Benjamin Garver Lamme Award
Ernest T. Smerdon, Dean Emeritus of the College of Engineering and Mines, and Professor Emeritus of Civil Engineering and Hydrology & Water Resources at the University of Arizona, received the Benjamin Garver Lamme Award for 2008. Smerdon is recognized for his profound impact on engineering education.
He has held leadership positions in organizations and on seminal committees addressing the future of engineering education and research, and has published widely on methods for improving engineering education. Smerdon’s commitment to improving engineering education began with the first class he taught in civil engineering at his alma mater, the University of Missouri-Columbia (1955-57), where he earned his B.S. (1951), M.S. (1956) and Ph.D. (1959) degrees in engineering and was awarded an honorary doctorate. During more than 45 years of service to engineering education, he has held positions at Texas A&M University (1959-68), University of Florida (1968-76), University of Texas System (1976-82), and University of Texas-Austin (1982-87). Subsequently, he was appointed dean of engineering at the University of Arizona (1988-98). After ten years in that position, he accepted a temporary assignment as Senior Education Associate in the Engineering Directorate at the National Science Foundation (1998-2001), where he coordinated and approved all engineering education projects in the Engineering Education and Centers Division.
He is a Fellow of ASEE and has served in many positions within ASEE, including Chair of the ASEE International Colloquium: Global Changes in Engineering Education (2002); ASEE President (1998); Chair, Engineering Deans Council (1995-97); Vice President of Institutional Councils (1995-97); and Board of Directors (1995-2000). Smerdon’s work within other organizations includes the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), National Research Council (NRC), American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE). Within NAE, he served on the Steering Committee for the Engineer of 2020 study, Phase I & II (2001-2005). He served on 11 NAE committees, three of which he served as chair. At the NRC, he served on 14 committees, including the Committee for the Study of Research-Doctorate Programs in the United States. He served as chair of four of those committees and co-chair of one committee.
His work within ASCE includes service on the Committee on the Academic Prerequisites for Professional Practice (CAP3) (2001-present); and chair of the CAP3 Accreditation Committee (2002-2004). At NSPE, he served on the Education Advisory Group (1992-1997). Smerdon has consulted nationally on engineering education, and consulted and lectured internationally on engineering education reform in over a dozen countries. He consulted on water issues for the World Bank and the U. S. Agency for International Development, as well as several foreign governments. A prolific author, Smerdon has written widely on engineering education, contributing to over 150 scholarly publications. He is a Fellow and Honorary Member of ASCE and a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Environmental and Water Resources Institute of ASCE (2002). He also received the International Golden Vector Award; and Engineering Education Award from the Union Panamericana de Asociaciones de Ingenieros. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers; the American Association for the Advancement of Science; and a member of the American Electronics Association and NSPE.
The Benjamin Garver Lamme Award was established in 1928, and recognizes excellence in teaching, contributions to research and technical literature, and achievements that advance the profession of engineering college administration.
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