Johnson earn nod as ‘top engineer'

August 23, 2006

Paul Johnson, executive dean of ASU's Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering, has been recognized as one of the nation's top young engineers through his selection to participate in the upcoming U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium. The symposium, convened annually by the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), brings together engineers 30 to 45 years old from academia, industry and government to explore leading-edge research and technology.<separator></separator>The academy invites young engineers who are contributing to notable advancements in engineering and are considered potential leaders of the nation's most important engineering endeavors.<separator></separator>Johnson will join 80 other engineers at the symposium Sept. 21-23 at the Ford Research and Innovation Center in Dearborn , Mich. The group will examine innovative work in nanotechnology-biology interface, intelligent software systems and machines, supply-chain management and other areas.<separator></separator>“At Frontiers of Engineering, engineers share know-how from multiple fields and initiate collaborations that may one day solve complex problems,” says the NAE's president, William. Wulf. “Engineers like these – who possess extensive knowledge and broad interests – are essential to U.S. competitiveness.”<separator></separator>Johnson, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, has done research focusing on chemical migration in the environment, involving environmental risk assessment, soil and groundwater remediation and aquifer management. He is editor-in-chief of the National Ground Water Association's technical journal Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation. <separator></separator>Before coming to ASU in 1994, Johnson worked as a senior research engineer at Shell Oil/Shell Chemical Westhollow Technology Center in Houston .<separator></separator>Before being named executive dean of the engineering school earlier this year, Johnson was ASU's associate vice president for research since April 2004. Previously, he was associate dean for research in the Fulton School . He earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the University of California-Davis in 1983, and master's and doctoral degrees in chemical engineering from Princeton University.<separator></separator>