It is my pleasure to announce today that Jesus M. de la Garza will join Clemson University in August as the new chair of the Glenn Department of Civil Engineering. He comes to us from Virginia Tech, where he is the Vecellio Endowed Professor in Construction Engineering and Management. He brings to Clemson a wealth of experience in higher education and is nationally respected by his peers for his work in civil engineering and construction engineering. Dr. de la Garza is a researcher and scholar par excellence.
His priorities include bridging faculty expertise gaps in pavement engineering and coastal engineering. He plans to renew teaching laboratories, establish a Glenn Distinguished Lecture Series and work with the department’s faculty, staff, students and alumni to develop a strategic plan. Dr. de la Garza also plans to organize the department around society’s grand challenges, building on the effort that began in 2017 with the $2-million RED grant provided by the National Science Foundation.
Dr. de la Garza brings impeccable credentials to his new job. He is a Distinguished Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the organization’s highest honor. He is also a member of the National Academy of Construction and a Fellow of the Construction Management Association of America. Dr. de la Garza is the editor-in-chief of the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.
He has served as a member of the Board on Infrastructure and the Constructed Environment and as a member of the Defense Materials, Manufacturing, and Infrastructure Standing Committee, both of which are part of the National Research Council. Dr de la Garza has also served as director of the Civil Infrastructure Systems program at the National Science Foundation. He has advised 14 doctoral students and 93 Master of Science students, while sponsoring 17 undergraduate research experiences. Dr. de la Garza has co-authored more than 100 papers in refereed publications. While at Virginia Tech, he secured $14.5 million in sponsored-research projects.
