Durham School’s Jay Puckett honored for lifelong commitment to engineering education

Calendar Icon May 23, 2018          RSS Feed  RSS Submit a Story

Jay Puckett, director of The Durham School of Architectural Engineering & Construction.
Jay Puckett, director of The Durham School of Architectural Engineering & Construction.

Jay Puckett, director of The Durham School of Architectural Engineering & Construction, has been awarded the Wyoming Eminent Engineer for 2018 on behalf of the engineering honor society Tau Beta Pi.

This award is presented annually and honors someone who has provided significant service to the College of Engineering or the State of Wyoming in the field of engineering. A student panel of 8-10 Tau Beta Pi members selects the recipient of this prestigious award. 

Puckett was a long-term educator, researcher and administrator in the Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering at the University of Wyoming. He served the University of Wyoming in varying capacities, ranging from assistant professor through associate dean, from 1983-2015, before starting as Durham School director in 2015. 

“I worked with Jay as a fellow associate dean. He is an outstanding educator and engineer. This is well-deserved recognition for an outstanding career of service to students,” said Steve Barrett, associate dean for academic programs at the University of Wyoming.

While at the University of Wyoming, Puckett conducted research primarily in the area of bridge, transportation structures, and steel frames. He served five American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) committees and was one of the founding associate editors for the ASCE Journal of Bridge Engineering and served in that role for several years. For four years, Puckett chaired the Academic Council for architectural engineering. During this time, he led the group to rewrite the drafts for the current Accreditation Board for Engineering & Technology (ABET) Architectural Engineering criteria and associated ASCE commentary. He also serves as an ABET program evaluator for civil and architectural engineering programs.

“My career in engineering education has been such a great ride! I am very fortunate to love what I do and am lucky to have experienced such wonderful opportunities during my years at UW,” said Puckett. “I have spent my career teaching, researching and learning about subjects that I am truly passionate about. No gift is greater.”

Puckett received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in civil engineering from Colorado State University, and his B.S. in civil engineering from the University of Missouri. 

Tau Beta Pi is the only engineering honor society representing the entire engineering profession. It is the nation's second-oldest honor society, founded at Lehigh University in 1885 to recognize students of distinguished scholarship and exemplary character.



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