Location
|style="padding-right: 1em;" | West Campus
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|Namesake
|style="padding-right: 1em;" | Fitzgerald S. "Jerry" Hudson
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|Architect
|style="padding-right: 1em;" | Unknown
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|Former name
|style="padding-right: 1em;" | Old Red
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|Website
|style="padding-right: 1em;" | [Duke Engineering]
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Pratt Logo
The Edmund T. Pratt School of Engineering is one of two undergraduate schools at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. The other is the Trinity College of Arts and Sciences. It is also one of seven graduate and professional schools at Duke. The school is best known for its Biomedical Engineering Department.
Kristina M. Johnson is the current dean of Pratt, becoming the first woman to hold the position in 1999. The majority of its faculty, labs, and courses can be found in Hudson Hall, the Nello L. Teer Library Building, the Fitzpatrick Center (also known as CIEMAS), and the LSRC.
History
The precursor to the school of engineering dates back to 1851, when Duke was known as Normal College and located in Randolph County, North Carolina. At that time, engineering was included in a Classical course for seniors. A course in engineering was later introduced in 1887, eventually becoming a regular course offering in 1903. At that time, engineering courses were limited to such fields as architecture and surveying, until 1924 when Trinity College was renamed to Duke University. Engineering then underwent a major change becoming separate departments of civil and electrical engineering. Seven years later, in 1931, a mechanical engineering department was created. Duke's Board of Trustees then decided to create the College of Engineering in 1939, with William H. Hall becoming its first dean.
The College of Engineering graduated its first class of women in 1946. The next year, the three departments moved from East Campus to their current location on West Campus. The college was then named the School of Engineering in 1966. Two years later, in 1968, the school's first black students graduated. The Division of Biomedical Engineering was created in 1967, becoming the first accredited biomedical engineering department of a U.S. university in 1971.
Later, in 1997, the Master of Engineering Management was established. The Duke University School of Engineering was renamed the Edmund T. Pratt, Jr. School of Engineering in 1999, in honor of Edmund T. Pratt, Jr., a 1947 graduate of the school and former CEO of Pfizer.
Buildings
Hudson Hall is the oldest engineering building at Duke University, serving as the main hub for the School of Engineering. Constructed in 1948, Hudson Hall was renamed to honor Fitzgerald S. "Jerry" Hudson (E'46) in 1992.[About Pratt Facilities]
