![\"Headshot](\"https:\/\/tickle.utk.edu\/ise\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/03\/Sawhney-210x300-1.jpg\")
Rapinder \u201cRupy\u201d Sawhney, ISE professor and Heath Faculty Fellow in Engineering, passed away on December 7, 2022. He had been a member of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering since 1976 when he was an undergraduate student, then going on to earn his master\u2019s and doctorate from the department as well. Starting as an assistant professor, he moved through the faculty ranks and earned recognition as the Heath Faculty Fellow in Engineering.<\/p>\n
Sawhney served as head of the department as it transitioned to become the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr. Sawhney\u2019s vision and energy for this department is a primary reason the department still exists,\u201d commented current ISE department head John Kobza. \u201cHe was head during a critical time when research became much more important for the college. Without his leadership, our department would not have made the transition.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also founded the Center for Advanced Systems Research and Education and grew its activities over the past decade.<\/p>\n
Sawhney, along with Russell Zaretzki, associate professor of business analytics and statistics and Heath Faculty Fellow in Business, helped to establish the Heath Integrated Business and Engineering program. This unique program brings together students from the Tickle College of Engineering and Haslam College of Business and includes an innovative systems-thinking curriculum reflecting Sawhney\u2019s knowledge and expertise.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my role, I hear from a lot of alumni, and I often ask them who was their most influential professor,\u201d Tickle College of Engineering Dean Matthew Mench, the Wayne T. Davis Dean\u2019s Chair noted. \u201cIn ISE, the answer was almost always Dr. Sawhney. He had an outstanding and internationally respected research program, but he never lost sight of his passion to teach the next generation of engineers at the highest levels.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kobza also made note of the distinct way that Sawhney inspired his students.<\/p>\n
\u201cRupy challenged students to think every time he was in a classroom,\u201d he said. \u201cStudents didn\u2019t always like this, but it always changed how they saw the world and their roles as engineers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mench said that, though he may be gone in person, Sawhney\u2019s legacy will continue to be felt for years to come.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis focus on engineering better outcomes in the workplace led to the development of the Sawhney Model, a globally recognized method of improving both productivity and the health of workers, further cementing his legacy for putting people first,\u201d Mench said. \u201cThe profession of engineering is better for having Dr. Sawhney, and we will greatly miss him both as a faculty member and as a fine role model and human being.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Rapinder \u201cRupy\u201d Sawhney, ISE professor and Heath Faculty Fellow in Engineering, passed away on December 7, 2022 after serving as a member of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering since 1976<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[147,107,29],"class_list":["post-392","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-full-time-adjunct-faculty","tag-center-for-advanced-systems-research-and-education","tag-memorial","tag-rupy-sawhney"],"yoast_head":"\n