ASCE has honored Dennis D. Truax, Ph.D., P.E., D.WRE, F.ASCE, with the 2020 Edmund Friedman Professional Recognition Award for advancing professional and ethical practice.
Truax is Department Head and Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Mississippi State University. He has actively advanced professional and ethical practice during his academic career and through volunteer work with ASCE, NSPE, NCEES, ABET and the Mississippi state licensure board. He has authored numerous technical publications and developed engineering curricula in hazard mitigation, stormwater management, hazardous waste management, groundwater hydrology and risk assessment.
He has made significant contributions to the profession, as well. Among many achievements, he served on the Strategic Planning Advisory Board for ASCE and as associate editor of the ASCE Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Professional Practice between 1999 and 2007. He received the Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award six times between 1996 and 2006 and has also been recognized as Civil Engineer of the Year of the Mississippi Section. He has actively advanced civil engineering professional standards as an Emeritus Member of the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying.
Truax has helped guide many engineers in their professional development and has been formally recognized with numerous awards, including recognition as the ASCE Professional New Faces of Civil Engineering Mentor in 2014-16. He is the ASCE 2021 President-Elect.
The Edmund Friedman Professional Recognition Award is presented to a member, except an Honorary Member, of the Society who is judged to have contributed substantially to the status of the engineering profession by establishing a reputation for professional service.
