Luck seems antithetical to engineering. There are no equations, statistics or models for luck — there is no control. But to Wick Moorman, BSCE 1975, the recently retired chairman and CEO of railroad company Norfolk Southern, luck matters. It has, he insists, been a central force of his career.
Charles “Wick” Moorman talked about railroads, his experiences at Georgia Tech, and some of the things he learned as he rose to leadership of one of the nation’s five large railroad companies during the Hyatt Distinguished Alumni Leadership Lecture March 9.
Professor David Frost has been named the Elizabeth and Bill Higginbotham Professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. School Chair Reginald DesRoches made the appointment after the Higginbotham family created the new professorship earlier this year.
The School of Civil and Environmental Engineering began an important new chapter in its century-long history in the fall when Georgia Tech’s undergraduate building construction curriculum officially became part of the civil and environmental engineering program. With the change, all undergraduates who wish to study construction will earn a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, marrying the technical excellence the School is known for with a broad array of courses specifically tailored to construction engineering and management careers.
Just more than a year ago, Meg Pirkle took over as the chief engineer at the Georgia Department of Transportation. Pirkle sat down with us late in 2015 to talk more about her 26 years at the agency and share some thoughts about the importance of transportation engineering.
Charles “Wick” Moorman has received one of the highest professional honors for an engineer: He is now a member of the National Academy of Engineering. The academy announced 80 new members February 8 as well as 22 new foreign members.
Tom Gambino joined four other leaders from Georgia’s engineering industry to talk about the state’s economy at the invitation of Engineering Georgia magazine. Their discussion was featured in the November/December 2015 issue.
A gift from Elizabeth and Bill Higginbotham will create a new named professorship in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering this spring. The position will go to a mid-career or senior-level professor and enable them to take new risks in their research and teaching agenda, School leaders said.
Stacie Sire turned a simple conversation with a professor after class one day into a successful career rising through the ranks at Boeing, including helping shepherd the vaunted 787 Dreamliner from its very early conceptual stages to the plane now carrying thousands of passengers on long-haul flights around the world every day.
How can biomass fuel improve lives in Kenya? Environmental engineering alumnus Andrew Foote says using briquettes made from biomass in cooking — rather than charcoal or firewood — will reduce deaths from indoor air pollution and help stop deforestation. Foote published a guest blog on National Geographic’s website Nov. 18 highlighting the potential of biomass briquettes to reshape cooking in Kenya.
School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Georgia Institute of Technology
Mason Building, 790 Atlantic Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332-0355
Phone: 404-894-2201
Fax: 404-894-2278