I am deeply honored and grateful to share that I have been selected as a recipient of the 2026 Terry Peshia Early Career Faculty Award by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC). This prestigious award recognizes early-career faculty who demonstrate exceptional promise in structural steel research, teaching, and contributions to the structural steel industry. According to AISC, I was recognized for: “Conducting research on the seismic behavior and design of steel columns, which...

This year, I had the pleasure of attending the Lockheed Martin Ethics in Engineering Case Competition as a faculty advisor, accompanying two outstanding civil engineering students from the University of the District of Columbia (UDC). I was especially proud that UDC was represented by two teams this year — one from Civil Engineering and one from Mechanical Engineering. Seeing our students stand alongside peers from other institutions and engage deeply with complex ethical dilemmas was truly...

When I first stepped onto a U.S. campus, I expected the academics to be intense—and they were. But what surprised me most was how holistic the college experience truly is. In the U.S., learning doesn’t end when the lecture does; it flows into the clubs you join, the people you meet, the internships you chase, and even the late-night conversations in the dorm lobby. From an educational perspective, American universities challenge you to think independently. Professors value discussion,...