Dr. Karen A. Thole is the Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering at the University of Michigan. Prior to her position as Dean, she was a faculty member at Penn State, where she founded and served as director of the Steady Thermal Aero Research Turbine (START) Lab, that houses a one-stage test turbine with unique measurement capabilities. Much of her work in START involved developing additive manufacturing as a discovery tool for novel airfoil cooling technologies. Through support from the U.S. Department of Energy and four gas turbine manufacturers, she and her team also developed and manufactured the National Experimental Turbine (NExT), which is a manufacturing and durability testbed for industry.
A Fellow of ASME, AIAA, and the Royal Aeronautical Society, Thole has been a member of several National Academy of Engineering studies, of NASA advisory committees, and of the U. S. Department of Air Force’s Scientific Advisory Board. Her work has been recognized by ASME’s R. Tom Sawyer, Kate Gleason Award, George Westinghouse, Edwin Church and Heat Transfer Memorial Awards. From AIAA, she has received both the Air Breathing Propulsion Award and the Thermophysics Award.
Thole earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees in mechanical engineering in 1982 and 1984, respectively, from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. She earned her Ph.D. in mechanical engineering in 1992 from the University of Texas, Austin.