Karen Thole of Pennsylvania State University has been announced as the fifth and final candidate in the search for the next James L. and Katherine S. Melsa dean of Iowa State’s College of Engineering.

Thole will visit Iowa State from Tuesday to Thursday. Thole will also be hosting an open forum from 2 to 3 p.m. Wednesday in the Alliant Energy-Lee Liu Auditorium in Howe Hall where she will meet with Iowa State students, faculty, staff, community members and stakeholders.

Thole is a University Distinguished Professor and head of Pennsylvania State’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. She joined the staff at Pennsylvania State in 2006, according to a press release.

According to a press release, Thole earned her doctors in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Illinois.

The other four finalists in consideration for the position are Janis Terpenny of Pennsylvania State, Robert Frosch of Purdue University, Erick Jones of the University of Texas at Arlington and W. Samuel Easterling of Virgina Tech. 

More information on the dean search can be found on the Office of the Senior Vice President and the Provost’s website, along with Thole’s itinerary, Vita and other information.