UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Karen Thole, the Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering at the University of Michigan, has been named the inaugural director of Penn State’s new National Security Institute, effective May 15. Thole previously served at Penn State as distinguished professor of mechanical engineering, department head of mechanical engineering, and director of the Engineering Ambassador Network.
“I am thrilled to welcome Dr. Karen Thole back to Penn State to lead our new National Security Institute,” said Andrew Read, senior vice president for research. “Dr. Thole brings institutional knowledge and proven leadership to launch and grow a University-wide institute focused on synergizing and enhancing Penn State’s national security research portfolio. Her breadth of experience at Penn State and in the defense sector, including serving on the ARL Advisory Board and the Air Force Science Advisory Board, as well as her record of building and maintaining long-standing industry and federal government partnerships, situate her well to lead this new endeavor.”
The new National Security Institute will work closely with government agencies and industry partners to advance defense and national security research outside the scope of Penn State’s Applied Research Laboratory (ARL), a Department of Defense-designated University Affiliate Research Center that supports all the U.S. Armed Forces and other government agencies. The new institute will focus on enhancing ARL-adjacent research that is needed to address the critical current and future security challenges facing the nation and the world.
“National security research also drives civilian advances, such as disaster response and infrastructure resilience, health, communications and energy systems,” Read said. “By investing in this research, we’re advancing science that reduces risk, strengthens communities, and promotes stability and peace at home and around the world.”
The National Security Institute is the seventh research institute reporting to the Office of the Senior Vice President for Research. As inaugural director, Thole will:
- Advance and coordinate national security research interests across the academic community of Penn State.
- Lead the growth of the emerging institute to a scale comparable with Penn State’s established interdisciplinary research institutes.
- Strengthen collaboration with ARL to significantly expand disciplinary and interdisciplinary research efforts.
- Partner with faculty and staff experts, with the federal government, and with industry to identify the foundational research needed today to enable national security solutions for the future.
“I am honored to be selected as the inaugural director of Penn State’s new National Security Institute,” Thole said. “The University has a strong background in materials science and manufacturing, quantum science, semiconductors, artificial intelligence and aerospace engineering — all areas identified as national research priorities. I look forward to working with Dr. Read and my colleagues across Penn State to enhance the University’s expertise in these critical research spaces to meet our nation’s needs.”
Thole is a nationally and internationally recognized leader in the engineering field whose research focuses on the development and production of more efficient gas turbine engines. Before becoming dean of the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering in August 2024, Thole founded and directed Penn State’s Steady Thermal Aero Research Turbine Lab (START), which was formed in 2012 through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy-National Energy Technology Lab (DOE-NETL) and Pratt & Whitney and expanded in 2023 (START+) with a $26 million commitment from Pratt & Whitney, the Federal Aviation Administration, DOE-NETL and Penn State. The START Lab is now being directed by Reid Berdanier, associate professor of mechanical engineering.
In February 2026, Thole was elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). She has received numerous honors and awards, including the 2025 American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Kate Gleason Award and 2023 ASME R. Tom Sawyer Award; the 2025 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Mary W. Jackson Award; a U.S. National Science Foundation CAREER Award; and the title of fellow from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and the Royal Aeronautical Society. Thole will rejoin Penn State as an Evan Pugh University Professor, the highest distinction conferred by the University.
Prior to joining the University of Michigan in 2024, Thole served as department head of mechanical engineering at Penn State from 2006 to 2021 and has been an affiliate professor in the department since August 2024. She came to Penn State from Virginia Tech where she was the William Cross Professor of Mechanical Engineering. She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and her doctoral degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas, Austin.