Page 2 - CEGE Magazine Fall 2023

CEGE Fall 2023
News 3
New Faculty 8
Warren Distinguished Lecture
Series 9 Teaching
New Courses 10
Erin Surdo’s Award 12 Two Profs to Princeton 14 A Great Teacher 15
Next Gen Transportation Engineer 16
Parker Rock Prep Lab 17 Scholarships 18
Ebtahaj Receives NASA
Support 20
© Copyright 2023 Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved. CEGE Magazine is published twice
a year by the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering College of Science and Engineering University of Minnesota
500 Pillsbury Drive SE
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
Merry Rendahl, editor. Layout by Printing Services.
The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.
Cover art: Banner hanging in the Charles Fairhurst Rotunda. This is one of three banners highlighting CEGE’s mission: Learn, Discover, Transform.
Connect with us:
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2 CEGE | CSE.UMN.EDU/CEGE
College of Science and Engineering
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND GEO- ENGINEERING
Message from the Department Head
Dear Alumni and Friends,
I am very proud of our department, programs, students, and faculty. Teaching is difficult and rewarding, and in so many ways, is how we make an impact and protect society and our environment. Our teachers are some of the best and they work hard at preparing inspired and innovative engineers for the future. In this issue of our CEGE magazine, we want to spotlight and share some of the excellence and innovation that is happening in our classroom teaching.
Our feature on pages 10-14 highlights some of our award-winning faculty as
well as some new and exciting classes that have been developed for students in CEGE and beyond. I am proud of the way that our curriculum evolves to keep up with advances in science and society.
You will also read about teaching from some students’ points of view, one from
a recent graduate and one from a group of alumni who remember their professor after many years.
Some new faculty have joined us recently. They are profiled on page 8. We look forward to their contributions in the classroom and in research as well.
So many of my own memories involve colleagues, friends, and students in CEGE and at the University. I’m sure that you have a few of your own. If these stories spark some memories for you of a favorite teacher or fellow student, I hope you will share your story about how the University of Minnesota has made your life better. You can write your own story or read others’ stories at Dear Minnesota (https://system.umn.edu/dear-mn-stories).
Thank you for being a part of the history and the future of CEGE! With gratitude,
Paige Novak
Department Head
Joseph T. and Rose S. Ling Chair in Environmental Engineering