The PhD program, with majors in Civil Engineering (CE) and Environmental and Water Resources Engineering (EWRE), was launched in the fall 2007-08 semester. Starting in AY 2009-10 there will be eleven students in the two majors who have started their journey of specialized learning and research towards the PhD degree. With the PhD programs, the department, the FEA, and AUB have affirmed their commitment to world-class research, and to training individuals who will assume academic and professional leadership roles in various fields related to civil and environmental engineering.

Another significant development is the approval by AUB of the new undergraduate program in Construction Engineering that will be offered by the CEE department starting in the fall of 2009-10. This will be the first new undergraduate degree in the department since the BE degree in civil engineering was first offered in the 1950’s. In addition, this will be the first time a BS degree (three-year degree) in engineering is offered at AUB, representing a new and dynamic model in engineering degrees at AUB. The program is expected to address the rapidly growing regional and local demand of the construction industry, with the FEA and AUB well positioned to play a vital role in serving such a need. AUB hopes to attract many regional students who are seeking an American style education from an accredited, leading institution.

The 2007-08 academic year witnessed the largest ever incoming first year class in civil engineering (125 students), bringing the number of undergraduate students in the department to 350, up from 210 just three years ago. Driven by the market demand for civil engineers, and coupled with an increase in admission scores, the bigger and stronger student body has the potential to enrich the department, but has also presented some challenges related to class size and teaching resources. With the support of the FEA administration, new faculty members are being recruited to address the increased teaching load.

Two new faculty members joined the department in 2007-08, namely Dr. Shadi Najjar (Geotechnical Engineering, PhD from UT Austin 2005) and Dr. Pascal Saikaly (Environmental Sciences, PhD from University of Cincinnati 2005). Dr. Ghassan Chehab (Materials and Pavements, PhD from NCSU 2002), an Assistant Professor at Pennsylvania State University, joined the department in the spring of 2008-09. Dr. Maya Abou Zeid (Transportation, PhD from MIT 2009) and Dr. Hiam Khoury (Construction Engineering, PhD from the UNiversity of Michigan Ann Arbor 2009), will join in the fall of AY 2009-10. We will continue to seek candidates to fill a position in structural engineering.

In May 2009, the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture awarded Mr. Ghassan Merhebi, CEE alumnus-1963, the FEA Distinguished Alumnus Award at the 8th Annual FEA Student Conference. Mr. Merhebi is a founder and current Chairman of one of the largest and most successful contracting companies in the region (Arab Construction Co-ACC).

The 2008-09 AY witnessed a number of awards and achievements by CEE faculty. Prof. Mutasem El Fadel received the Dar Al Handasah (Shair and Partners) Chair in Engineering, and Prof. Shadi Najjar won the best paper award for an author 35 years and younger at the ASCE- organized IFCEE09 conference held in Orlando, Florida.