UND Engineering Dean Brian Tande named president of South Dakota School of Mines & Technology

An interim dean for the College of Engineering & Mines will be named in the coming days, pending a national search for a permanent successor

Brian Tande, dean of the College of Engineering & Mines at the University of North Dakota, has accepted the presidency of South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, in Rapid City.

“There is no greater honor than to have the opportunity to lead an institution of higher learning, and Brian Tande is going to be an incredible president for South Dakota Mines,” said UND President Armacost. “I am so proud of him and know that he’ll bring the spirit of UND with him to Rapid City.”

UND Vice President for Academic Affair and Provost Eric Link congratulated Tande and praised his leadership of the College of Engineering & Mines (CEM).

“Dean Brian Tande has been an extraordinary leader of the College of Engineering & Mines here at the University of North Dakota, and I am sure he will be a very effective and successful leader of South Dakota Mines,” said Eric Link, UND vice president for academic affairs and provost. “Here at UND, Dean Tande’s innovative and entrepreneurial approach to leadership has resulted in significant enrollment and research growth for CEM.  He is a leader with vision and a strategic thinker. We will miss him here at UND, but we also know that South Dakota Mines is getting a great president ready to lead that institution forward.”

Tande will begin his new duties as president of South Dakota Mines on Jan. 9.

“UND has been a big part of my life for over 17 years,” Tande said. “It has given me countless opportunities to grow and develop as a teacher, researcher, and leader. I will be forever grateful to this great institution. I’m thankful for all who have mentored me over the years and for all the faculty, staff, and students with whom I have had the privilege of working.”

Tande, a Stanley, N.D., native, was named interim dean of the UND College of Engineering & Mines on April 9, 2019, following the departure of former dean, Hesham El-Rewini. He attained permanent deanship status on April 1, 2020. Prior to his role as dean, Tande served in leadership roles as associate dean, director of the College’s Grand Challenge Scholar program, and interim director of the School of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science in 2018.

Tande served in UND’s Department of Chemical Engineering from 2006 to 2017 and was named “Outstanding CEM Professor of the Year” in 2010.

In 2017, he briefly left UND for a stint at Kansas State University, where he was the graduate programs director and an associate professor of chemical engineering. He returned to UND in June 2018. He holds chemistry and chemical engineering degrees from the University of Minnesota and the University of Delaware, where he earned his Ph.D.

His time at UND also has included posts as a faculty fellow in the School of Entrepreneurship, a director of the Jodsaas Center for Engineering Leadership & Entrepreneurship and a department chair in chemical engineering from 2013-2017.

During Tande’s deanship, the College has experienced steady growth in student numbers, with a current enrollment of 2,700 students. Similarly, he has seen externally funded research at the College jump from about $5 million in 2019 to about $20 million in 2024, driven by new research on energy, rare earth elements, autonomous systems, transportation, cyber security, data sciences and national security.  In October, the College also cut the ribbon on the new Mark & Claudia Thompson National Security Corridor, which will house laboratories and classrooms to facilitate work on initiatives on satellite testing and design, quantum computing, cryptography and unmanned aircraft systems – all vital to the nation’s security.

The College also has added new programs in biomedical engineering and aerospace engineering, under Tande’s leadership.

“I’m very proud of what we have accomplished together, and I wish UND and CEM all the best in the future,” Tande said. “Choosing to leave UND was one of the most difficult decisions of my life, but I felt compelled to pursue this exciting and unique opportunity to lead the only institution in the Dakotas focused on science and engineering.

“As I transition to my next role, I am hopeful that our two institutions will find meaningful ways to collaborate.”

In the coming weeks, the Office of the Provost will work with the College of Engineering & Mines to appoint an interim dean, pending a national search for a permanent successor.