Sharon L. Wood

Sharon L. Wood is an American structural engineer who was formerly[1] executive vice president and provost of the University of Texas at Austin.[2]

Biography

Wood is the descendant of three generations of civil engineers, and began her interest in engineering at age eight when she visited a construction site with her father.[3][4][5] She graduated from the University of Virginia in 1982,[6][5] and has a Ph.D. in civil engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign,[6] which she earned with the support of a Tau Beta Pi fellowship.[5]

The University of Illinois hired her as a faculty member directly after she completed her doctorate,[5] and she remained there as a faculty member for ten years before moving to the University of Texas in 1996. She was named dean in 2014,[6] after a year as interim dean.[4][5]

She was the first woman at the university to chair the Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, and the first woman to become dean of engineering.[3][4] Her accomplishments as dean include significantly increasing the number of women both among the faculty of the school and in its students.[5]

Recognition

She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2013 "for design of reinforced concrete structures and associated seismic instrumentation for extreme loadings and environments".[7] She is also a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers, which gave her their Alfred Noble Prize in 1993[8] and their Outstanding Projects and Leaders (OPAL) Award in Education in 2018.[9]

The University of Virginia named Wood their distinguished alumna for 2018.[5] Hart Energy and their Oil and Gas Investor magazine gave Wood their Pinnacle Award in 2020.[10]

References

  1. ^ https://www.statesman.com/story/news/education/2024/08/27/sharon-wood-ut-austin-university-of-texas-provost-stepping-down/74965555007/
  2. ^ "Sharon L. Wood, Executive Vice President and Provost - The University of Texas at Austin". Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  3. ^ a b "Sharon L. Wood", Women in Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, retrieved 2020-11-30
  4. ^ a b c Cahalan, Rose (September 4, 2013), "Four Questions for Sharon Wood: UT's First Female Dean of Engineering", Alcalde
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Bromley, Anne E. (April 3, 2018), "Engineering Dean at University of Texas named UVA's 2018 Distinguished Alumna", UVA Today
  6. ^ a b c About the dean, Cockrell School of Engineering, retrieved 2020-11-30
  7. ^ "Dr. Sharon L. Wood", Member profile, National Academy of Engineering, retrieved 2020-11-30
  8. ^ Sharon L. Wood, American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, retrieved 2020-11-30
  9. ^ Outstanding Projects and Leaders Past Recipients, American Society of Civil Engineers, retrieved 2020-11-30
  10. ^ 2020 Pinnacle Award Winner: Dr. Sharon L. Wood, University of Texas, Hart Energy, retrieved 2020-11-30