CEE Magazine Winter 2016

CEE

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering College of Engineering University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Winter 2016

Global connections

International students, experiences in CEE Biomechanics work in CEE Alumni news and features

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CEE Magazine Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign 1201 Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory MC-250 205 North Mathews Avenue Urbana, Illinois 61801 (217) 333-6955 celeste@illinois.edu Cover: A dusting of snow trims the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center, which this fall marked the fifth anniversary since its dedication. Photo by Kristina Shidlauski cee.illinois.edu

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CEE 4

Time to help, time to lead/Benito Mariñas

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Change is in the air/Colleen E. Quinn, P.E., (BS 84)

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Body of work: biomechanics in CEE

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Sesquicentennial: celebrating 150 years

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Global perspectives 17

New M.S. program: Global CEE

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3+2 program brings top international students to Illinois

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Easing the transition for international students

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Domestic students benefit from multi-cultural campus

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Student organization bridges gaps internationally

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Alumni speakers

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Alumni Q&A: Kevin Foster (BS 09, MS 10)

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Soybean plants with fewer leaves have higher yields

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What are you working on? Alumni projects

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Student organizations

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Department news

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Konar to study food-energy-water nexus

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Gardoni to study food security, infrastructure issues

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George Halas inducted into Engineering Hall of Fame

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William J. Hall receives first CEEAA faculty award

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In memoriam

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Image of research: Playing at the Spring

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Thank you! Here’s how you helped last year

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CORRECTION: In the last issue of the CEE magazine, alumnus John L. Carrato’s (BS 79, MS 80) company was incorrectly identified. Carrato is president and CEO of Alfred Benesch & Co. We regret the error.

12 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 3

Time to help, time to lead

By Benito Mariñas Ivan Racheff Professor of Environmental Engineering and Head

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Help shape the future of CEE at Illinois. state-of-the-art classrooms hands-on, upgraded laboratories collaborative spaces ADA compliance expansive lobby modernized exterior support for innovative instructional methods smart bridge connecting buildings The decade-long project to modernize the infrastructure at CEE at Illinois began with the Yeh Student Center and will continue with the renovation and expansion of Hydrosystems and Newmark labs. The work will be funded through support of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the College of Engineering, the campus and private gifts. All donors will be recognized on a giving installation.

Naming opportunities are available.

To support this effort, please contact: Benito Mariñas, Department Head, (217) 333-6961, marinas@illinois.edu John Kelley, Director of Advancement, (217) 333-5120, jekelley@illinois.edu Nishant Makhijani, Assistant Director of Advancement, (217) 265-0407, nishantm@illinois.edu

cee.illinois.edu/give 4

cee.illinois.edu

s many of you know, I have embarked on a very ambitious plan to visit with as many CEE alumni and friends as possible throughout the United States and around the world. I always invite all of them to come home to CEE at Illinois, and so I have had the privilege of hosting many of them on campus. As a result, I am developing an even deeper feeling of honor and pride to lead the department that has graduated the world’s leaders in civil and environmental engineering.

During the past century, CEE at Illinois engineers have shaped our society arguably more meaningfully than CEE professionals from any other peer institution. You have led the revolutionary design of iconic structures such as the Golden Gate Bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Willis Tower in Chicago, both holding world records that were unsurpassed for two to three decades. You have led the structural design of the Burj Khalifa in Jeddah, the tallest building in the world today, and the foundation design of the Kingdom Tower in Dubai, which will soon become the tallest building in the world. You have made history by leading the design of the LunarOrbit Rendezvous approach that took the astronauts of Apollo 11 to the moon and safely back to earth. You have contributed to memorializing history by leading the structural design of monuments such as the USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. You have led in improving the quality of life in the United States and around the world by leading the restoration of our rivers and lakes. You have led in building dams and other water resources infrastructure components, managing the urban and rural watersheds, and designing water supply and sanitation systems. You have renovated our infrastructure, built major real esstate complexes, and created public health campuses. You have led in the design, construction and management of transporta-

tion systems. You have been pioneers and leading contributors to the smart infrastructure revolution. You have promoted financial and operational models for sustainable development in the world. You have led the development of affordable housing in Hawaii and addressed the lack of access to safe water and sanitation in developing nations. You have led the energy industry and contributed to the national strategic goal of energy independence. You have kept us safe by working with the various branches of the military and making our infrastructure resilient to terrorist attacks and natural disasters. You have taken the CEE at Illinois research and educational model and become research and academic leaders in research institutions and peer universities throughout the United States and worldwide.

As long and impressive as this list is, I know that it is incomplete, because it has grown after each one of my trips to visit alumni and friends. It will undoubtedly grow longer as I continue my efforts to meet more alumni and friends and understand the breadth and depth of the CEE at Illinois impact.

There is another aspect of your impact that I would like to address today as well. If you have been following the most recent CEE at Illinois magazines, you are probably aware of a pressing need that we have identified. In order to retain the preeminent position that we are all so proud of in the CEE at Illinois family, we need to continue attracting top faculty and students so that our graduates can continue your legacy as leaders of our civil and environmental engineering profession. To accomplish this key goal we need to modernize our curriculum to match the evolution in the CEE profession, and mod-

During the past century, CEE at Illinois engineers have shaped our society arguably more meaningfully than CEE professionals from any other peer institution. ernize our facilities to allow us to continue delivering world-class education and research opportunities for our students.

The curriculum component of the modernization plan is ongoing, but it is dependent on the updating and expansion of our facilities. We project that we will be able to complete this facilities modernization within 10–15 years. We are planning to accomplish this work in stages, outlined as follows: Phase I (complete): The M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center opened in 2011, completing the first part of this multiphase modernization project. The Yeh Center provided much-needed modern classrooms, meeting rooms, and gathering and study spaces for students.

Phase II (underway): The department is beginning work on Phase II of the project: an expansion and renovation of the Hydrosystems Laboratory.

Plans include the addition of hands-on instructional laboratories, collaborative and classroom space for all CEE students, an elevator to bring the building into ADA compliance and a smart bridge connecting the Hydro Lab to Newmark Lab. The CEE Smart Bridge is an exciting part of the Phase II project plans, and will be designed to serve as: • A living laboratory featuring the latest innovations in infrastructure sensing.

• A showcase for sustainable energy and environmental design options.

• An instructional tool to teach students about the effects of dynamic forces on the built infrastructure.

• A unifying element for faculty and students from all the department's areas of study.

• A new campus landmark.

Phases III and IV (projected): The final phases of the project will consist of an expansion and renovation of Newmark Lab (projected completion 2024).

This project will feature laboratory renovations, an auditorium, an expansive lobby and a modernized exterior.

As you can see, we refer to the Yeh Student Center as the completed Phase I of our modernization project. The leader-

ship gift by Distinguished Alumnus M.T. Geoffrey Yeh (BS 53) inspired many of our alumni and friends to also give back and make the Yeh Student Center a reality.

The Yeh Center has just passed the fifth anniversary of its dedication in fall 2011.

In this magazine, we are sad to inform the CEE family about the recent passing of Geoffrey Yeh. His legacy will live on at Illinois in the spacious classrooms, lively gathering spaces and beautiful study areas of the heart of the CEE department – the Yeh Student Center. Generations of CEE students for many, many years to come will know about and benefit from Geoffrey’s devotion to his alma mater and profound generosity, and for this, CEE at Illinois will always be deeply grateful.

As you can see, Phase II of our modernization, currently underway, includes creating a number of state-of-the-art classrooms, instructional laboratories and design studios. We are planning to name these in honor of some of the most legendary CEE at Illinois faculty who have influenced the generations of students and alumni that have made our world a better place. We have received some very generous gifts already. We are at a critical point in the process, however, where we need all CEE alumni and friends with the capacity to help to consider joining those who have supported the project already by including CEE at Illinois in their philanthropy plans. We are confident that many of you, with orange and blue pride, will be able to help us achieve this goal.

If you feel inspired to make a leadership gift to this important initiative, the time to do so is now so that we can implement the full scope of our modernization plan.

Although modernization must be our top fundraising priority in order to succeed, I also would like to take this opportunity to thank those of you who are helping us with scholarships and fellowships to attract a diverse body of top students to our graduate and undergraduate programs, and for supporting the educational experience of these students with annual financial support to our Civil and Environmental Engineering Trust. The

CEE Trust is used to provide opportunities for our undergraduate students to have meaningful research and societal grand challenge experiences with CEE at Illinois faculty of their choice and their graduate students. Thanks to your gifts, we recently reached the impressive goal of allowing 100 students per year to take advantage of this opportunity. The CEE Trust also supports travel for students participating in courses that provide international experience and field trips to interesting project sites, and many activities by the more than 20 student organizations.

However, we could enrich the educational experience of our students much more if we could expand your support of the CEE Trust. Currently, only less than 5 percent of our alumni and friends support the department, and only a fraction of those contribute to the CEE Trust. Our curriculum modernization project will result in the creation and revision of courses that will provide meaningful hands-on design and laboratory experiences in new instructional laboratories and design studios. However, the operation and maintenance of these new facilities will require that we increase by a factor of ten (from approximately 3 percent to 30 percent) the fraction of CEE at Illinois alumni and friends who give annually to the CEE Trust.

My visits with alumni and friends in the past year have yielded very encouraging results – gifts and pledges to our Modernization that have ensured its launch. But now we must take the next step and secure its success. I am confident that many more of you will come forward to support our plan. Please remember that even relatively small contributions will compound into very meaningful support. Our faculty, staff and students will be grateful for all of your gifts, as we are grateful and proud for your leadership and representation of CEE at Illinois in your work around the world.

My deepest thanks, once again, to all of you for being part of the CEE family and for your wonderful support of your home department at the University of Illinois.

Go Illini! i

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 5

ALUMNIEVENTS 2017

MARCH 8

CEE Alumni Awards Dinner

Dinner event honoring alumni who have made notable achievements.

Union League Club, Chicago, IL

DATE TBD

CEE Springfield Social Hour

JUNE TBD

CEE Beer Tasting

JULY 20

Networking event with great food and drinks. Springfield, IL Happy hour featuring brew samples and appetizers, with CEE faculty and staff.

CEE Golf Outing

Day of golfing with fellow alumni, business associates, and CEE faculty and staff.

Cog Hill Golf & Country Club, Lemont, IL

CEEAA Board of Directors President Colleen E. Quinn, P.E., (BS 84) Ricondo & Associates Inc. Chicago Vice President John P. Kos, P.E., (BS 77) H.W. Lochner Inc. Chicago Second Vice President and Secretary Paula C. Pienton, P.E., S.E., (BS 85) T.Y. Lin International Group Chicago Past President Allen J. Staron, P.E., (BS 74) Clark Dietz Inc. Chicago Directors Daniel F. Burke (BS 92, MS 93) City of Chicago DOT Chicago Nicholas L. Canellis (BS 94) AVA Consultants LLC Continental Painting and Decorating Chicago John E. Conroyd, P.E., S.E., (BS 83, MS 85) Tishman Realty & Construction Co. Corp.

Chicago James M. Daum, P.E., (BS 77) Bowman, Barrett & Associates Chicago James K. Klein, P.E., S.E., (BS 78) Illinois Department of Transportation Springfield Justin R. Lewis, P.E. (BS 07, MS 08) Hayward Baker Inc. Roselle, Illinois Dana B. Mehlman, P.E., (BS 99, MS 01) PCS Administration (USA) Inc. Northbrook, Illinois Katherine Pripusich-Sienkiewicz (BS 03, MS 13) Fermilab Batavia, Ill. Robert Risser (BS 87, MS89) Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Chicago Julian Rueda, P.E., (BS 80, MS 82) Geo Services Inc. Naperville, Illinois David A. Schoenwolf, P.E., (BS 77, MS 78) Haley & Aldrich Inc. McLean, Virginia Richard Sieracki (BS 74) The Kenrich Group LLC Chicago R. Scott Trotter, P.E., (BS 90) Trotter and Associates Inc. Saint Charles, Illinois Michael Vitale, P.E., (BS 82, MS 84) Mott MacDonald Cleveland, Ohio

Find out more about these events at

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cee.illinois.edu/events

cee.illinois.edu

Daniel J. Whalen, P.E., (BS 84, MS 85) Hanson Professional Services Inc. Springfield

Change is in the air

By Colleen E. Quinn, P.E., (BS 84) President, CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors

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n so many ways, change is once again in the air – globally, nationally, locally, and right here within the Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association. I have the honor of assuming the leadership of the CEEAA Board of Directors and the challenge of preparing my first president’s message. I can only hope to ably fill the shoes of Al Staron as he transitions to the role of immediate past president. Having served with Al for a number of years on the board, I know that I will continue to rely on him for guidance and counsel as I get my bearings.

The board has also welcomed five new members, bringing energy and enthusiasm to our mission of inspiring lifelong loyalty and pride among alumni and friends. Our new members include Justin Lewis, Kate Pripusich-Sienkiewicz, Robert Risser, Richard Sieracki and Michael Vitale.

Some of you may recognize a familiar face among these alumni, thinking back to your days on campus, various times and tenures over your career, and overall involvement in the civil engineering profession. If you recognize one of our new or current board members, I encourage you to reach out to them – congratulate them on their commitment to the CEE department, reestablish contact that may have been lost in the shuffle over the years, or introduce yourself to them as an alumnus or alumna who wants to support our department and our university.

Resiliency, the capability to adjust to adversity or change, allows us not only to survive but in some cases to thrive. It helps us weather challenges, recognizing that as Frederick Douglass said, “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” The CEE department continues to steadily and creatively meet challenges and uncertainties – some predictable and inspiring, others confounding and frustrating.

Although the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is the state’s flagship university, it has not been insulated from increasing financial demands and a precarious economic environment. Despite the struggles resulting from the state budget stalemate and resulting lack of funding, Illinois was once again ranked as having the #1 undergraduate civil engineering program by U.S. News and World Report – definite progress (even if we have achieved this rung before), although it has not been without great effort and creativity. There is no doubt the department has effectively met significant challenges to achieve this ranking again, demonstrating a resilient ability to find solutions while at the same time focusing on the future. Under the leadership of department head Benito Mariñas, the department continues to look forward and move toward facility improvements, expanding programs, stretching the global and online footprints of CEE, all while navigating the financial uncertainties of the state budget situation. This means not only working with fewer resources to both support current and recruit new top academic and research talent, but continuing to attract the best and brightest students, not only maintaining infrastructure but expanding and modernizing it, and continuing to educate and foster tomorrow’s civil and environmental leaders. CEE at Illinois is not just surviving but thriving.

As we look forward without sensing imminent funding relief or economic change, I would encourage those of us who have enjoyed the benefits of a CEE degree to support the department in any way you can. Certainly, financial support is (greatly) appreciated, but importantly, there are other opportunities – advocate

Despite the struggles resulting from the state budget stalemate and resulting lack of funding, Illinois was once again ranked as having the #1 undergraduate civil engineering program by U.S. News and World Report.

Continued on page 8 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 7

Change is in the air Continued from page 7 for the department/CEE program, recruit graduates, consider mentoring students, participate in CEEAA events, participate as a speaker/practitioner in the Backpack2Briefcase program to help students prepare for the transition to professional life, consider joining the board – the list is long, the opportunities many. Help make sure that the CEE program continues to lead among universities educating civil and environmental engineers. Our profession needs these capable and brilliant engineers to continue to change the world.

I recently had the honor of giving the CEEAA board’s inaugural Distinguished Faculty Award to Professor Bill Hall. For those of you that may not have had the good fortune to cross paths with Professor Hall, it is worthy to note that he spent his entire career at Illinois, helping to build the reputation and profile of the department and making a difference in the educations and experiences of many students.

While Professor Hall has retired, he continues to serve as an example of how committed and brilliant individuals have laid the foundation for the department – one that we all continue to benefit from long after we have completed our on-campus education.

Another department alumnus was also honored this year. George Halas was inducted into the Engineering at Illinois Hall of Fame as one of five in the Class of 2016. Papa Bear Halas graduated in 1918 with a B.S. in civil engineering, although he spent nearly his entire professional career with the Chicago Bears. Did you ever wonder where the Bears uniform colors originated?

I hope to get the chance to interact with many of you during my tenure as president of the CEEAA and perhaps encourage you to get involved, participate and support. Help us thrive.

Go Illini! i

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cee.illinois.edu

CEE biomechanics researchers make important contributions to medicine

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ne day your activity tracker might do a lot more than just count your steps. Someday it might measure the mechanical response of your skin, bones and blood and alert you to early changes that could signal developing health problems. This idea could be only a few years away, according to Ahmed Elbanna, CEE assistant professor in structures, who like other CEE at Illinois professors is conducting research in biomechanics, the science of studying the mechanical responses of biological materials and systems as a way to understand their condition.

The field of mechanics – a fundamental emphasis in the education of civil and environmental engineers that deals with the behavior of materials when subjected to forces – is poised to revolutionize the field of medicine. As a result, Elbanna and other CEE at Illinois researchers are finding biomedical applications for their work in mechanics, opening doors for challenging new areas of research and interdisciplinary collaboration. Their work is creating knowledge and advancing the science of mechanics for all applications, providing unique research opportunities for CEE students, and promising innovations to civil and environmental engineering through biomimicry.

Understanding bone fracture

Trained as a structural engineer, Elbanna’s work was originally in earthquake mechanics, focused on understanding fracture in quasi-brittle materials. This work provided a foundation for his work today in understanding more about bone fracture. Bone has a structure similar to geological materials, he said, with brittle mineral portions connected by interfaces of softer materials. His research is focused on understanding the mechani-

cal responses of interfaces in bone and the effect of bone’s microstructure arrangement on the mechanical behavior.

Elbanna and his team are building computational models to better understand what factors contribute to bone fractures and illuminate ways to prevent them. The results should yield benefits in both medicine and civil engineering, he said.

“If we understand better how bone fractures, we might be able to design therapeutic intervention methods that can stimulate the mechanisms that help resist the fracture, or at least design transplants and replacements that are friendlier to the bone microstructure,” Elbanna said.

Bone is also a material that engineers would like to mimic, because of the way its microstructure helps it resist fracture.

A deeper understanding of bone as a material could lead to stronger building materials, Elbanna said.

“There is great interest in bio-inspiration and biomimicry, because people are discovering more and more biological materials that have remarkable properties, and we can use some of that to design new materials,” Elbanna said. “Materials and mechanics have always been part of civil engineering, it’s just that the historical focus was more on the engineering application. Now with boundaries getting lowered, people start talking with one another and realizing we can really learn from one another.”

The key is a focus on the fundamentals, he said.

“There are so many principles that are common to so many different problems,” Elbanna said. “If we understand the principles directly we can apply them, because it’s all mechanics and physics and math.”

Paying attention to the mechanical properties of biomaterials opens up a whole new way to assess health and ap-

The urge to have a more quantitative approach to biology and medicine, and also this emerging interest in connecting mechanical ©istockphoto.com/svisio

properties to health properties, are very intriguing. proach treatment. said, so less is known about Even the wrinkles “The urge to soft materials. His research is on your skin fundamental and has applicahave a more quantion in both engineering – for titative approach are the result of example, in understanding to biology and a mechanical wear and tear on tires – and in medicine, and also medicine, in understanding this emerging ininstability. damage to biological tissue. terest in connect“The modeling of soft maing mechanical properties to health properties, are very terials mathematically is very complicatintriguing,” Elbanna said. “Even the wrin- ed, so there are actually very nice mathkles on your skin are the result of a me- ematical challenges associated with it as well,” Lopez-Pamies said. “My motivation chanical instability.” is both the mathematical challenge, as well as the fact that the applications are Understanding fracture and very interesting.” healing in soft tissues One biomedical application for his The desire to tackle challenging problems is part of what attracted Oscar work is in determining the severity that Lopez-Pamies, CEE associate professor the presence of certain defects may have in structures, to his current work in un- in arterial walls and whether they require derstanding fracture and healing in soft surgical intervention. Another applicamaterials. One of his research goals is to tion could be in fine-tuning the standard unveil the fundamentals of how failure treatment for kidney stones, which utiinitiates and propagates in soft matter. lizes sound waves to target and break up Up until now, much of this kind of work the stones, striking the soft tissue of the was focused on standard hard materi- kidney on the way in. Mathematical modals like concrete and steel, Lopez-Pamies els that lead to a better understanding of

the fracture of soft tissue could help doctors determine the need for, and the likely outcome of, medical interventions.

“The goal is to develop a theory that is predictive – a set of equations that will describe the system and then predict how it will behave under certain loads,” LopezPamies said. “That’s very fundamental, and that’s ambitious. Can you write a set of equations that describes and predicts what will happen? If you have that, you can predict the future.”

Early prediction of malaria

Early prediction of the onset of malaria based on the mechanical response of a person’s blood cells is the focus of research by Youssef Hashash, CEE professor in geotechnical engineering. His team utilized data generated by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), who had previously measured the mechanical properties of human blood cells as they became infected with malaria. Hashash took the MIT data set to the next level using a tool developed Continued on page 10

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 9

It is interesting to take tools that we’ve developed for civil systems – steel, concrete, soil, clays and sands – and extend them to biological material.

Continued from page 9 nearly 20 years ago by structures faculty member Jamshid Ghaboussi, now a CEE emeritus professor. Ghaboussi’s method is called an auto-progressive algorithm, a set of equations that enables researchers to determine the properties of various elements of a system by measuring the mechanical response of the system as a whole. The auto-progressive algorithm also continuously learns from laboratory and field observations. Now part of a software called selfSim and patented by the University of Illinois, the tool has been utilized in a range of applications. Hashash used it to analyze the MIT researchers’ data set, with the goal of understanding in a more fundamental way what was happening to the mechanical response of a red blood cell as it became infected with malaria. Through this work, he developed a fuller picture of the evolution of changes in the cells, with an eye toward early detection and more effective treatment.

“It is interesting to take tools that we’ve developed for civil systems – steel, concrete, soil, clays and sands – and extend them to biological material,” said Hashash. “That, to me, is a really nice link.”

A systems-based approach to medicine

Using the auto-progressive algorithm, Ghaboussi has worked with other collaborators on a range of biomechanical projects, including one with David Pecknold (MS 66, PhD 68), a CEE emeritus professor, Hashash and CEE alumnus Tae-Hyun Kwon (MS 02, PhD 06) that developed a more accurate method for testing intraocular pressure, an important step in glaucoma screening. They also determined the material properties of the cornea, allowing them to simulate eye surgeries in advance for better results.

The University of Illinois has patented this method. A current project with Professor Michael Insana in Illinois’ Department of Bioengineering is working to develop an improved method of breast cancer screening involving palpation with a 10 10 cee.illinois.edu/give cee.illinois.edu

glove fitted with small ultrasound devices in the fingertips. The screening method will offer doctors not only breast imaging but also the quantitative properties of the observed tissues, which could offer important information about disease progression and malignancy. University of Illinois is in the process of applying for a patent for this method, as well.

A structural engineer whose area of expertise was originally in computational mechanics, Ghaboussi began working nearly 30 years ago in the area of computational intelligence, the science of modeling how natural systems work. Many things can be understood better when viewed as part of complex systems, he said. Ghaboussi and Insana have completed work on a book, “Understanding Systems: A Grand Challenge for 21st Century Engineering” that will be published in 2017. In it, they challenge engineers to apply a systems perspective to everbroader areas.

“Complex systems are present everywhere, including buildings and our bodies and our organs and our immune system and our brains,” Ghaboussi said.

“Our contribution is introducing a new way of broadening this concept of the complex system and bringing it to the field of medicine. … They’ve been studying buildings for 200 years, so we know what’s happening in a building and we can simulate it, but we don’t know how to do that for bodies because we haven‘t looked at it in that context.”

This perspective opens opportunities for engineers to contribute in completely new ways, Ghaboussi said, such as bioengineering and beyond, to a range of societal problems.

“This way of thinking doesn’t say that engineers shouldn’t be able to do what they’re doing now. It’s saying that engineers should, in addition to that, have a broader view of the systems they’re working on and how they interact,” he said. “The role of a leader is to take important steps that others are not willing to do. It’s up to departments like ours to take this very difficult step.”

Better blood-flow models

CEE Professor Arif Masud is yet another faculty member doing research in biomechanics using more sophisticated versions of computational tools initially developed for civil engineering. A structures professor with expertise in fluid mechanics, Masud’s first foray into biomechanics was in developing a new class of blood flow models. The research built on his own previous work modeling oil, which has a similar viscosity to blood. The numerical models required some adjustment, in collaboration with medical personnel, to reflect the complexity of working with biological materials.

“Biomechanics takes the principles of mechanics a notch higher,” Masud said.

“You are dealing with materials which you cannot completely control. In civil engineering, we are dealing with materials like steel or concrete – material which we know will perform the same if we come back tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Biomaterials get affected by so many different factors – patient health, dietary habits, medication – and that affects their mechanics. Here we are dealing with a material in which, on a daily basis, its response changes.”

A significant accomplishment of Masud’s team was related to heart transplant patients who received Ventricular Assist Devices (VADs), or artificial hearts. About 20 percent of these patients were reported to suffer from strokes, because of plaque build-up in a particular section of the carotid artery. Via high-performance computing on the Blue Waters supercomputer at Illinois’ National Center for Supercomputing Applications, the team determined that the lack of a pulse, which naturally functions to keep the blood from pooling and thickening into plaque, was a contributing factor. Natural hearts beat, creating a pulse; artificial hearts did not. Masud’s team also calculated how many beats per minute were required to keep the blood from coagulating. Sixty beats per second is normal, but it turned out 10 to 12 beats per minute was all that

Can you write a set of equations that describes and predicts what will happen?

If you have that, you can predict the future. was needed to create enough hydrodynamic forces to prevent clotting. The key to figuring this out was based in the fundamentals of fluid mechanics, understanding of nonlinear material behavior, and being able to carry out massive computations on the Blue Waters platform, Masud said.

“It was because of those fundamentals that we could figure out what the underlying issue was,” Masud said. “When it comes to using mathematics and computers, I think my students are better prepared than bioengineering students who know a lot about the physiology but not what needs to be fixed in the mathematical tools.”

Masud is currently working with cardiologists at the Carle Clinic in Urbana and with surgeons at Advocate Christ Medical Center’s Center for Heart Transplant and Assist Devices in Oak Lawn, Ill. This strong basis in the fundamentals has made CEE research applicable to a range of fields, said Masud, and an openness to interdisciplinary collaboration has helped CEE at Illinois researchers make these connections, he said.

“I became a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, but I did not do anything specific especially for them for a single day in my life!” he said.

“Papers I’ve written are fundamental, and then I show an application in aerospace engineering and mechanical engineering problems, and that is all. I would go and present to their conferences, but the work was hardcore method development done in civil engineering. The fundamentals have application everywhere.”

Better modeling of cell responses

This is a perspective shared by CEE Assistant Professor Rosa Espinosa Marzal, an environmental engineering faculty member with research interests in nanomaterials and their effects on human health.

Espinosa Marzal’s team has developed a highly accurate, mechanics-based system to physically model a human cell’s re-

sponse to nanomaterials. Their goal is to determine the danger to human health of the most common nanoparticles that end up in the environment as a result of manufacturing and other industrial activities – metals, silicone particles and carbon particles.

Knowing the effect these nanoparticles have on human health is important for policymakers, she said. In addition, the team is creating fundamental knowledge about the mechanics of the surfaces of human cells, which will enable more accurate results for a wide range of research on human cells. Espinosa Marzal’s model has proven more accurate than classical model systems, because it measures the mechanical behavior of a cell surface when it interacts with a nanoparticle, taking into account deformation of the cell surface, a critical aspect. The next step is to make the model even more accurate by adding the effect of proteins on the cell surface, she said.

Why should a civil engineer work in such an area?

“The knowledge that we have in mechanics is huge compared to other disciplines,” Espinosa Marzal said. “The level of mechanics that we teach here to our students is a high level. [To work in biomechanics] you need collaborations with someone on the biological side. These systems are more challenging, but from the mechanics point of view, nobody could beat us.”

As plans coalesce for a new engineering-focused medical college on the Urbana-Champaign campus, CEE professors working in biomechanics are hoping to find even more opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration.

For a while, Masud said, he downplayed his work in biomechanics because it wasn’t traditional work for a structural engineering professor, but a conversation with Robert H. Dodds Jr., head of CEE at Illinois when Masud joined the faculty in 2006, encouraged him to continue.

“Bob Dodds said, ‘This is going to be the new face of civil engineering,’” Masud said. i

Ahmed Elbanna cee.illinois.edu/faculty/ahmedelbanna

Rosa Espinosa Marzal cee.illinois.edu/faculty/rosaespinosa

Jamshid Ghaboussi cee.illinois.edu/faculty/jamshidghaboussi

Youssef Hashash cee.illinois.edu/faculty/youssefhashash

Oscar Lopez-Pamies cee.illinois.edu/faculty/oscarlopezpamies

Arif Masud cee.illinois.edu/faculty/masud

Civiland andEnvironmental EnvironmentalEngineering EngineeringAlumni AlumniAssociation—Winter Association—Spring2016 2016 11 11 Civil

Celebrating 150 years of history In 2017, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will celebrate its sesquicentennial, that is, the 150th anniversary of its founding. As one of the original branches of study, CEE at Illinois will also be celebrating the landmark occasion.

The Land-Grant College Act (or Morrill Act), signed

by Abraham Lincoln on July 2, 1862, donated public land to states for the establishment of colleges specializing in “agriculture and the mechanic arts.”The Federal Government granted each state 30,000 acres of land for each of its representatives and senators in Congress. Illinois was granted 480,000 acres of land, and in 1867—just two years after the end of the Civil War—the Illinois Industrial University was founded.

The first course catalogue for Illinois Industrial University (renamed University of Illinois in 1885) listed nine schools or departments of instruction that were “organized, or will be as soon as required”: Science, Literature, and Arts; Agriculture; Mechanical Science and Art; Military Tactics and Engineering; Mining and Metallurgy; Analytical and Applied Chemistry; Natural History, Practical Geology, etc.; Commercial Science and Art; and Civil Engineering.

University opens Illinois Industrial University, founded in 1867, opened to students on Monday, March 2, 1868. Inauguration took place the following week in University Hall, on March 11, 1868:

“The platform and walls were suitably draped with the national flag. The wall, in the rear of the platform, was decorated with a picture of Washington, the great Farmer of the Revolutionary period, supported on either hand by the American eagle, and crowned above, in letters of evergreen, with the University motto, of ‘Learning and Labor.’”

The Elephant View of the Old University Building (circa 1870), known as the Elephant, where students lived and took classes.

Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Archives.

Elsewhere in 1867-68…

• Nebraska admitted to the Union as the 37th state • U.S. buys Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000 • First U.S. elevated railroad begins service, in NYC

Tuition and fees

Enrollment

Tuition and estimated expenses, listed in the 1868 Course Catalogue:

Spring 1868: University total – 77 1868-69: University total – 136 1869-70: C ivil Engineering – 1 University total – 180

Students from Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $15.00 per annum Students from other states . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $20.00 per annum Matriculation fee of all students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $10.00 per annum Incidentals, care and warming of public rooms . . . . . . $2.50 per term Room rent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $4 per term Board in Hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $108.00 to $126.00 Fuel and lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $10.50 to $15.50 Washing, 75¢ per dozen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $10.00 to $15.00 “Many young men reduce the expense to within $100 a year, and pay this by their labor during the year. It ought to be known that any young man can pay his way through college who is willing, for the sake of an education, to practice steadily the virtues of industry and economy.” — 1868 Course Catalogue

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1870-71: C ivil and Mining Engineering – 2 Civil Engineering – 23 University total – 278 1871-72: C ivil Engineering – 46 University total – 381 1872-73: C ivil Engineering – 51 University total – 400 1873-74: C ivil Engineering – 48 University total – 405

First faculty

First CE Professor The 1869 university catalogue lists the first professor of Civil Engineering, Samuel Walker Shattuck (center portrait on the left side). The same year, he was also listed as Instructor in Mathematics. Prior to 1869, he was Assistant Professor of Mathematics, and Instructor in Military Tactics.

His annual salary was $1,200. The following year, Shattuck was listed only as Professor of Mathematics, and the department was administered

by Stillman W. Robinson, Professor of Mechanical Science and Engineering.

Portaits of the first faculty members at the University featuring Regent John Milton Gregory in the center and surrounded by 12 members of the faculty, circa 1869. Although the photo is not labeled, the 1868-69 Course Catalog lists the following 11 professors: William M. Baker, George W. Atheron, J. W. Powell, Willard F. Bliss, A.P.S. Stuart, Thomas J. Burrill, S. W. Shattuck, Edward Snyder, Jonathan Periam, John A. Warder, Edward Eggleston Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Archives.

“The department of mechanics and civil engineering will demand a cabinet of models and drawings of machinery, architectural plans and plans of roads, bridges and other structures, and specimens of building materials, as the various woods, marbles, granites and more common building stones.”

Board of Trustees report, 1867-68

Elsewhere in 1869…

• Cincinnati Red Stockings become first professional baseball team • Thomas Edison patents his first device: an electric voting machine • Union and Central Pacific Railroads join their rails at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory, where the Golden Spike is driven

Female students admitted On March 9, 1870, the Trustees voted to admit female students “as soon as suitable accommodations can be provided. Ladies already attend the lecture course, and early preparations will be made to afford them the full benefits of the institution.”

Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Archives.

Association—Spring 2016 13 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter

Elsewhere in 1871…

In 1871, fire rages through Chicago, killing 200 and destroying more than four square miles of Chicago buildings.

Department becomes separate unit In 1871, the Civil Engineering Department becomes a separate unit.

Professor J. Burkitt Webb was appointed as Professor of Civil Engineering and first head of the department.

J.B. Webb

First Year

Third Year

ometry First Term: Descriptive Ge Projections g, ttin Cu applied to Stone rfaces. of the Earth, Warped Su d results of an ry, eo Mathematical Th ength of Str the on Experiments up ity of Girder, bil Sta the Materials, and of d Arch Bridges, Suspension, Tubular an d Frames. and of Retaining Walls an gineering En of s ion Plans and Elevat Constructions Second Year g, yin rve Su l ica d Distribution ph gra First Term: Topo Second Term: Supply an g, yin rve Su l ica ph Gas, gra of dro on tributi Elements of Hy ys of Water, Dis rve Su l ica ph gra ines, Plans po ch To Ma of of Leveling, Maps Drainage. Theory ring, ee g, gin rin En il Enginee and Elevations of Second Term: Mahan’s Civ awing Dr ine ch g Engineerin Constructions. Ma Plans and Elevations of termining Constructions Third Term: Method of de ds of the tho Me . ads and the form of the Earth Third Term: Gillespie’s Ro signs De y. rve g, Su Canal Surveyin United States Coast Railroads, Railroad and s, and ine ch Ma al ys ons of Surve and Reviews of Speci Plans, Profiles and Secti ssion cu Dis ns. tio Engineering Construc Work ld Fie ral ne Ge . of Scientific Subjects

g, First Term: Chain Surveyin Drawing l ica Mensuration, Geometr Geometry, Second Term: Descriptive Geometrical Drawing d Transit Land Third Term: Compass an ts, Maps of Farm Surveying, Leveling Pla Surveys

“The apparatus for surveying and engineering embraces all the field instruments necessary for making Government land surveys, farm surveys, railroad and topographical surveying and leveling, as the Transit Theodolite, a Level from Newton & Co.’s, London, with two leveling rods— the ordinary and the self-reading; a first-class Vernier compass; best brazed-link steel chains—Gunter’s and Engineer’s; also the necessary instruments for the new Stadiar surveying, as adopted in the Government surveys.”

Board of Trustees, 1869-70

Campus View At right: Photo (circa 1873) shot from south of Green Street looking north across Green Street, the Silver Creek (Boneyard Creek), and the Champaign and Urbana Horse Railroad with the University Building (‘The Elephant’) in the center-left of the background and the old Mechanical Building in the center-right.

College of Engineering In the 1871-72 Course Catalogue, the College of Engineering is listed as one of four Colleges (along with Agriculture, Natural Science, and Literature and Science) for the first time.

Within the College of Engineering are four schools: School of Mechanical Science, School of Civil Engineering, School of Mining Engineering, and School of Architecture.

Ira O. Baker

Ira O. Baker, who first appeared on the student rolls in the 1870-71 catalogue, graduated in 1874. He would later become Assistant Professor (1879), then Professor in Charge of Civil Engineering (1880).

Elsewhere in 1872…

• Yellowstone National Park was appointed the United States’ first national park • Montgomery Ward begins first mail-order catalog • Patents granted for fire extinguisher, gasoline powered engine, triple air brakes for trains, and dried milk

First Commencement The first commencement was held Thursday, June 6, 1872.

Graduating class: Burwash, Milo B. Davis, John J. Drewry, Henry N. Flagg, Alfred M. Hatch, Miles F. Hill, Edgar L. Lyman, George H.* Matthews, James N. Parker, Calvin E. Porterfield, E. Newlan Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Archives.

Reiss, Willis A.* Reynolds, Stephen A. Rickard, Thomas Ricker, N. Clifford Rolfe, Charles W. Silver, Charles W. Silver, Howard Wharton, Jacob N. Whitcomb, Alonzo Wood, Reuben O.

* course of study listed as Civil Engineering in 1871-1872 catalogue

For a more detailed history of CEE at Illinois, visit cee.illinois.edu/history or scan this QR code on your mobile device:

Photo courtesy of the University of Illinois Archives.

Traveling to different places and exploring different cultures really makes me a complete person who has an open mind and awareness of existing issues.

Yanbing Wang (Junior, CEE at Illinois student from China)

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GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES As the world continues to grow more globally connected, the next generation of civil and environmental engineers have a wide variety of career paths — and locations — open to them. Graduating students are faced with opportunities in both the private and public sectors that could take them anywhere from rural Uganda to bustling Hong Kong. Even those that stay closer to home will undoubtedly find themselves working with people of different nationalities. CEE at Illinois has embraced the realities of these modern times, fostering an environment where opportunity exists for students to gain experience abroad, where international students are a welcome and vital part of the student body, and where the curriculum continues to adapt to an ever-changing world.

We are taking a more global approach in our educational programs because CEE at Illinois alumni and their companies are getting more involved in international projects.

Benito Mariñas, Department Head

New options available for students who want to go global M.S. program for the new generation of global engineers

Illinois and Zhejiang University partner on Institute for Engineering

Global CEE is a new M.S. program within the department that is designed to give students a foundation in the skills required to become engineering leaders and managers, while providing global experience along the way.

The competitive program will take two years to complete and features a summer internship at an international or U.S. civil or environmental engineering firm, a semester abroad, and professional practice seminars with CEE alumni and corporate partners. Students must also complete all of the same technical requirements for the non-thesis Master’s degree.

“The practice of the civil and environmental engineering profession has expanded dramatically to be one that crosses not only local and state boundaries but also country and cultural borders,” said Professor Jeff Roesler, Associate Head for Graduate Affairs. “Our students are recognizing this new paradigm and desiring more international experiences as part of their undergraduate and graduate education.”

Additionally, Roesler said, the department believes students need an extended stay internationally for a deeper understanding of technical challenges in a different culture and country, language training, and the experience of attending a foreign university that teaches courses in CEE. “Now graduate students enrolled in our CEE M.S. program can have an experience that would be almost impossible to achieve on their own,” he said.

Zhejiang University – University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign Institute (Joint Institute) recently welcomed its first students: the Class of 2020. The Institute is part of Zheijiang University’s new international campus in Haining, China. Zhejiang University is one of China’s oldest and highest ranked universities, with a strong engineering program. The international campus will bring together leading programs in the liberal arts, the sciences, engineering, business and biomedical sciences for students from around the world.

When fully operational, the Joint Institute will provide civil engineering, computer engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering courses based on Engineering at Illinois’ curriculum. The electrical and computer engineering courses launched this year, with the additional engineering disciplines to be added in subsequent years. Some of the classes will be taught by current Illinois faculty, and all new faculty members will be trained to Illinois’ standards. Because the Joint Institute curriculum mirrors the Engineering at Illinois program, with classes conducted in English, interested Illinois students will have a unique opportunity to study abroad while taking the same engineering classes they would at home.

Graduating students will receive a degree from Zhejiang University, as well as certification from Zhejiang University and the University of Illinois.

For more, visit engineering.illinois.edu/news/article/16405.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 17

Cooperative “3+2” agreements bring top international students to CEE at Illinois In 2010, CEE at Illinois embarked on a from our international peer programs,” Liu new direction in global engagement: co- said. “At the same time, with the potential operative agreements with international of supporting/encouraging CEE’s domesuniversities that would bring the best tic students to travel and study abroad to students from other top CEE programs enhance their international experiences.” throughout the world to study at Illinois Professor Erol Tutumluer was appointduring their senior years, and continue on ed as the department’s first Director of Into earn a Master’s degree. These agree- ternational Programs in March 2011 and ments were the start of the 3+2 B.S.+M.S. has continued to grow the 3+2 B.S.+M.S. Program, in which students spend three program in the intervening years. As of years at their home university and two fall 2016, CEE at Illinois has agreements years at Illinois to finish their B.S. and earn with 12 partner institutions with two their M.S. more in the process of being finalized. TuFourteen students arrived on campus tumluer said there is great interest from in Fall 2011, hailing from four universities: international universities to partner with Istanbul Technical University, Dalian Uni- CEE at Illinois, and that the students who versity of Technology, Zhejiang University are selected to participate are of the highand Tongji University. Associate Professor Liang Liu, “They’re top quality, cream of the who was involved with early from their universities.” planning and implementation of the program, said that the factors in selecting which schools est caliber. to partner with included academic ex“They’re top quality, cream of the crop cellence; existing collaboration and ex- from their universities,” Tutumluer said. change of faculty, administrators and in- “They know they’re coming to the numstitutions; and the compatibility between ber one department in the U.S. at CEE at the curricula of the departments. The Illinois, so they know this is the top level leadership team at CEE at Illinois also con- of education they’ll be receiving for their sidered global connections and impacts future careers.” as they explored the partnerships.

Hannah Christensen, Coordinator of “We hope that through the partner- International Programs, said that learnships we will bring in the best students ing American culture is another draw for 18

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many of the international students. To facilitate this, international students who participate in an intensive English course are paired with conversation partners.

“The idea is that there is a cultural exchange as well as practicing the English language,” she said.

Christensen also shared an anecdote about an international student who had a research appointment over the summer, after her first year at Illinois. The student mentioned that her favorite part of the experience was being in the lab with other students and learning about the culture.

The student noted that at first she didn’t understand the jokes and casual conversation, but by the end of the summer she was catching on and could participate more. crop Additionally, Tutumluer said, many of the students find time to participate in extracurricular activities on campus, becoming members of campus organizations and student groups, including those within CEE. These experiences give them more exposure and a very good cultural experience, he said.

Dai Teng, a recent alumnus of the program (see sidebar), said that there were difficulties adjusting to a different country both in and out of the classroom, though the diverse campus population

Meet Dai Teng (MS 14)

Dai Teng (MS 14) is an alumnus of the 3+2 BS+MS program. Born and raised in Harbin, China, Teng earned a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from Dalian University of Technology before coming to CEE at Illinois to earn his M.S. degree in Structural Engineering. Teng took some time out of his day to answer a few questions about his experiences.

and plenty of helpful people made it easier to fit in.

“The biggest challenge is the language,” he said. “Learning from the text book is always different from applying to the reality. In the first month, I couldn’t understand anything other than basic words. Professional terms, slang and fast speaking speed of local people made life full of mystery. But it improved as time went by. Living style difference is another challenge. America is more open, and with more friendly people. Everything seems to go in a free and relaxed way, but in the same time they obey very restricted rules. Trying to figure out how to behave in an appropriate way for specific occasions took lots of thinking.”

Teng added that in a university as diverse as Illinois, and a country as diverse as the United States, the boundary between native and international has become fuzzy. Students have to learn to study and live with others from different cultures, and as a result they accept each other and help each other.

“In the end, we cannot live without each other since the world is more and more globalized,” he said. “As a structural engineer, I have been dealing with developers from all different countries: China, India and France… if I didn’t know the classmates from those countries, I wouldn’t know why they have specific requirements for their buildings. It’s all about learning more from other people, and [Illinois] provided me such a great platform to do so.”

How did you learn about the 3+2 program, and why did you decide to apply?

One of my classmates was very interested in going out of the country for study, so he knows all the programs run by the university, and he got me introduced.

I figured the program is very time efficient and [Illinois] is the one of the best engineering school in the world and CEE ranked # 1 the year I applied, so I tried my luck.

What were the advantages of earning your degree at Illinois, as part of the 3+2 program?

Being part of one of the most famous and successful organizations not only enhanced my professional skills in the structural engineering industry, but also gave me the opportunity of knowing top students and widened my network. Furthermore, the program is very time efficient. By the time my school mates graduated, I have already had at least one year experience.

Do you feel like your experience with the 3+2 program and the resulting degree was an advantage when you were applying for jobs?

The degree obtained from such a famous school really helped me get the offer from companies. [Being] labeled as graduate from [Illinois] has already attracted lots of attention, and [the] good training I got from school guaranteed I have the ability to be the best candidate.

Did interacting with people of different nationalities/backgrounds have an impact on you when you were taking classes?

Yes, it definitely had impact on me interacting with people of different culture.

Different education systems of different country makes the campus a great platform for us to share resources. I learned different study methods from classmates of other counties. Also, some hard study students really pushed me to become a better student as well.

Did having this sort of cross-cultural exposure help you at all when you transitioned to a professional working environment? If so, how?

Yes, it [was] the same concept as learning in the school. Furthermore, by knowing all the classmates from different cultures [I] extend[ed] my professional network. Especially I found it would be very easy to get along with other people from other culture since I had been exposed to an environment with people that have the same culture. It made me understand their culture easily in the professional working environment, even it would help me to understand what my clients were thinking based on my experience dealing with people [that] had the same background.

What are you doing now, professionally?

I am currently working in a structural engineering consultant firm as a structural engineer in California. I have been designing several buildings in Los Angeles, some of them are under construction and will be landmarks in the downtown LA. Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 19

Resources make transition easier for international students Life in the U.S. and on campus can be bewildering for international students who have left everything familiar behind in order to study at Illinois. The university offers many resources available to help make the transition easier.

Welcome Receptions and Orientations: In addition to orientation sessions for all new graduate and undergraduate students, the College of Engineering hosts a reception each year to welcome international students and their families.

The reception gives students a chance to meet members of the College’s leadership team, and learn about campus resources available to both parents and students.

For students participating in CEE’s 3+2 B.S.+M.S. program, a reception at the beginning of the fall semester gives newcomers an opportunity to meet and mingle with CEE staff and faculty, as well as returning 3+2 students. Later in the semester, a luncheon for first year 3+2 students gives them a chance to talk to faculty, administrators and each other about some of the challenges and successes they’ve experienced. The luncheon allows program administrators to check in with the students outside of the classroom, and further fosters a sense of community.

International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS): ISSS serves the international student population through advising, immigration services, programming, advocacy and outreach. ISSS maintains a website (isss.illinois.edu) loaded with helpful information, and they also hold

orientation sessions covering topics such as student insurance/healthcare, maintaining visas, banking and safety.

Through ISSS, international students can get help with problems, participate in a variety of activities designed to help them adjust to life on campus, make new friends, practice English, and connect with other students and local community members.

Student Organizations: Student organizations are another way for international students to be active in the campus community and meet others with similar interests. In addition to the many campus-wide international student groups (such as the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, the Muslim Student Association, and International Illini), there are several that are geared specifically to CEE at Illinois students (cee.illinois.edu/studentorgs). Most student organizations hold social events throughout the year, as well as regular meetings, giving members a chance to form friendships, support each other academically, and in some cases, network with industry professionals.

Department Events: All students are encouraged to attend departmentsponsored events, such as Backpack to Briefcase (CEE’s professional development seminar series), networking events, special seminars by returning alumni, and a variety of academic and social opportunities throughout the year. CEE staff and faculty want students to have the best possible college experience, and are always available to help.

Students in the 3+2 B.S.+M.S. program attend a luncheon with area faculty and administrators, including the Director of International Programs at CEE, Erol Tutumluer (center).

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Guillermo Dankert (center) mingles with other Illinois international students in front of Foellinger Auditorium.

Grad student offers tips to new students CEE grad student Guillermo Dankert remembers the personal and academic challenges he faced as a new international student, particularly during the first semester. He has since learned a thing or two.

Dankert, who is from Buenos Aires, noted that all international students are in a similar unfamiliar situation when they arrive on campus. He said that by just exchanging a few words with others you can start creating relationships that will turn into a circle of close friends. “[T]ry to be as open as possible, especially in the first weeks—that is when we have more time and when we may feel more alone. Be kind and just try to start talking to each person you meet, let them know where you are from and where you live,” he said.

Dankert was quickly able to expand his social circle by joining a soccer team and connecting with the local Argentinean community via Facebook. Meeting other Argentinians helped make things more “friendly,” especially at the beginning, he said.

Dankert warned that the first two months can be especially hard for students who are not native English speakers, because listening to, reading and speaking another language non-stop can be very tiring. Additionally, he said that by the time the third month rolls around students may feel particularly homesick, and that family members back home may not fully understand the challenges of living abroad.

“Don’t give up. After the finals everything comes back to normality, and by then you are going to feel that UrbanaChampaign is your home,” he said.

We very much welcome the international character of our student bodies because our domestic students are given a multicultural experience that makes them more effective engineers in the global arena, and our international students become advocates for USA cultural and professional values when they return to their home countries. — Professor and Head Benito Mariñas Mariñas attends an alumni reception in Shanghai.

Domestic students benefit from multi-cultural campus, global educational approach BRANDON LUNG (CEE at Illinois student from Park Ridge, Ill.) ON THE BENEFIT OF CROSS-CULTURAL INTERACTIONS… I believe that interacting with other students with different backgrounds helps gain a better understanding of how to work well with people. Looking from their perspective on culture and how they view the world encourages a learning institution to see the world in a larger picture. Not only will this help us be more empathetic towards others, but it will help us produce conducive brainstorming no matter the other’s culture.

ON FUTURE POSSIBILITIES… When I first arrived to U of I, I believed when I graduated that I was going to get ILANA SLUTSKY (CEE at Illinois student from Glenview, Ill.) ON CULTURAL DIFFERENCES… In addition to meeting peers from abroad at this university I have also gained an international perspective through a semester abroad in Madrid and a 2 week cultural immersion trip to China. From these experiences I was truly able to see how cultural differences play into interactions between people. These different mindsets are important to understanding in our global environment as it can have a strong impact on the communication between people of different cultures.

a job in the United States and maybe stay close to home. However, after being at U of I for four years, I now understand that there are many different countries that need civil engineers. civil engineers help people have an easier way of living.

The United States is already a developed country, and there is a greater need for civils in developing countries to establish a strong foundation for their people. It opened my mind to see all of the options that a degree from the [Department of ] Civil and Environmental Engineering can have on the entire world.

ON TRANSITIONING TO A PROFESSIONAL WORKPLACE… I feel like the way CEE immerses all the students together no matter their cul-

ture or religion helps establish a sense of normality when it comes to eventually working in the professional world. A diverse college allows students to transition well into the working world. It won’t come as a shock when you are dealing with clients or other co-workers that are much different from you because you learned to adapt to different people and cultures in college.

JULIA CHANG (CEE at Illinois student from Chicago, Ill.) ON STUDYING ABROAD… The University of Illinois is only a few hundred miles from home.

London is a few thousand. Going cross-continental exposed me to different people and different ways of life. There were no Walmarts or excessively stocked dining halls. I saw a society that focused much more on public transportation and conservative living. But at the same time, I noticed some cultural disconnects. I missed the easy openness and friendliness of American culture. I hated having to pay for public restrooms. I think it really helped me to discover what I loved about my home, and what needs to change. (about her fall 2015 semester abroad in London) ON BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS… Interacting with people of different nationalities/backgrounds has absolutely broadened my perspectives and knowledge of different nations and cultures. Within the department, I have worked with students from China, India, Pakistan, Ecuador and many more. It definitely breaks down barriers of “us” and “them” when we are working together on the same problem or project.

ON GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES… I think it’s very important to provide a global perspective in engineering because it is our responsibility to find better solutions to problems, and sometimes those solutions come from outside our borders.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 21

Student organization bridges gaps internationally CEE at Illinois students have access to a wide variety of student organizations, many of which have an international focus. One of these is the student chapter of Bridges to Prosperity (B2P), an international non-profit organization that builds footbridges over impassable rivers for isolated communities. Student chapters of B2P work with faculty advisers, B2P staff and professional engineers to raise money for building materials, design bridges, and travel to construct them in poor communities around the world.

Most of the members of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign student chapter of B2P are CEE students, including 12 who are officers. The president of the chapter is Vivian Wong, a senior undergraduate student from Toronto who is pursuing a B.S. in Civil Engineering with a concentration in Structural Engineering. She is also completing a minor in Architectural Studies.

“When I first heard about Bridges to Prosperity, I felt like its mission perfectly combines my interest in international volunteering work, as well as my background in civil engineering,” Wong said.

“With Bridges to Prosperity’s projects, I can bring my engineering skills to places where they need it the most.”

The chapter’s most recent project took place in the summer of 2016 and involved construction of a cable suspension bridge for the community of Patzu22

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la, located in the mountains of southern Guatemala. The Illinois chapter joined with the University of Toronto’s chapter and — after a period of collaboration that included finalizing the bridge design and logistics — the students spent three weeks on site, monitoring worker safety and assisting with hands-on construction. Students helped with surveying, digging the excavation, building steel rebar cages, casting steel cables, decking and fencing. The bridge was completed in 18 days, and was celebrated with a party that brought together the B2P team, community members, and municipal officials.

Wong said that helping a community in need was a truly great experience, and that improving the lives of others made all the effort worth it. Her experience in Guatemala impacted her so strongly that it affected her decision on a career path. Armed with first-hand knowledge of the importance of civil infrastructure in developing countries, she has decided to pursue a graduate degree in Civil Engineering and focus her research on designing solutions for various global challenges and improving the infrastructure in developing communities to make them more accessible, safe and resilient.

“Furthermore, an increasing number of professionals now do work across many countries and continents,” she said. “Therefore, it is beneficial for us to enhance our understanding in different

“The local community threw a huge party for us during the inauguration day.

The mayor and the school principal came to the party as well. It was a lot of fun because the people there were very [welcoming to] us, very polite and open-minded.

“I felt so satisfied to see that the children in Patzula were very excited during the bridge inauguration day that they jumped onto the bridge and ran back and forth. I think that was the moment that I decided to dedicate to this organization and do more to benefit the communities.

“I never felt this way in my life before because I haven’t had that much volunteering experience, but seeing the bridge being completed and local people are actually benefitting from it, I felt powerful that I can actually make others’ life better. I also felt a huge responsibility on my shoulder that a lot of people in the world today are in need of some infrastructure service that maybe we as university students can help to make possible.

“The hands-on experience definitely helps me with coursework because I had a great exposure to construction management, material use and technical design skills.”

Yanbing Wang CEE at Illinois student from China Internal VP & Treasurer, Bridges to Prosperity cultures and customs across the globe.

Doing international projects like this helps improve our global skillset, which is becoming increasingly important in the professional world.”

At top: Vivian Wong (left) and Yanbing Wang show off the newly completed bridge in Patzula, Guatemala.

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This academic year, we welcomed more alumni speakers than ever before.

Students got some very unique perspectives about the fascinating work CEE alumni are doing around the world.

1. Allen J. Staron (BS 74), Senior Vice President and Transportation Market Director for Clark Dietz Inc., pictured with CEE students, spoke on “Becoming an Alum.”

2. John Osgood (BS 79), President of United Fabrication, spoke to CEE student group leaders about what to expect in life after college.

3. Joseph C. Geagea (BS 81, MS 82), senior vice president of technology, projects and services at Chevron, pictured with CEE head Benito Mariñas and students, spoke for the second year in a row.

4. Randal K. Rhoads (BS 92), Geospatial Industry Manager, Harris Corporation, talked about the newest technology employed by his firm.

5. Robert Smilowitz (MS 73, PhD 77), Senior Principal, Thornton Tomasetti, pictured with Mariñas and students, spoke on his work in blast resistance.

6. Dennis B. Warner (BS 63, MS 66), Senior Technical Adviser for water supply, sanitation and water resources development with Catholic Relief Services, spoke about his career in international development.

7. James A. Hanlon (BS 72), Principal in Cadmus Group and former Director of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Wastewater Management, pictured with (left to right) Professor Jeff Roesler, Mariñas and Professor Vern Snoeyink, spoke about his work with the EPA, which resulted in a significant cleanup of U.S. waterways.

8. Jon E. Khachaturian (BS 78) president and CEO, Versabar Inc., (far right) pictured with his family by the Yeh Center classroom named for his parents, talked about his career in the heavy lifting industry.

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7 8 Pennant: ©istockphoto.com/ranplett

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 23

“We chose to give to the university to give back to a place that has had such a big impact on my life.

When I was in school I was fortunate to have benefitted from scholarships, and I’m happy to be in a position to give back.”

CEE AT ILLINOIS

Alumni Q&A Tomorrow’s Illini civil and environmental engineers have a few questions for today’s CEE senior Dennis Thurow interviews CEE alumnus Kevin Foster (BS 09, MS 10)

Kevin Foster

Kevin Foster (BS 09, MS 10) is Systems Completion Lead for ExxonMobil, currently working on the Hebron Project, a $14 billion oil platform that will be installed off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. Kevin lives in Newfoundland, Canada, with his wife, Vanessa. In 2015, Kevin and Vanessa made a gift to establish the Foster Research Scholarship Fund in the CEE department.

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Dennis Thurow

Dennis Thurow is a senior in CEE, scheduled to graduate in December of 2016 with a primary in construction management and a secondary in structural engineering. He has been a Student Adviser for the CEE department for two years and was a member of the Fighting Illini Football Team for three years. After graduation, he will join Power Construction in Chicago as a Project Engineer.

What led you to the field of construction management?

Since I was young, I’ve always liked to “build stuff.” Civil engineering was a natural fit. It was freshman year, during my CEE195 class, when we got an overview of all the different CEE primaries, when it became obvious to me that construction management was the area that really got me excited. There’s something about being at a site, working with the team to solve problems, and being able to see the results of that work in the field that really motivates me.

There are a lot of choices for construction management and civil engineering. What stood out to you about CEE at Illinois above the other options?

There’s not much that didn’t stand out. It’s a top-ranked program, has some of the best and most dedicated professors, great facilities, and excellent students to work with and learn from. Specifically, I remember during my senior year of high school attending SITE (Student Introduction to Engineering) on campus and getting to meet and hear from current students in Engineering. Everything I heard and saw got me excited about the U of I – the students, professors, Newmark crane bay, the engineering library, the quad, campus, Green Street, etc. Attending Engineering Open House in high school had the same impact.

Throughout your undergraduate studies and your year in the construction management master’s program, which professor was most influential in your development? How have your interactions with them helped you in industry?

Without a doubt, that’s Professor Liang Liu. I remember meeting Professor Liu my freshman year and his becoming my faculty adviser. As adviser, he helped me get involved in undergraduate research, introduced me to industry con-

The Hebron Project. Photo: ExxonMobil Canada Properties

tacts which led to internships, helped me plan my study abroad, assisted with numerous scholarship references and the list goes on. Through all these experiences my eyes were opened to different companies, industries, projects and cultures, and in turn this allowed me to realize what I was looking for in my career.

Outside of school work, what were some opportunities you took advantage of to get involved on campus?

There was no shortage of opportunities on campus – whether it was ASCE, Chi Epsilon, industry presentations on campus, the CEE alumni dinner and site visits, undergrad research, etc.

You are currently working on the Hebron Project for ExxonMobil, a roughly $14 billion offshore oil platform. Can you outline the major as-

pects of the project and some of the challenges that have come with it?

The project is a large offshore drilling and production platform that will get installed approximately 200 miles off the coast of Newfoundland. The project consists of four primary modules – two drilling modules, the Utilities/ Process module, and the Living Quarters. These modules were built in separate fabrication yards and are now being integrated together in Newfoundland.

One of the main complexities of the project was the project locations. The project had major engineering offices in Houston, Newfoundland, Beijing and Perth. Fabrication of two of the modules was in Korea, and of the other two modules in Newfoundland. Transportation and integration of the modules was also a significant feat. Transportation of the large module from Korea

to Newfoundland required one of the largest heavy-lift vessels in the world, for the two-month, 15,000-mile journey from Korea to Newfoundland.

You have held many different positions on The Hebron Project. What insight have you gained from contributing to such a large project in those different roles?

I’ve been very fortunate to have been on the project for the past five years. It’s been an incredible learning opportunity to experience everything from engineering, through equipment procurement, fabrication, commissioning and now getting into turnover to operations. It’s special to see something that started out as a concept with a small project team morph into a mega-project with thousands of workers.

Continued on page 26

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 2525

Soybean plants with fewer leaves yield more seeds

By Claire Benjamin, Communications Coordinator, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology

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Alumni Q&A continued from page 25 How do you feel the program at Illinois uniquely prepared you for the tasks and challenges associated with your work?

First and foremost, the ability to solve problems is the primary skill I learned in school and apply on the job. The technical knowledge that comes with an Illinois engineering degree is a big part of that.

It’s all the other experiences, from working on group projects and presentations; hearing about projects from industry presenters; taking non-engineering courses like business, human resources and law; and studying abroad that rounded out my education and prepared me for my career.

I understand you recently made a gift to establish a scholarship in CEE and that your company is matching your gift. Can you tell me why you believe in giving to the department in this way and what impact you hope your gift will have?

We chose to give to the university to give back to a place that has had such 26

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Above, Kevin and Vanessa Foster pose on the Alma Mater platform, during the sculpture’s recent removal for renovation. a big impact on my life. When I was in school I was fortunate to have benefitted from scholarships, and I’m happy to be in a position to give back. The scholarship is intended for underclassmen, and I hope it opens the door for the recipients to get engaged with the CEE department early on in their college careers.

Do you have any advice for current CEE students or anything else that you would like to share about your time at Illinois or your time with ExxonMobil?

While it might not seem like it, four years is a very short amount of time. Take advantage of your time in CEE at Illinois and get involved as soon as possible. The department offers so many opportunities whether it’s research, student organizations, site tours, industry presentations, international trips, etc. The experiences will broaden your knowledge and open your eyes to new opportunities. i

sing computer model simulations, scientists have predicted that modern soybean crops produce more leaves than they need to the detriment of yield — a problem made worse by rising atmospheric carbon dioxide. They tested their prediction by removing about one third of the emerging leaves on soybeans and found an 8 percent increase in seed yield in replicated trials. They attribute this boost in yield to increased photosynthesis, decreased respiration, and diversion of resources that would have been invested in more leaves than seeds.

“The reduction in leaves allows more sunlight to penetrate through the canopy making the whole plant more productive, and it also reduces crop water demand,” said the project lead Praveen Kumar, Lovell Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Currently, we achieve only a 1 percent annual increase in yields due to crop improvements, which has slowed in the last decade.

“This rate is insufficient to fulfill the needs for global food security, where we need to produce 70–100 percent more food by 2050 to feed an estimated 9.7 billion people,” said project co-lead Steve Long, Gutgsell Endowed Professor of Plant Biology and Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois’ Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology.

“We are trying to identify non-conventional techniques that can give us a quick boost in yield so that we can get

L. Brian Stauffer

CEE Professor Praveen Kumar, left, with collaborator Professor Steve Long of the Institute for Genomic Biology.

the plant can invest towards boosting yield. Alternatively, plants with fewer leaves are more water efficient, and thereby may be potentially drought tolerant.”

Next, the researchers will bioengineer plants or search for varieties that naturally have fewer leaves to test these preliminary findings on a larger scale. They will also continue exploring ways to optimize other aspects of this crop’s canopy of leaves such as the distribution and angle of leaves to design better soybean plants that yield more without the need for more water and other resources.

“We want to optimize the plant’s canopy structure so that we can get as much photosynthesis as possible out of the crop to increase the food supply,” Srinivasan said.

i This work is part of Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE), a multi-institutional research project that is developing high-yielding crops for farmers in SubSaharan Africa and Southeast Asia. Learn more about the project at ripe.illinois.edu.

The paper "Decreasing, not increasing, leaf area will raise crop yields under global atmospheric change" was published in Global Change Biology (DOI: 10.1111/

gcb.13526) and is available online or upon request. Funding from the National Science Foundation and RIPE project supported this research.

Claire Benjamin

closer to those predicted demands,” said first author Venkatraman Srinivasan, a postdoctoral researcher at Illinois. “Soybeans are one of the four major staple crops and also the most important vegetable protein source in the world. If we can increase the yield of soybeans, we can solve the problems of protein demand and food production at the same time.”

Published in Global Change Biology, their research found that soybean plants produce too many leaves, most of which are shaded and inefficient, thereby wasting resources like water, carbon and nitrogen.

“The model shows that by investing less in leaves, the plant can produce more seeds,” Srinivasan said.

The model predicted that a 30–40 percent decrease in leaf area would increase yields by 8–10 percent. In field trials, they decreased leaf area (by manually cutting off new leaflets) by just 5 percent and still increased yields by 8 percent.

“The experiment indicates that our model is conservative,” Srinivasan said.

“We hypothesize that plants with fewer leaves need less water, which requires fewer roots. Cutting down on roots could produce additional carbon savings that

Researchers manually cut off new leaflets to decrease leaf area by just 5 percent and increased yields by 8 percent.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 27

What are you working on?

CEE alumni are working on fascinating projects all over the world.

Let’s hear about some of them!

With this issue, we introduce a new feature, in which alumni tell about their current projects.

If you’d like to write about your project for a future issue of the CEE magazine, please contact Celeste Arbogast, celeste@illinois. edu, for details.

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National Forest Road Safety Audits Dan Malsom (BS 14) In August I moved to Austin, Texas where I now work as an engineering analyst with Kimley-Horn & Associates. Over the past two years, Kimley-Horn has been working with federal land management agencies across the country conducting Road Safety Audits (RSAs). In an RSA, an independent team of engineers conducts a field review of the road and recommends safety improvements to the owner.

This fall I joined the field review team, and our task was to conduct RSAs on roads in National Forests throughout the Western U.S. Over the course of this past summer and fall, our team visited and studied roads in nine forests across seven states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana, Oregon and Washington. I attended seven of the nine site visits.

As interest in public lands has grown across the country over the past 10 years, many National Forests have experienced increased use. Whether people visit

the forests to road trip, camp, hike, ride, boat or fish, all must use forest roads to reach their destinations. The roads we’ve studied have traveled up mountainsides, along reservoirs, and through narrow canyons. We’ve encountered cars, RVs, bikers, horseback riders, ATVs, and logging trucks. In the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest in Washington, we even saw someone in a wingsuit jumping from a mountain peak and flying above the road! From what we could tell, he landed safely.

These forests contain many of America’s greatest natural treasures, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to work with and learn from the engineers in each forest we’ve visited. The product of our work will be safety measures that the forests can implement at a low cost, and ones that result in a safer and more enjoyable drive for the ever-growing number of forest visitors. i

At left: Figure 1. Top left: Tracy Lundin. Above: Figure 2.

Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment Tracy Lundin (BS 80, MS 82) Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Batavia, Ill., is America’s premier particle physics laboratory. Fermilab performs pioneering research and operates world-leading particle accelerators and experiments in collaboration with scientists from around the world. At the leading edge of this research is the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), an international Mega-Science experiment that will employ the largest liquid-argon particle detector ever conceived, supported by the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF) project. Together, LBNF and DUNE are a billion-dollar-scale endeavor.

The DUNE detector will be installed in LBNF provided facilities at the site of the former Homestake gold mine, now known as the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota. The detector will rest in the path of what will be the world’s most intense man-made

neutrino beam originating 800 miles away at Fermilab. At Fermilab, LBNF will produce the neutrino beam and house particle detectors near its source that will aid in characterizing the beam as it leaves the site. LBNF construction at Fermilab will include utilities, roadways, and underground structures at depths of up to about 125-feet below grade. (See Figure 1.) In South Dakota, LBNF will excavate multiple caverns about a mile deep in the earth to house the DUNE detectors. (See Figure 2.) Design work at both sites is underway with construction scheduled to begin in late 2017.

Three Fermilab employees, all U of I civil and environmental engineering graduates, are responsible for designing and constructing the LBNF infrastructure at both locations. Tom Hamernik (BS 90) is the project manager for all LBNF facilities to be constructed at Fermilab. Tracy Lundin (BS 80, MS 82) and Doug Pelletier (BS

94) have overall responsibility for the design and construction of LBNF facilities at both sites. Other CEE graduates involved in the project in include Jim Adams (BS 94, MS 96) Ernesto Alcaraz (BS 96), Ted Bushell (BS 75), Sean Lee (MS 96, PhD 03), Kate Pripusich-Sienkiewicz (MS 13) and Mike Vitale (BS 82, MS 84).

Discoveries over the past half-century have put neutrinos, which are the most abundant matter particles in the universe, in the spotlight for further research into several fundamental questions about the nature of matter and the evolution of the universe. LBNF and DUNE will enable scientists to search for new subatomic phenomena and potentially transform our understanding of neutrinos and their role in the universe.

More information, including a link to a short video located at the bottom of the web page, can be found at dunescience.org. i

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Student Organizations Some of the many student organizations for civil and environmental engineers at Illinois tell what they’re up to and how alumni can get involved. A more extensive list of CEE student organizations and links to their websites appear here: cee.illinois.edu/studentorgs.

American Concrete Institute The American Concrete Institute (ACI) Student Chapter promotes student interest in all aspects of concrete. This year, we will have monthly meetings with speakers from the industry as well as from professors researching concrete, site visits to construction companies, as well as social activities.

We will also be traveling to both ACI National conventions, competing in the student competitions. If you are interested in joining, please contact aciuiuc@gmail.com.

American Railway Engineering and Maintenanceof-Way Association The American Railway Engineering and Maintenanceof-Way Association (AREMA) Student Chapter at the University of Illinois inspires and educates students about the railroad industry. We hold meetings with presentations from industry professionals, attend the AREMA Annual Conference, and take field trips to observe rail-related projects (bridges, track, repair, etc.). We also hold social activities and sports events to promote networking with other students. For more information, please contact aremauiuc@ gmail.com.

American Society of Civil Engineers American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a student group that encompasses all aspects of civil and environmental engineering as well as bridging civil engineering with other professions.

Bridges to Prosperity The Bridges to Prosperity student chapter is a non-profit organization dedicated to tackling rural isolation by bridge building, training and resource sharing. We provide training programs for bridge design and construction, and aim to send a team of students abroad every summer for bridge implementation. During this academic year, we seek passionate individuals who want to utilize their skills for a good cause to aid in our goals of fundraising, education and community engagement. For more information, please visit bridgestoprosperity.cee.illinois.edu or contact uiucb2p@yahoo.com.

Chi Epsilon Honor Society The Alpha Chapter of Chi Epsilon civil engineering honor society provides students who excel in academics a place 30

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to network with other students, faculty members and professionals. In addition to hosting several service and social events, the society holds general meetings where companies speak to students about their companies and projects.

Chi Epsilon is always looking for scholarship sponsors and guest speakers. If interested, please contact President Jonathon Paprocki at jpaproc2@illinois.edu. Visit our website at https://sites.google.com/site/chiepsilonuiuc/.

Concrete Canoe Team Established in 1971, the Boneyard Yacht Club (BYC), currently known as the concrete canoe team, is a group of multidisciplinary engineering students who grow in their roles as professional engineers through a yearlong project of designing and building a concrete canoe. In the spirit of competition, the canoe is taken to ASCE sponsored competitions to be evaluated based on innovation and race performance. The process incorporates many aspects of the civil engineering profession ranging from construction materials and structural design to construction management.

BYC’s mission is to create critical thinkers, knowledgeable practitioners and devoted leaders. We seek support via monetary or material donations from alumni and companies to aid in our efforts as we explore sustainable canoe construction methods this competition year. For information, contact project manager John Henry Visperas at jvispe2@illinois.edu.

Construction Management Association of America The Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) – UIUC chapter is a student organization on campus focused on helping to prepare construction management students for their careers after college. CMAA-UIUC’s vision for its members is to help encourage student learning of the construction industry and construction practices through combined mentorship and exposure opportunities.

To achieve this vision, CMAA-UIUC hosts and participates in events and activities such as site visits, company presentations, workshops and volunteering events such as Habitat for Humanity. These events and activities relate to construction, professionalism, campus involvement and social responsibility.

Deep Foundations Institute The Deep Foundations Institute is an international asso-

ciation of contractors, engineers, suppliers, academics and owners in the deep foundations industry. Foundation engineers play an important role in the design process because the foundations they design provide support to bridges and building structures. The mission of the DFI chapter at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is to promote the profession of foundation engineering by providing information to other civil engineering students through short courses, workshops and field trips.

Earthquake Engineering Research Institute The Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) Student Chapter strives to educate and promote discussion about the impact of earthquakes as well as the reduction of associated risk. In addition to hosting guest speakers and seminars, the organization offers undergraduates the opportunity to participate in the Seismic Design Competition (SDC). Each year, students design and build balsa wood structures in an attempt to withstand seismic loading. They then compete against other student chapters from around the world during the EERI Annual Meeting. The SDC is a great way to introduce students to the vast and multidisciplinary study of earthquake engineering. For more information on how to become involved, email Alex Tong at eeri. illinois@gmail.com.

Geotechnical Engineering Student Organization The Geotechnical Engineering Student Organization (GESO) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign provides students interested in the geotechnical industry with a connection to practicing professionals and an environment to discuss their research interests. The chapter hosts frequent seminars, which include student member presentations on their current research and professional speakers from the industry.

Illinois Solar Decathlon The United States Solar Decathlon is a biennial competition first hosted in 2002 by the Department of Energy. It challenges collegiate teams from around the world to design and build net-zero solar-powered houses. Illinois Solar Decathlon has been participating in these competitions as well as international competitions since 2007, and has built up an impressive track record. This year, ISD is collaborating with Shanghai Jiao Tong University to compete in Solar

Decathlon China 2017. In addition to the Solar Decathlon, ISD also puts together a team for the DOE’s annual Race to Zero competition, becoming Grand Winner Finalists in 2015 and winning second place in Small Multifamily Housing in 2016. ISD is currently seeking donations to help support transportation costs for team members. To find out about past projects, visit solardecathlon.illinois.edu. For donation information and general inquiries, contact us directly at uiucsolardecathlon@gmail.com.

Institute of Transportation Engineers The student chapter of the Institute of Transportation Engineers aims to connect students with the transportation industry and show them how Transportation Engineering affects their lives. We host networking trips with companies in Chicago, an annual professional round table to help students talk directly with practicing engineers, several field trips and seminars. In the last year, we have diversified into aviation, hosting a tour of Willard Airport as well as the United Cargo Facility at O’Hare. We always appreciate support from alumni, and if you’d like to know how you can help, send us an email to iteuiuc@gmail.com.

International Association of Hydraulic Engineering and Research IAHR, International Association of Hydraulic Engineering and Research, is an 80-year-old independent organization of engineers and scientists who work in the area of hydroenvironment sciences and their practical applications. IAHR Student Chapter at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a student organization at Ven Te Chow Hydrosystems Laboratory, but is open to anyone interested in the area of hydro-sciences. The IAHR Student Chapter offers opportunities to its members to develop their skills, to see new technologies and facilities, to make new connections and so on by organizing a series of academic events including field trips to local hydraulic works and research facilities, professional development seminars and many others.

In addition to academic events, the IAHR Student Chapter also organizes a series of social events.

Structural Engineering Graduate Student Organization The Structural Engineering Institute (a section of ASCE) has formalized the Illinois chapter of the Structural Engineering Graduate Student Organization. Students interested in finding out more about SEGSO should visit our website at segso.cee.illinois.edu.

Steel Bridge Team Coming off of a 3rd place regional finish and a 24th placement at Nationals, the Steel Bridge team is looking to further their national recognition in the upcoming 2016-2017 season. This year’s brand new design is implementing a cantilever system to improve upon aggregate deflection and increase construction efficiency. With the help of sponsors, we look forward to claiming the top spot at regionals hosted by MSOE and to advance, once again, to the national competition at Oregon State. If you would like more information, please contact Nana Ochiai at uiuc. steelbridgeteam@gmail.com.

Transportation and Development Institute The Transportation and Development Institute of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a Student Organization affiliated with the Transportation and Development Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers. The association is established with the main purpose of strengthening the professional and extracurricular development of graduate students in transportation engineering specific to the following: 1. Professional Development – through the organization of seminars, technical trips, and related activities with the purpose of providing opportunities for information exchange regarding current transportation research and practice issues; 2. Intra-university Outreach – by increasing awareness of a variety of subjects within transportation engineering for current and prospective graduate students and by fostering the engagement and

collaboration of transportation engineering graduate students in University activities; and 3. Community Outreach – by promoting awareness of transportation engineering in the Urbana-Champaign community through informative events and by contributing to the betterment of the Urbana-Champaign community, reaching beyond the university with volunteer work that meets societal needs from an engineering perspective. All our events are open to students (member or non-member). To find more about our upcoming events, find us in Facebook: https://www. facebook.com/illinoistdi.

Water Environment Federation – American Water Works Association The Water Environment Federation – American Water Works Association (WEF-AWWA) UIUC Student Chapter is an organization of students who are looking to work in the water industry after graduation. Our organization attends conferences throughout the year (WEFTEC, IWEA, iSEE Congress, ACE, and Watercon) to network with professionals and learn more about the water industry. In the spring semester, we pick a real world water problem and meet weekly to design a solution, which is then presented at competitions and presentations at several conferences. We also visit local water treatment plants, display an exhibit at Engineering Open House, and host professionals and professors as guest speakers to talk about their work and research in the water industry.

International Water Resources Association The IWRA student chapter is part of an educational organization whose mission is to expand understanding of water resource issues by promoting education and collaboration in research and decision-making with an emphasis on community involvement. We work locally to raise awareness of water issues through educational events open to the campus community, promote interaction among students and faculty within the Hydrosystems Laboratory, and provide members with networking opportunities.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 31

Dan Abrams

Gabe Fernandez

Jeremy Guest

Alumnus Richard Wright (PhD 62), whose career included 27 years with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, visited the department in August. Pictured are (seated, left to right) Elaine Hall, Professor Emeritus William J. Hall (MS 51, PhD 54), Teresa Wright, (standing, left to right) CEE Professor Yanfeng Ouyang, Wright, CEE Head Benito Mariñas, CEE Professor Paolo Gardoni, CEE Assistant Professor Jeremy Guest and CEE Director of Advancement John Kelley.

Professor Daniel P. Abrams (MS 74, PhD 79) was inducted as an Honorary Member of The Masonry Society for lifetime commitment and exceptional contributions to the society. He is the 16th Honorary Member and one of only three active members to have this distinction. He was also recognized as the first ever “Masonry Giant” at a special session held at the annual meeting for his career achievements in masonry research.

Assistant Professor Ange-Therese Akono has been selected as a Faculty Fellow at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications for 2016 – 2017.

Gary Parker

Professor Tami Bond has been named to the Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers list for 2016. The list identifies scientists “whose research has had significant global impact within their respective fields of study.”

William Barbour, Assistant Professor Daniel Work’s M.S. student, was named Student of the Year by the Roadway Safety Institute. Barbour also received the Dwight David Eisenhower Graduate Student Fellowship from the US Department of Transportation.

Ashlynn Stillwell

Associate Professor Larry A. Fahnestock was selected as the recipient of the 2016 Raymond and Sidney Epstein Structural Engineering Faculty Award. The award is based on the ICES scores from the previous two semesters (spring and fall 2015).

Gabriel Fernandez (MS 72, PhD 77), who served on the department faculty from 1977 – 2001 has been named a Corresponding Member in the United States by the National Academy of Engineering of Argentina. This is the highest honor an engineer can receive in Argentina.

Dan Work

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Assistant Professor Jeremy Guest was awarded the 2016 Paul L. Busch Award by the Water Environment & Reuse Foundation.

Professor Youssef Hashash was elected as Vice President of the GeoInstitute of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Associate Professor Oscar Lopez-Pamies received the 2017 Young Investigator Medal, awarded by the Society of Engineering Science to a promising early-career researcher whose work has already had an impact in his/her field within the engineering sciences.

Professor Arif Masud has been elected as a Fellow of the Engineering Mechanics Institute. He also gave a keynote speech at the 2016 Engineering Mechanics Institute/ Probabilistic Mechanics & Reliability Conference.

Professor Gary Parker was awarded the 7th Prince Abdul Aziz Surface Water Prize for advances in the scientific understanding of changes in river flows and, consequently, the functionality of river systems as a water source.

Sushobhan Sen, PhD student of Professor Jeffery Roesler (BS 92, MS 94, PhD 98), was awarded the 2016 Bengt Friberg Award from the International Society for Concrete Pavement for the paper “Albedo as an Engineering Property of Concrete Pavements” at the 11th International Conference on Concrete Pavement in San Antonio, Texas.

Professor Murugesu Sivapalan was awarded the 2017 Alfred Wegener Medal by the European Geosciences Union. The award is reserved for scientists who have achieved exceptional international standing in atmospheric, hydrological or ocean studies, defined in their widest senses, for their merit and their scientific achievements.

Professor Timothy D. Stark and Professor Patrick J. Fox (Penn State University) co-authored the 2015 Best

DEPARTMENT NEWS

Projects aims to improve students’ writing skills

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Alumnus R. Shankar Nair (MS 66, PhD 69), Senior Vice President, exp U.S. Services Inc., delivered the 2016 Newmark Distinguished Lecture in March. Nair’s talk was titled, “Skyscrapers: Past, Present and Future.” He is pictured here with, at left, CEE Head Benito Mariñas and, at right, CEE Associate Professor Larry Fahnestock.

Paper in Geosynthetics International, “State-of-the-art report: GCL shear strength and its measurement – tenyear update.”

Professor Timothy D. Stark, Professor Rahim F. Benekohal, Associate Professor Larry A. Fahnestock and Professor James M. LaFave (BS 86, MS 87) coauthored a paper published in the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, “I-5 Skagit River Bridge Collapse Review.”

Assistant Professor Ashlyn S. Stillwell has been selected as a recipient of the 2016 Environmental Science & Technology Excellence in Review Award for reviewers whose contributions stand out in terms of quality, timeliness and quantity.

Professor Erol Tutumluer has accepted an appointment with the Transportation Research Board as Chair of the AFP00 Section on Geological and Geoenvironmental Engineering. AFP00 Section oversees seven sommittees, including the AFP70 Aggregates Committee, which he has chaired for more than five years.

Professor Erol Tutumluer and Professor Jeffery Roesler have been selected by the TRB Geotechnical Engineering Section (AFS00) to receive the Section’s 2016 Best Paper Award for their paper, “16-6264 Cement-Treated Bases Containing Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement, Quarry Byproducts, and Fibers.”

Assistant Professor Daniel Work attended the National Academy of Engineer’s prestigious 2016 EU-US Frontiers of Engineering symposium in Helsinki, Finland.

etter writing skills among engineering students at Illinois is the goal of a year-long study by a team of University of Illinois researchers led by CEE Research Assistant Professor Julie Zilles. The team is composed of both engineering and writing faculty and is sponsored by a grant from the College of Engineering. They will study the way engineering students are currently taught technical writing across the College, collect best-practice methods and resources, and synthesize their findings into a set of recommendations.

Writing is critical for practicing engineers according to feedback from alumni and employers, said CEE Professor John Popovics, who teaches a 300-level course with a strong writing component and is a co-investigator on this project. The course focuses primarily on technical and scientific writing but currently is required of only some, not all, CEE students. Many students dread the writing workload so much they wait until their senior year to take the course, negating any benefit they might realize from improving their writing earlier in their education, he said.

“Writing comes hard to them, either because English is their second language, or they’re native English speakers but writing is their second language,” Popovics said.

The need has been so widely perceived that the group’s plan has met with resounding support from across the college, Zilles said.

“The response was completely overwhelming,” she said. “We have people committed to participating in the project from every department in

istockphoto.com/Hong Li

engineering.”

The team welcomes feedback from alumni about the importance of writing in their profession and about any helpful resources of which they may be aware, Zilles said. Those with input may contact Zilles directly.

“We hope to build a collection of best practices and resources so that the people who do want to teach writing in a class can do so more effectively and efficiently,” Zilles said.

In addition to Zilles and Popovics, those involved on the core team are Professor S. Lance Cooper, Associate Head for Graduate Programs in Illinois’ Department of Physics; Department of Physics Instructor Celia M. Elliott; Professor Paul A. Prior of Illinois’ Department of English and the Center for Writing Studies; and Nicole Turnipseed, a graduate student in the Department of English and the Center for Writing Studies.

This work is being supported by a grant from the Strategic Instructional Innovations Program, part of the College of Engineering’s Academy for Excellence in Engineering Education. i

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 33

DEPARTMENT NEWS Konar to study food-energywater nexus in U.S.

Gardoni to study food security, infrastructure issues

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EE at Illinois Assistant Professor Megan Konar is part of a multi-institution interdisciplinary research group that has been awarded a four-year, $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s Innovations at the Nexus of Food, Energy and Water Systems (NSF INFEWS) program to study the connections between food production, energy production and water supply in the United States.

Food, energy and water (FEW) systems are complex, interconnected networks in which the benefit of using one resource may result in costs to another. For example, tapping water sources to irrigate farm land may lead to increased food production, but that in turn may require increased energy production in order to harvest and transport the crops.

Understanding these connections can help decision-makers identify trade-offs between policies and technologies related to FEW systems. The researchers will collect decades of food, energy and water data from locations across the U.S. and create a detailed mapping of the nation’s FEW system.

To read the full story, visit the news page on cee.illinois.edu.

EE at Illinois professor Paolo Gardoni is part of a multiinstitutional research team that has been awarded a four-year, $2.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s Critical Resilient Interdependent Infrastructure Systems and Processes (CRISP) program. The interdisciplinary team will examine the problem of food security in the United States by focusing on interconnected infrastructure networks and how natural disasters affect them.

“One of the main characteristics of the problem is the fact that food security, or rather food insecurity, is a result of cascading effects that involve multiple infrastructure,” said Gardoni. “We’re considering four of these critical infrastructure — transportation, energy, water and food distribution — as fundamental for understanding, modeling and addressing the problem of food insecurity.”

The team will model the functionality and vulnerabilities of the four individual networks, and integrate the models to account for interdependencies between the systems.

To read the full story, visit the news page on cee.illinois.edu.

Allen Matis (BS 82) Global Head of Development and Project Management for Great Eagle Holdings, based in Hong Kong, visited the department in April. Matis is pictured here with students from Civil China, whom he joined for lunch in the Yeh Center.

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ALUMNI NEWS

2000s Amanda Brauer (BS 04) P.E., P.T.O.E. has accepted a position as Roads and Traffic Manager for St. Charles County, Mo. She will manage road projects and funding, including the county’s ½-cent Transportation Sales Tax, as well as plan future infrastructure improvements. She will play a key role Amanda Brauer in arranging funding partnerships and planning major road projects.

Monica C. Crinion (BS 07) has been selected by the Illinois Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) to receive the Young Civil Engineer of the Year Award.

Monica joined WBK Monica Crinion Engineering in 2014 and works with the structural department on projects, performing project management and structural design.

1990s Milhouse Engineering, the consulting firm founded

by Wilbur C. Milhouse III (BS 94, MS 95), has broken ground on a new power plant at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. The plant will bring stable power to millions who live without reliable access to lights, air conditioning and computers. They are also enriching the lives of Nigeria’s children by taking donations of new and

CEE alum George Halas (BS 18) named to Engineering at Illinois Hall of Fame

CEE alumnus George S. “Papa Bear” Halas (BS 18), pictured above at right, was inducted posthumously into the Engineering at Illinois Hall of Fame in September “for his indelible influence in growing the sport of football in America, from establishing and coaching the Chicago Bears for 40 successful seasons to founding the National Football League.” Above at left, CEE Engineering Visionary Scholar Denzel McCauley, left, who participated in the induction ceremony, poses with Chicago Bears Chairman George Halas McCaskey.

gently used soccer shoes. For donations and information, please contact Dawn Milhouse at dhmilhouse@ milhouseinc.com.

1980s David A. Sabatini (BS 81) was named the 2016

Recipient of the Steven K. Dentel Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors Award for Global Outreach.

1970s Robert Cusick (BS74, MS

76) P.E., S.E., executive vice president and chief technical officer at Hanson Professional Services Inc., celebrated 40 years of service at the firm’s Springfield, Ill., headquarters.

Cusick joined Hanson in 1976 Robert Cusick

CEE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Nominations invited: CEE Alumni Awards

Interested in serving on the CEEAA Board of Directors?

Know any outstanding CEE Illini? The Distinguished Alumnus/Alumna Award and the Young Alumnus/Alumna Achievement Award recognize those who have distinguished themselves in the field at different career stages. The next deadline is August 1, 2017. For more information, visit cee.illinois.edu/alumni/awards.

The CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors celebrated its 50-year anniversary in 2013. If you are interested in serving the department as a board member, fill out an online application at cee.illinois. edu/alumni. For more information, contact Celeste Arbogast, celeste@illinois. edu. (217) 333-6955.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 35

On August 3, 2016, CEE at Illinois’ RailTEC group introduced 21 students in grades 3-5 to the field of railroad engineering. The students — from Next Generation School STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) Studio summer camp — spent the day at Newmark Lab and learned about railway planning, construction, safety and more through a series of hands-on games and activities led by CEE at Illinois professor Christopher Barkan and RailTEC graduate students. STEAM Studio by Next Generation School provides Champaign-Urbana area students with an opportunity to explore STEAM-related fields through a series of fun activities, demonstrations, labs and field trips. The field trip to RailTEC was part of a week-long camp that focused on some of the most important inventions of the century, from steam engine trains to nanotechnology.

as a structural engineer and has served as principal, project manager and structural engineer on numerous projects across the U.S. and abroad. He was named chief technical officer in 1998 and corporate ethics compliance officer in 2012. He oversees Hanson’s human resources and project delivery services operations and coordinates the firm’s disaster relief and recovery services for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Notable projects he has worked on include renovation and structural rehabilitation of Memorial Stadium at the University of Illinois.

Richard Lanyon (BS 60, MS 61) has published “Draining Chicago: The Early City and the North Area” (Lake Claremont Press 2016). Lanyon spent 48 years with the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, retiring as Executive Director.

The book is the second in a series, which began with “Building the Canal to Save Chicago” (2012).

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American Road and Transportation Builders Association for her 35-year plus commitment to the transportation industry, including the advancement of female leadership. Since becoming the Northern California district leader four years ago, Gee has elevated the firm’s profile and driven its business growth locally. She oversees the operations of HNTB’s four regional offices – San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose and Walnut Creek.

M. Saiid Saiidi (MS 77, PhD 79) was recently selected by The University of Nevada, Reno, as the recipient of the 2016 Established Innovation Award.

Sergio “Satch” Pecori, P.E. , (BS 73, MS 74) has been The selection committee unanimously selected Saiidi elected chairman of the board at Hanson Professional for his pioneering research in bridge earthquake Services Inc. The change marks a engineering research, investigation of transitional phase for the firm’s advanced materials for incorporation leadership, as the company plans in concrete bridges, development for future senior-level executive of patentable bridge elements in collaboration with small businesses, retirements. development of connections for Darlene K. Gee (BS 79), HNTB accelerated bridge construction, and Northern California district leader, was field implementation of innovative honored with the Ethel S. Birchland concepts in a demonstration bridge in Lifetime Achievement Award by the M. Saiid Saiidi the State of Washington.

ALUMNI NEWS

Hall honored with inaugural Distinguished Faculty award

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rofessor Emeritus William J. Hall (MS 51, PhD 54) became the inaugural holder of the CEE Alumni Association Distinguished Faculty Award, given “for excellence in instruction and research during nearly four decades on the faculty of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; for leadership in the field as Head of CEE at Illinois and as a respected structural engineering researcher, practitioner and consultant in earthquake engineering and the design of military structures; and for lifelong service and generosity to the University as a loyal CEE alumnus.”

Presented at a luncheon on campus in September, the award was established this year by the CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors as a way to honor faculty in the department who are also alumni. Many of Hall’s family, friends and colleagues attended the lunchtime ceremony.

Hall served on the faculty of the Department of Civil Engineering from 1954 until his retirement in 1993. He served as

Professor Emeritus Bill Hall (center, with boutonniere) and his wife, Elaine (with wrist corsage) pose with members of the CEE Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Head of the Department from 1984 – 91.

In 1998 he was called back by the University for one year to be the Interim Head of the Office of Research and Technology Management of the Graduate College.

Throughout his career, Hall had professional involvement with many large engineering projects, including being part of the design team for the TransAlaska petroleum pipeline, many nuclear power plants, and major projects of agencies of the U.S. government, for example,

Department of Defense protective structures and nuclear materials. He has been an active participant in numerous National Research Council studies. His many honors include achieving Distinguished Membership in the American Society of Civil Engineers, being named a National Honor Member of Chi Epsilon, receiving the Housner Medal of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute, and being elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering. i

Aloha, Hawaii Illini!

CEE at Illinois alumni in Hawaii attended a department dinner hosted in June by Head Benito J. Mariñas at the Moana Surfrider Hotel in Honolulu. Attendees learned about the CEE Modernization Project, including a leadership gift by Michael and Carol Kimura to sponsor a structural design lab named for former CEE faculty member J.L. Merritt. Pictured at right are (standing, left to right) Matthew Kimura, Michael Kimura (MS 69), Harold Hamada (MS 58, PhD 62), Benito Mariñas, Takeshi Yoshihara (MS 61, PhD 63), Thomas Lum (MS 59), John Sato (BS 86), (seated, left to right) Carol Kimura, Yolanda Mariñas-Keliia’a, Larissa Sato and Vicki Dixon.

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 37

ALUMNI NEWS William C. Schnobrich (BS 53, MS 55, PhD 62) 1930 – 2016 Professor Emeritus William C. Schnobrich died August 13, 2016. He was 85. Schnobrich earned three civil engineering degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: bachelor of science in 1953, master of science in 1955 and Ph.D. in 1962. He then spent 30 years on the department faculty, retiring in 1991.

Schnobrich was a leader in the structural engineering and mechanics area, with significant work in shell structures, numerical methods and earthquake engineering. His publications numbered more than 90 and covered such topics as computer-aided analysis in the design of concrete structures, analytical and computational models for reinforced concrete shells, and seismic analysis and design of hyperbolic cooling towers.

He was a Fellow of the American Concrete Institute (1982) and the recipient of the A. Von Humboldt Senior Scientist Award in 1977, 1978 and 1985.

1960s Ned H. Burns (PhD 62) died November 5. He was 84. He

was a Professor at University of Texas at Austin from 1962 – 2001, when he retired. He won numerous awards for his teaching and advising skills. He was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering in 2000.

Melvin Thomas “Tom” Davisson (MS 55, PhD 60) died on Sept. 9, 2016, in Urbana. He was 84. Davisson joined the department as a research assistant in 1956, later joining the faculty and achieving the rank of full professor in 1971. From 1981 – 2000, Davisson devoted full time to the engineering consulting practice he had established in 1958.

1950s David A. Day (MS 51) died May 15. He was 92. His civil en-

gineering career began as an engineering professor at the University of Illinois, and included the Deanship of Engineering at the University of Denver and Project Engineer for Stearns-Rogers and Air Products.

Ralph C. Hahn (BS 51, MS 52) died July 26. He was 89. He founded Ralph Hahn and Associates in 1961. He was an active member of the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers.

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M.T. Geoffrey Yeh (BS 53) 1931-2016

M

.T. Geoffrey Yeh (BS 53), CEE alumnus and namesake of the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center in Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory, died on October 16, 2016. He was 85.

Yeh was born in 1931 in Shanghai, China. After receiving his B.S. degree with honors from CEE at Illinois in 1953, he earned his M.A. degree from Harvard University in 1954. Yeh joined Hsin Chong and Company in Hong Kong, a construction company founded by his late father, K.N. Godfrey Yeh. During his career, the younger Yeh made significant contributions to the construction and financial sectors in Hong Kong, including various cost- and timesaving innovations that are now in use by construction firms throughout the region. He was chair of the Hsin Chong Group of Companies until his retirement in 2002, then served as chair of Hsin Chong International Holdings Ltd.

Yeh in 2011 in Urbana-Champaign, on the occasion of the dedication of the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center in Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory.

A commitment to service led to many appointments and honors throughout his lifetime including Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute of Directors; the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; the Silver Bauhinia Star by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China; and the Badge of Honor for Meritorious Services by His Excellency the Governor General of Jamaica. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by St. John’s University in Queens, N.Y. (1982).

Yeh was a loyal and generous supporter of CEE at Illinois. He established the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Graduate Research Fellowship in 1994 and the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Endowed Chair in

IN MEMORIAM

In April 2016, Yeh was presented with a University of Illinois international alumni award in a special ceremony at the Hong Kong Club in Shanghai. Above: Patty Lam, Illinois advancement officer; Engineering at Illinois Dean Andreas Cangellaris; Helen Yeh; Geoffrey Yeh; and CEE at Illinois Head Benito Mariñas. At right: Yeh during the award ceremony.

1998. He was the lead donor for the Yeh Student Center, an addition to Newmark Laboratory that provides state-of-the-art classrooms, meeting rooms and gathering space for students. His generosity extended beyond the University of Illinois, and he founded The Yeh Family Philanthropy in 2011 to support education and social entrepreneurship projects.

“I am particularly grateful to have had the opportunity to meet three times in the past couple of years with CEE Distinguished Alumnus Geoffrey Yeh,” said Benito Mariñas, CEE professor and head.

“I always found Geoffrey’s advice inspirational and his optimism contagious. I was also most grateful to have had on these occasions the opportunity to thank Geoffrey Yeh and the Yeh Family Philanthropy for their most generous and inspirational support on behalf of the students and faculty at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

“The state-of-the-art facilities of the Geoffrey Yeh Student Center allow our

students to have a world-class educational experience.

We have been able to honor some of our top faculty members with the Geoffrey Yeh Endowed Chair in Civil and Environmental Engineering. Support

by Geoffrey Yeh and the Yeh Family Philanthropy is also inspiring other alumni and friends, thus allowing us to continue recruiting top students and attracting top faculty so that the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department of Geoffrey Yeh’s Alma Mater can retain the topranked position that it has enjoyed in the past for many more decades to come.”

The CEE Alumni Association awarded Yeh the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2010 for “management of construction and property development companies instrumental in rebuilding Hong Kong after WWII; for development and application of innovative construction tools;

for outstanding civic leadership; and for long-standing philanthropic support to several universities including the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois.”

In 2012, Yeh was inducted into the Engineering at Illinois Hall of Fame, which recognizes significant achievements in leadership, entrepreneurship and innovation of great impact to society. He also received the 2015 Madhuri and Jagdish N. Sheth International Alumni Award for Exceptional Achievement from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Illinois International Programs, which is awarded annually to a distinguished international alumnus or alumna who has helped to better their nation or the world through their contributions to government, humanity, science, art or human welfare.

“Geoffrey Yeh was a distinguished engineer, a very successful entrepreneur and in his later years an exceptionally generous philanthropist,” wrote Professor Emeritus Robert H. Dodds Jr., former department head and the first holder of the M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Endowed Chair. “I had the great fortune to know Geoffrey as first holder of the Yeh Chair and later as Head of CEE. He was a kind, humble and thoughtful man.

Geoffrey often expressed a strong desire to help young people reach their potential through higher education. His generous gifts to CEE over the past 25+ years enabled Geoffrey to touch the lives of so many students and will be his enduring legacy for our department.”

Yeh is survived by his wife, Helen; son, V-Nee; daughter, Yvette; and three grandchildren, Camille, Nadya and Carina. i

Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 39

PRINCIPAL PARTNERS

LEGACY PARTNERS

CORPORATE PARTNERS PROGRAM The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering gratefully acknowledges the following companies who contribute to CEE at Illinois as Corporate Partners.

For information about the program, visit cee.illinois.edu/cpp.

Excellence.

Flexibility.

Illinois.

New online courses are always being added!

Find out what’s new at cee.illinois.edu/ceeonline.

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CEE at Illinois gratefully thanks the lunch sponsors for its fall 2016 Job Fair Bowman, Barrett & Associates Inc. Civiltech Engineering Inc. Fehr-Graham & Associates Infrastructure & Energy Alternatives LLC Minnesota Department of Transportation

THE IMAGE OF RESEARCH Playing at the Spring

by Nora Sadik This photo, taken

by Environmental Engineering student Nora Sadik, was a finalist in the 2016 Image of Research competition, a multidisciplinary competition that celebrates the diversity and breadth of graduate student research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

About the image: “This image shows water spouting from a protected spring located in Luzira, a neighborhood in the city of Kampala, Uganda. As this water flows continuously and throughout the day, women and children in the community collect water in large clear and yellow jerry cans, soda bottles, and plastic cups for drinking, cooking and washing. Nearly every week for eight months in 2014, a Ugandan student, Amina, and I visited eight protected springs, one public tap, one lake, and five runoff streams in urban Kampala. We collected water samples and measured the water quality using small kits while the local children surrounded us and poked at our equipment.

The objective of my research is to quantify water-related bacteria and viruses that cause human disease in developing urban centers. I’m interested in how climate and human activity influence water quality and disease transmission, and how understanding these connections may help scientists predict and prevent disease outbreaks.

From stepping out of the lab and into Kampala, I was able to directly see what I hoped to contribute to the world: knowledge towards preventing disease through safe water.”

— Nora Sadik Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association—Winter 2016 41

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Here’s what you helped do last year: YOU SUPPORTED TOP STUDENTS Financial worries were eased and hard work was rewarded for 102 students who received direct scholarships and 31 students who received Engineering Visionary Scholarships.

YOU OPENED DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY 40 young women were able to explore options for their future thanks to support of the Women Exploring Graduate Opportunities in Civil and Environmental Engineering program.

YOU KEPT US AT THE TOP OF THE LIST Your support has helped our department continue to excel, even in the face of budget cuts.

This year, we rank #1 and #2 (civil undergrad/grad) and #5 and #3 (environmental undergrad/grad).* * US News and World Report rankings

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YOU HELPED MAKE THE WORLD BETTER 72 students were given Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) opportunities, allowing them to get a jump start on making the world a better, safer place.

YOU STARTED BUILDING THE FUTURE So far, 56 donors have contributed to the CEE Modernization project, which will bring hands-on laboratories, collaborative spaces, and modern upgrades to Newmark Lab and Hydro Lab.

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Here’s how you did it: FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS

Fiscal year July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016

532 alumni gave gifts 428 gifts were made to the CEE Trust Average gift to CEE Trust was $496 Planned gifts supported research, faculty chairs, professorships, fellowships, and scholarships.

Corporate sponsorships supported student projects and activites, and department events.

Your gift can make a difference Your gifts are essential to the continued success of CEE at Illinois. They allow our faculty to continue their groundbreaking research, help us attract top students and ease their financial burden, and improve our facilities.

If you would like to make a difference, visit cee.illinois.edu/give to learn about some of the ways you can help and make a contribution.

In addition to outright gifts, you can support CEE as part of your overall financial, tax, and estate planning with deferred gifts such as bequests, charitable trusts and annuities, pooled income funds, retained life estates, retirement accounts, and life insurance.

Our Advancement team will work with you to arrange options most suitable to you. If you are interested in learning more about these or other gift options, please contact: John Kelley Director of Advancement (217) 333-5120 jekelley@illinois.edu Nishant Makhijani Assistant Director of Advancement (217) 265-0407 nishantm@illinois.edu

TIME AND PARTICIPATION You shared your wisdom and experience through special seminars and presentations.

You recruited students for full-time positions and internships during CEE Job Fairs.

You allowed classes to visit your workplaces and construction sites, giving them real-world experience.

You stayed engaged with the department by attending events and networking.

The M.T. Geoffrey Yeh Student Center, a 20,500-square-foot addition to Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory, was funded entirely through private gifts, including a $4 million naming gift given by Illinois alumnus M.T. Geoffrey Yeh.

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Newmark Civil Engineering Laboratory MC-250 205 North Mathews Avenue Urbana, Illinois 61801

Non-Profit Organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit No. 75 Champaign, IL 61820