Kevin Z. Truman, Ph.D., was installed as the Albert and Blanche Greensfelder Professor of Civil Engineering in a recent ceremony in the auditorium of Uncas A. Whitaker Hall for Biomedical Engineering.
“Kevin Truman’s career has been exemplary, both in teaching and research, and his involvement with outreach locally with the National Science Foundation is admirable,” Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton said.
“His value to the University has been well-reflected in his numerous honors and awards. Dr. Truman is a very worthy recipient of the Greensfelder chair, and I’m sure he will continue to do marvelous research in structural engineering and seismic analysis in that capacity.”
Barna A. Szabo, Ph.D., the previous holder of the Greensfelder professorship, will become a senior professor in mechanical and aerospace engineering July 1.
Truman was born in Galesburg, Ill., in 1956 and was raised in Seaton, Ill. In 1979, Truman earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and physics from Monmouth College. Through WUSTL’s 3-2 Program (now called the Dual Degree Program), he earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering that same year.
In 1981, Truman earned a master’s degree in civil engineering from WUSTL, and in 1985, he earned a doctorate in structural engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla.
Truman began his career in 1985 as an assistant professor of civil engineering at Washington University and was promoted to associate professor in 1988. In 1996, he became a full professor of civil engineering. He became chair of the department in 1998.
Truman’s major research interests are structural optimization; structural health monitoring; seismic analysis and design of structural systems; massive concrete systems, including arch dams, gravity dams and locks; computational structural mechanics; and construction-related thermal stresses in concrete.
Much of his research has been with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, culminating in the development of many of its seismic-related design documents.
A distinguished teacher and mentor to engineering students, Truman has also taken his teaching talents to area schools. He has given numerous presentations on earthquake design and participates in National Science Foundation programs, including the NSF’s Research Experience for Teachers program and its GK12 program.
Truman is principal investigator for a five-year, $1.88 million GK12 grant that will fund eight graduate students to lead teaching teams at four area K-12 schools while performing their research at WUSTL.
Truman has received numerous awards, including the 1996 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, the 1998 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) State-of-the-Art in Civil Engineering Award, the 1990 Monmouth College Distinguished Young Alumnus Award, and the School of Engineering & Applied Science 1986-87 Professor of the Year Award and 1995-96 Advisor of the Year Award.
Truman has been an ASCE member, a member of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute’s Structural Stability Research Council since 1979 and has been a member of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Massive Concrete Structures Task Group since 1989. He is the author of numerous technical reports, journal articles and book chapters.
Truman and his wife, Katina, are the parents of Zane, 20, and Kameryn, 12.
Albert and Blanche Greensfelder always thought that actions spoke louder than words. So, rather than merely declaring their appreciation for their alma mater, the Greensfelders chose to establish the Albert P. and Blanche Y. Greensfelder Professorship in Civil Engineering to advance “the teaching of construction practices and engineering.”
Albert Greensfelder was born in St. Louis in 1879. After graduating from Washington University in 1901 with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, he worked on an interurban railway project in Iola, Kansas, before joining the Terminal Railroad Association in St. Louis. Realizing, however, that the amount of new railroad construction in the near future would be limited, he accepted an offer in 1906 from the Fruin-Colnon engineering and contracting firm.
Beginning as a construction superintendent, he advanced through the ranks to eventually become chairman of the board. He served in this capacity from 1940-49, when he retired from active business life but remained with the firm as a consultant.
Recognized as an authority in construction, Greensfelder was elected to lead many engineering and construction associations, including the American Society of Engineering Contractors, the Consulting Contractors Council of America, the Associated General Contractors of America, the ASCE, the St. Louis Regional Planning and Construction Foundation, and the Engineers’ Club of St. Louis.
He was also appointed by President Harry S. Truman for a six-year term on the National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
As a crusader for regional parks and recreation areas, Greensfelder was instrumental in setting aside several thousand acres as recreation, conservation and wildlife research and refuge areas. In his honor, the St. Louis Regional Planning and Construction Foundation designated 1,700 acres adjacent to Rockwoods Reservation as the Albert P. Greensfelder Memorial Park. This facility was opened to the public in 1967.
In 1909, Greensfelder married Blanche Younker, who earned a master’s degree in English from WUSTL in 1927. He died in 1955, she in 1956. Both had been known throughout their lives for their generous support of various organizations.