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Russell E. Trahan, Jr. is a native of New Orleans, LA. He was born on January 30, 1949. He received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in Engineering Sciences in 1970 and 1973, respectively, from Louisiana State University in New Orleans (LSUNO), which is now known as the University of New Orleans (UNO). In 1977 he received a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, with a specialization in optimization and control. Dr. Trahan began his academic career in 1977 as a faculty member in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of New Orleans. In 2003 he was chosen to serve as Dean of the UNO College of Engineering. In August, 2010, he retired from the university and now holds the title of Dean Emeritus of Engineering, and Professor Emeritus of Electrical Engineering. While a faculty member at UNO he held the titles of Chevron USA Professor of Electrical Engineering and Seraphia D. Leyda University Teaching Fellow. He was Chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering for over nine years and served previously as Acting Dean one year.
In 1980 he returned to the University of California, Berkeley, as a Visiting Assistant Professor. He worked as a consultant for Litton Data Systems in New Orleans during the period of 1981 through 1986. During the summers of 1986 through 1989 he was an ASEE Summer Faculty Research Fellow at the Naval Research Laboratory-Stennis Space Center, MS.
During his career his research interests were in the areas of controls, and signal processing. Since 1979 he was engaged in industry and government sponsored research projects amounting to over two million dollars. Dr. Trahan is a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and in 1991 he was named the Outstanding Engineering Educator in Region 3 of IEEE. In 1995 he received the Outstanding Engineering Alumnus Award from the University of New Orleans. He has won numerous teaching awards at the University of New Orleans including the UNO Alumni Association Excellence in Teaching Award in the year 2000. He is a member of the honor societies, Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu, Phi Kappa Phi, and Omicron Delta Kappa.
Dr. Trahan was a resident of Venetian Isles, a waterfront community within the city limits of New Orleans, for 26 years until 2013. He and his wife, Lynette, have two children, Yvette, and Russell III (Rusty). In May 2013, Dr. Trahan and Lynette sold their home in Venetian Isles and moved to Driftwood, Texas which is located near Austin.