May 13, 2004

Schofer to be interim dean of McCormick

Joseph Schofer, professor of civil and environmental engineering, has been appointed interim dean of the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, it was announced by Provost Lawrence B. Dumas.

He will assume the duties July 1 when Dean John Birge leaves the University to take a position as professor of operations management at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

Dumas said Schofer will serve until a new dean is appointed. A report from the McCormick Dean Search Committee on potential candidates is expected in early June, he said.

“President Bienen and I are grateful to Professor Schofer for agreeing to serve as leader of McCormick in the interim,” Dumas said.

McCormick department chairs and holders of endowed professorships were asked for their suggestions for an interim dean and Schofer received the largest number of such nominations, Dumas said, saying that Schofer “clearly enjoys the confidence of his colleagues in the school.”

Schofer has been a member of the McCormick faculty since 1970. He served for five years as chair of the department of civil and environmental engineering and currently serves as associate dean for faculty affairs at McCormick.

Schofer’s research focuses on transportation, communities and people. He is studying factors affecting pedestrian crashes, particularly pedestrian characteristics and behavior and roadway features; the definition and measurement of exposure to the risk of crashes; and community interventions to improve pedestrian safety. Schofer also is interested in traffic calming and strategies to promote more and safer walking and biking.