UA College of Engineering Names New Civil and Environmental Engineering Department Head

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama College of Engineering recently named Dr. Kenneth J. Fridley as head of the department of civil and environmental engineering.

Fridley received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Washington State University in 1985. He then went on to pursue his master’s degree at the University of Texas at Austin in 1986, and he received a doctorate from Auburn University in 1990. His studies emphasized structural and architectural engineering.

Most recently, Fridley served as the associate dean of research and interim chair of the department of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His previous experience also includes coordinating the structural engineering and materials division and professor of civil engineering at Washington State University. Fridley also has held faculty appointments at the University of Oklahoma and Purdue University.

Since beginning his career, Fridley has received numerous teaching and research awards including the Wood Engineering Achievement Award from the Forest Products Society; Faculty Advisor of the Year Award by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 1998, 2000 and 2001; outstanding teaching faculty awards at Washington State University and the University of Oklahoma; and Outstanding Research Faculty in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Washington State. Throughout his career, Fridley has been actively involved with several professional organizations in his specialty.

“The College of Engineering is thrilled that Dr. Fridley has agreed to serve as head of civil and environmental engineering; he brings to the position a wonderful background of research and teaching,” said Dr. Timothy J. Greene, dean of the College of Engineering. “His vision and leadership of the department will foster its growth in undergraduate and graduate enrollment and scholarship.”

Fridley has co-authored a textbook on the design of wood structures. He also has authored or co-authored more than 60 refereed articles, and numerous conference publications and research reports.

In 1837, UA became the first university in the state to offer engineering classes and was one of the first five in the nation to do so. Today, the College of Engineering, with about 1,900 students and more than 90 faculty, is one of the three oldest continuously operating engineering programs in the country and has been fully accredited since accreditation standards were implemented in the 1930s.