Members of the University of Utah’s Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Student Chapter recently took transportation engineering to the racetrack to help promote safer roads through hands-on community outreach. The group hosted a road safety event at the Utah Motorsports Campus, engaging high school students participating in a go-karting program. The session, titled “Road Safety […]
Read MoreFor 17 years, Dr. Michael Simpson worked at U.S. national laboratories on the leading edge of nuclear energy research. That experience shaped not only his career, but also his sense of purpose. “Working in the national labs connected me with the real needs of our nation in nuclear energy and nuclear waste management,” Simpson says. […]
Read MoreAlaska: Famed for its dramatic landscapes, stunning glaciers, colossal mountains, and abundant wildlife. Yet equally striking is the sheer scale of its river systems. With more than 365,000 miles of rivers, Alaska is home to over 40% of the nation’s surface water. These rivers do far more than move water—they sustain entire ecosystems. From salmon that […]
Read MoreTraffic crashes remain one of the leading causes of injury and death across communities of all sizes—from dense urban corridors to rural and tribal lands. A central challenge in transportation safety is the inability to anticipate risks before they become deadly. Strengthening that foresight would allow communities to intervene earlier—preventing crashes rather than reacting to […]
Read MoreMicroreactors are quickly shifting from sci-fi-adjacent prototypes to one of the most promising tools in America’s clean-energy toolkit. Roughly the size of a shipping container, these next-gen nuclear systems can deliver reliable power to remote communities, military bases, disaster zones, or industrial sites—without the massive infrastructure required by traditional nuclear plants. But there’s one major […]
Read MoreThe University of Utah is taking a leading role in advancing smart mobility and rail safety with the launch of a new $1.5 million Odometry Lab, funded by the Utah Legislature in 2025. Led by CvEEN faculty Drs. Cathy Liu, Xuan (Peter) Zhu, and Chenxi Liu, the lab is a cross-disciplinary collaboration that unites engineering faculty, students, and […]
Read MoreThe Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering is proud to announce that Arman Malekloo successfully defended his Ph.D. dissertation on November 11th, 2025, under the mentorship of Professor Cathy Liu. Arman has already begun the next chapter of his career at Narwhal Group, where he serves as an Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Analyst/Engineer. In this […]
Read MoreAn internationally recognized leader in pavement engineering, Dr. Michael Darter has advanced the field through both academic research and professional practice. Over his 30-year tenure as a faculty member of civil engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Dr. Darter brought in significant funding for students who together conducted research and published hundreds of influential […]
Read MoreWith more than three decades of experience in the construction industry, Brandon Squire has built a career grounded in field expertise, strategic growth, and industry-wide leadership. Since becoming President of Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction Company in 2016, Brandon has helped shape Utah’s built environment through major transportation and infrastructure projects. His leadership has strengthened RLW’s […]
Read MoreFor more than two decades, Dr. Pedro Romero has been a cornerstone of the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering (CvEEN). Known for his approachable teaching style and his passion for sustainable construction materials, pavement design, and durable infrastructure, Dr. Romero has helped shape the next generation of engineers while advancing research that directly impacts […]
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