Illinois transportation students recently created the Society of Pavement Engineers. The Society’s goals are to promote interaction and knowledge exchange about pavement systems among students, researchers, and practitioners; propose collaborative work; and at the same time create a strong network of current and past students working in the area of pavement engineering.
The Illinois Chapter, advised by Founder Professor of Engineering Imad Al-Qadi, appears to be the first such society in the entire country. The Illinois student group is hoping the organization will become nationwide and is encouraging other universities to start similar chapters so the network can include pavement engineers throughout the country.
The chapter organized three events in 2009, including seminars on warm mix asphalt technology, the principles of the Bailey Method of mix design, and the MATLAB computing environment. The events were attended by students from various engineering backgrounds.
For more information about the Society, including if you are a practitioner interested in presenting to the Society, please contact the group’s President Deb Mishra at dmishra2@illinois.edu.