and Photonics contributions

GOAL 1: Offer the best undergraduate education available in Florida

Teach undergraduate courses in multiple departments
Considering initiating an undergraduate degree in optics/photonics
NSF funded REU program
2+2 program in collaboration with Engineering Technology

GOAL 2: Achieve international prominence in key programs of graduate study and research

Most of what we do revolves around this goal (see list of accomplishments)

GOAL 3: Provide international focus to our curricula and research programs

Science and engineering are historically international endeavors. We recruit internationally and have a diverse cultural background for both faculty and students (55% non-US).
Multiple International research collaborations.
International REU program

GOAL 4: Become more inclusive and diverse

We always strive for this in both our faculty and student recruitment. Currently, 12 out of the 78 faculty members and research associates, 27 out of the 166 students and 11 of 19 staff are women or minorities.

GOAL 5: Be America's leading partnership university

One of our primary goals in research is to partner with industry and the past few years ~25% of our external funding has come directly from industry
We have a very successful Industrial Affiliates program
We helped initiate a business incubator in the Research Park and now are starting a branch in our new building addition, funded in part by the US Economic Development Administration.
We continue to support, both financially and administratively, the Florida Photonics Cluster.
We are an active participant in the FHTCC.