On February 12 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers held an award ceremony in Washington, D.C., at its headquarters for the members of ASCE’s External Review Panel (ERP), a team of experts convened by the Society in November 2005 at the behest of Lieutenant General Carl A. Strock, P.E., M.ASCE, the Corps’s commander and chief of engineers. The ERP was charged with peer-reviewing the work of the Interagency Performance Evaluation Task Force (IPET)—the body commissioned by the Corps to assess the performance of the hurricane protection system in New Orleans and southeastern Louisiana.
The ERP members, listed below, were awarded the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal (OCSM), an honor traditionally bestowed by the Corps’s commander and chief of engineers to recognize outstanding service and contributions to society and the nation on the part of civilians. Established by the secretary of the army in 1959, the OCSM is ranked directly below the Distinguished Civilian Service Decoration and above the Patriotic Civilian Service Lapel Button.
“Everyone on the External Review Panel was recognized,” explains Lawrence H. Roth, P.E., G.E., F.ASCE, the Society’s deputy executive director, who also was presented with the OCSM for his leadership in developing the ERP and for facilitating the panel’s interactions with the IPET. “It was a tremendous honor for all involved in the peer-review process and for the Society as a whole.”
The ERP’s work has been comprehensive and rigorous, for it collected data associated with the condition of the hurricane protection systems before and after Hurricane Katrina; reviewed system construction and maintenance; performed numerical modeling to characterize the storm surge; analyzed the performance of floodwalls, pumping stations, and levees; evaluated the ramifications of economic decisions associated with hurricane protection systems; and examined the engineering and operational risk and reliability of the system.
“Your historic work will not only ensure the safety of the people of New Orleans, but many others throughout the country who depend on our nation’s civil works projects for protection of their livelihood,” wrote John Paul Woodley, Jr., the assistant secretary of the army, in a recent letter to the ERP panel. “I appreciate all that you have done and thank you for your patriotism, dedication, and outstanding accomplishments. When the nation asked for your help, you were there.”
On February 12 Lieutenant General Carl A. Strock, P.E., M.ASCE, the commander and chief of engineers of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, awarded the members of ASCE’s External Review Panel and ASCE staff members closely associated with the work of the panel the Outstanding Civilian Service Medal. The honorees are as follows:
External Review Panel Members
Christine F. Andersen, P.E., M.ASCE, Director of Public Works, City of Long Beach, California
Jurjen Battjes, Ph.D., Emeritus Professor of Fluid Mechanics, Delft University of Technology
David E. Daniel, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE, President, University of Texas at Dallas, and Panel Chair
Billy L. Edge, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE, Head, Coastal and Ocean Division, Zachry Department of Civil Engineering, Texas A&M University
William H. Espey, Jr., Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE, President, Espey Consultants
Robert B. Gilbert, P.E., M.ASCE, Professor, Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of Texas at Austin
Thomas L. Jackson, P.E., D.WRE, F.ASCE, President, Southeast Louisiana Floor Protection Authority–East (Jackson’s service on the ERP is now complete.)
David Kennedy, P.E., F.ASCE, Consultant and Director, Retired, California Department of Water Resources
Dennis Mileti, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado at Boulder and Professor Emeritus, University of Colorado at Boulder
James K. Mitchell, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE, Hon.m.ASCE, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Peter G. Nicholson, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE, Professor, University of Hawaii at Manoa
Clifford A. Pugh, P.E., M.ASCE, Group Manager, Water Resources Research Laboratory, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
George Tamaro, P.E., Hon.M.ASCE, Partner, Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers
Robert G. Traver, Ph.D., P.E., D.WRE, M.ASCE, Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Villanova University
ASCE Staff Members
John E. Durrant, P.E., M.ASCE, Managing Director of Engineering Programs, ASCE
Lawrence H. Roth, P.E., G.E., F.ASCE, Deputy Executive Director, ASCE