On March 29th, 2018, Dr. Anca Sala, Ph.D. - Dean of the College of Engineering at Baker College - was awarded with the 2018 John J. Turin Award for outstanding career accomplishments from her alma mater, the University of Toledo (UT) in Ohio.

Dr. Sala received her doctoral degree in physics from UT after earning a master’s degree in electrical engineering at Polytechnic University of Bucharest in Romania. She is regarded as one of the nation’s leading educators and innovators in the development of college programs in optics and photonics. Dr. Sala is also a founding member of Mi-Light, the Michigan Photonics Cluster that serves as the focal point for the photonics industry in Michigan. Mi-Light brings together professionals from companies, academia and organizations that are dedicated to mutually supporting, promoting and growing Michigan's photonics industry.

“It is a huge honor for me to be recognized with the Turin Award,” Dr. Sala said. “I received an excellent education from great professors and mentors as a graduate student in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at UT. It gave me the ability to thrive in research and development in the industry, as well as a professor in a college environment.”

The John J. Turin Award - in memory of former UT Department Chair John Turin - is awarded annually by UT’s Department of Physics & Astronomy to outstanding alumni of the department. Dr. Sala’s pioneering leadership in photonics is featured in the spring 2018 edition of PURSUIT: The Official Magazine of Baker College.