Department Chair Statement

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita were sad reminders to us that the sustainability of our society  requires cross-disciplinary civil engineering design; Engineering Hydrology and Hydraulics is needed to estimate the flood elevation. Structural Engineering is needed to design the retaining structures. And Geotechnical Engineering is needed to ensure the stability of these structures. Failure in any one (or more) of these areas could lead to disasters. For this reason,  it is essential to teach Civil Engineers the necessary skills that ensure communication between various disciplines.

The Department is adopting a format that ensures that six areas of Civil Engineering are taught to all students. These are: Construction, Environmental, Geotechnical, Structural, Transportation, and Water Resources Engineering. The extensive expertise of the Department’s faculty in these areas exposes the students to real-life cases. To address market demands, two major tracks are offered to the students in the Senior year: General Civil Engineering and Environmental Engineering.

Michel Boufadel, Ph.D., P.E.
Chair and Professor
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering