UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Amr Elnashai, Harold and Inge Marcus Dean of Engineering at Penn State, is one of seven newly appointed members of the Engineering Deans Council (EDC) Public Policy Committee (PPC) of the American Society for Engineering Education.
In this role, Elnashai will meet with deans from engineering colleges across the country to share his thoughts and advice on legislative and policy issues.
Another major function of the PPC is organizing the EDC Public Policy Colloquium in Washington, D.C. The annual event aims to strengthen the discussion of engineering education and research issues between the deans of engineering and key public policymakers, and to enable the deans to refine their public policy agenda.
“I had the privilege of helping organize one of the PPC sessions this year, jointly with Dean Garrett of Carnegie Mellon University, and enjoyed the experience. Being formally on the committee for three years gives me two opportunities: first, serving ASEE, and second, benefiting Penn State’s College of Engineering from the insights that are gained through this service,” said Elnashai.
His three-year term will begin with the American Society for Engineering Education's Annual Conference, set for June 26 to 29 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Elnashai became dean of Penn State’s College of Engineering in January 2014.
Prior to joining the University, he served as head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and as professor of earthquake engineering and head of division at Imperial College London.
Elnashai is a fellow of the British Royal Academy of Engineering, the American Society of Civil Engineers and the Institution of Structural Engineers. He is also the founder and co-editor of the Journal of Earthquake Engineering.
He earned a bachelor of science degree from Cairo University, and a master of science degree and doctorate from Imperial College London, where he received multiple honors for his work, including the Unwin Prize for the best doctoral thesis in civil and mechanical engineering.