Experienced Leader Takes Helm of Fast-Growing School of Computing
July 22, 2014
CLEMSON, SC – A former associate dean with several years leadership experience has begun a new job as the director of a fast-growing Clemson University school that prepares students for jobs in a variety of computer-related fields.
Dr. Eileen T. Kraemer is the new C. Tycho Howle Director of the School of Computing. Kraemer comes to Clemson from the University of Georgia, where she was associate dean of the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.
In her new job, Kraemer oversees a school whose enrollment has grown nearly 84 percent, going from 387 in 2007 to 712 in 2013. The school has 31 faculty who are tenured or on track to be tenured and six lecturers.
Kraemer said she sees opportunities for the school to continue growing and moving up in the rankings.
“I enjoy the analysis, planning and implementation,” she said. “I look forward to working with the excellent faculty and staff in the school to help them reach their goals and to set and achieve new goals.”
Her research has combined psychology and computer science to find new ways of helping students achieve more highly in computer science.
Kraemer has also helped build a website, EuPathDB.org, that allows biologists to analyze disease-causing pathogens, such as cryptosporidium, giardia and plasmodium.
The website is a decade in the making and has received more than $6.5 million from the National Institutes of Health. She was a co-principal investigator on the grants.
“Dr. Kraemer is an impeccable researcher and scholar and brings with her a wealth of leadership experience,” said Dr. Anand Gramopadhye, dean of the College of Engineering and Science.
“Her background will position the School of Computing for strength into the future. I personally look forward to working with her.”
The School of Computing includes three divisions– computer science, visual computing and human-centered computing. The school offers seven undergraduate and graduate degree programs.
Kraemer received a Ph.D. in computer science from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1995. She was assistant professor of computer science at Washington University in St. Louis from 1995 to 1998.
Kraemer then went to the University of Georgia as an assistant professor and moved up the ranks to associate professor, professor and head of the computer science department. She was associate dean from 2011 until taking the job at Clemson.
Kraemer is married to Kurt Stirewalt, and they have five children between them ranging in age from 17 to 33. She said they plan to live in or near Clemson.
The C. Tycho Howle Directorship in the school of computing was made possible by an endowment created by the family of C. Tycho Howle, a long-time supporter of Clemson. The endowment provides support for the director’s salary and various activities, such as research.
