CCEE Professor Shane Underwood tapped as NC State University Faculty Scholar

CCEE Professor and Associate Head of Undergraduate Programs Shane Underwood was named to NC State’s 2023-24 class of University Faculty Scholars. Underwood was one of 22 early- and mid-career faculty to receive this designation in recognition of their outstanding academic achievements and contributions to NC State through their teaching, scholarship, and service to the university and beyond.

Since the program’s inception in 2012, 258 faculty have been named University Faculty Scholars. These faculty members carry the title for the duration of their faculty appointment at NC State and receive an increase to their base salary.

Each college may submit nominations for assistant professors appointed for a second term, associate professors and professors within the first three years of their appointment. Senior faculty then review nominations, evaluating them on research and scholarship productivity, excellence in teaching and mentoring, and leadership in extension, professional societies and public service initiatives.

“I was really pleased and surprised to find out I had been named to the University Faculty Scholars,” Underwood said.

For Underwood, receiving this type of recognition at NC State was a full-circle moment. He first entered campus as a student, earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering in 2003 and 2006, respectively. He went on to earn his Ph.D. in civil engineering from CCEE in 2011. After working on the faculty at Arizona State University, Underwood returned to NC State and joined CCEE as an associate professor in 2017. Since then, he has been promoted to professor and serves as associate department head for undergraduate programs.

Underwood’s research and education program focuses on materials and their interaction with society and the natural and built environments. He teaches undergraduate courses on pavement engineering and infrastructure materials in addition to occasionally teaching short courses abroad such as in Colombia and China. He currently mentors about 12 graduate students and has received multiple awards for teaching and service including the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering (Arizona State University) Top 5% Instructors Award and the Outstanding Academic Member Award from the Academy of Pavement Science and Engineering (APSE). 

Underwood serves as an editor for many pavement and materials journals including the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering and the Association of Asphalt Paving Technologists. He is also involved in several professional organizations including as the current committee research coordinator and future committee chair for the Transportation Research Board’s Characteristics of Asphalt Paving Mixtures to Meet Structural Requirements Committee and as vice president of APSE. 

“APSE is a big initiative of pavement engineering,” Underwood said. “We try to kind of advocate for scholarship and advocate for professional training and certification in the field of pavement engineering.”