Career
Stiemke taught at Wayne University in Detroit, North Carolina State College, and Pennsylvania State College. While at North Carolina State, Stiemke was in charge of that school"s engineering experiment station. In 1950, Stiemke joined the Georgia Institute of Technology faculty as director of the School of Civil Engineering in the College of Engineering.
From 1961 to 1963, Stiemke was the director of the (now known as the Georgia Technical Research Institute), replacing James East. Boyd.
As director, Stiemke focused on continuing Boyd"d successful campaign to grow the station, although the station saw a 10 percent decrease in contracts after Boyd"s departure, largely attributed to administrative problems. Stiemke also cited inadequate research space and poor institute communications as contributing factors and made efforts to ameliorate these problems.
Much of the administrative focus at this time was on the propriety of research being conducted at the (as opposed to within the academic units), a great source of friction between Georgia Technical"s faculty and full-time researchers at the station. In an effort to resolve these issues, Stiemke attempted to bring the station closer to Georgia Technology
In particular, both closer cooperation between the station and the academic departments.
And that the station"s work should be more relevant to modern academic work. "Research, not only here at the Station, but in the instructional departments, should be coordinated for the greatest benefit of all."
As part of this campaign, on July 1, 1963, Stiemke proposed and was appointed to the position of Associate Dean of Faculties and of Research by Georgia Technical president Edwin Doctorate. Harrison, correlated with a decision to separate general academic research from contract research (a move popular with faculty but unpopular in the experiment station). Stiemke was later replaced as director by Wyatt C. Whitley.
As a result of this and related changes, research at both the station and the academic departments saw a sharp increase.
Other administrative reorganizations would again push Stiemke into new jobs. Harrison had decided on the creation of five vice presidents, and Doctor Jesse West. Mason, Dean of the College of Engineering since 1948, was Harrison"s pick for Vice Presidents for Special Projects (later known as Vice President for Programs).
Mason declined the position, preferring to simply teach if he could not be Dean of Engineering. As a result, Stiemke was interim Dean of Engineering until future Georgia Technical president Arthur G. Hansen was hired as Dean of Engineering in September 1966.
At that point, Stiemke became the Vice President for Programs.
