Steve Abt Named Interim Dean of College of Engineering at Colorado State University

Note to Reporters: Photos of Steve Abt are available with the news release at http://www.news.colostate.edu.

Colorado State University Provost Rick Miranda has named Steve Abt, emeritus professor of civil and environmental engineering, as interim dean of the College of Engineering effective Aug. 1.

He replaces Sandy Woods, who resigned to take a position at Oregon State University.

Abt last served as interim dean of the college in 2004. He came out of retirement in July 2011 to serve as a temporary Senior Facilities Advisor to Vice President for Operations Amy Parsons before she named Steve Hultin director of Facilities Management.

“The university community takes comfort in knowing Dr. Abt will help the college continue to thrive and grow in preparation for its next leader,” Miranda said.

“CSU provided me an educational and experiential foundation that guided me throughout my career,” Abt said. “I am excited to have the opportunity to once again serve and give back to the institution.”

Abt has more than 39 years of general engineering experience. He earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, master’s degree in water resources and doctoral degree in hydraulics, all from CSU. After serving in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and working as a consulting water resource engineer in Denver, Abt joined CSU’s faculty in 1977.

Throughout his tenure, Abt has served in several administrative posts at the university including executive associate dean and interim dean of Engineering, director of the Engineering Research Center, Civil Engineering administrative officer, interim head of Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering academic coordinator and director of the Hydraulics Laboratory. He has published more than 450 journal articles, proceedings and reports and served as Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator on projects worth more than $16 million. Abt has served on more than 200 graduate committees and advised 112 master’s and 18 doctoral graduate students.

In addition to his education and research duties, Abt has spent 14 years as a contract Research Station Facility Engineer for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, providing facility-oriented services supporting planning, assessment, programming, and construction activities for a 10-state region. A major general, he has served with the U.S. Army/Army Reserve since 1973.

Abt is a registered Professional Engineer in Colorado and a Diplomate of the American Academy of Water Resources Engineering. He has been active in numerous committees as a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers and in a variety of other organizations including the International Erosion Control Association, American Water Resources Association (past Journal Associate Editor) and the Transportation Research Board (Hydraulics, Hydrology and Water Quality Committee). He is also a member of the Army of the United States Association, Army Engineer Association and the Reserve Officer Association.

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