University Of Delaware: In Memoriam: Edgar Small

Wilmington DE

23 February, 2022

10:54 AM

Description

Press release from the University of Delaware: Article by Maddy Lauria February 22, 2022 Campus remembers founding director of Construction Engineering and Management Program Edgar Small, a construction engineering and management expert and professor at the University of Delaware, passed away on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022. Dr. Small served as associate professor in the College of Engineering's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) and joined UD in 2016 as the founding director of the then-newly launched Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) Program. He was an expert in construction and infrastructure management, with recent research focusing on construction automation and bridges for the future. In early 2022, Dr. Small traveled 13 hours with 20 students to study abroad in Dubai, where they got to experience the "Dr. Edgar Tour of Dubai." He hosted multiple study abroad trips to the United Arab Emirates, engaging with dozens of students. Before coming to UD, Dr. Small spent nine years as an associate professor at American University in Dubai, where he was also the program coordinator for the university's construction management master's program. "Dr. Small was an amazing professor and I am so lucky to have spent a month abroad with him, and to have seen how happy he was on the trip," said senior Lily Peterson. She said Dr. Small showed off the city during their weeks together, from astounding construction feats and practices to cultural traditions, visiting the desert, riding in a helicopter, visiting wildlife centers, scuba diving and they even got to ride the tallest ferris wheel in the world. "The study abroad trip led to very new and fascinating experiences for every person there, which was something that Dr. Small was so excited to provide us with." The recent trip to Dubai was extra special this year, Foglio said, because the city was finally hosting Expo 2020, which is the world's fair for technology. "It was like the fruition of a dream for him," he said. This was Foglio's second trip to Dubai with Dr. Small, but this time as his teaching assistant instead of as an undergraduate. "He got to see so many steps toward his dream being achieved in the last couple of years, it was really incredible."  Under Dr. Small's direction, the construction engineering and management program has become one of the more popular programs offered by the College of Engineering. Dr. Small was specifically chosen to conceptualize, launch and grow the new program, which has more than quadrupled enrollment since its inception, with 88 undergraduate students currently in the program.  "Edgar accomplished a lot in the short time he was at UD," said former CEE Chair and Professor Sue McNeil, who is a CEE and public policy professor and a core faculty member in the Disaster Research Center. "The CEM program is a resounding success because of Edgar's vision and hard work that has included engaging his colleagues and others. He has left a legacy that I hope we can continue to build. He has also left a gap in all our lives. I can safely say the students, the faculty and staff, and his family miss him dearly, as he touched all our lives in special ways." To CEM colleague and faculty member Mohsin Siddiqui, Dr. Small was a colleague, a friend and a mentor who was always available and ready to listen.  "He was always there for the students and was a shepherd for our CEM cohorts," Siddiqui said. "His presence and his impact will be felt in the corridors of DuPont Hall for years to come." Current CEE Chair Puleo said Dr. Small, who also served on Puleo's internal leadership team, built unique relationships with all who had the opportunity to work with him. He applied his knowledge, expertise and networking skills to create a program that has produced graduates ready to go out into the world and be working engineers with the skills today's industries need, Puleo said. "He knew what he wanted and he put the building blocks down — pun intended — to make it happen," he said. "The program certainly wouldn't be where it is without him." Dr. Small's CEM colleague Ri Na, like so many others, described him as a mentor turned family member. "He worked so diligently and dedicated his last few years, even the last month, and day of his life to the program," Na said. "I was fortunate to have worked with a great leader like him and am proud to be a part of the CEM family. Dr. Small's warmth and sense of humor will be greatly missed. We will turn grief into motivation and make CEM better. Dr. Small's wish is to develop a world-renowned program and build the future. His spirit will always be with us." Colleagues credit the program's excellence in large part due to a commitment to working closely with industry partners — partners that for the first three years, fully funded the operational needs of the program.  "He had a long term plan for every resource made available to the program," said Nicole Murphy, a CEE business administrator who had recently begun working closely with Dr. Small to implement and grow the CEM program. Over the last six months, they'd been putting together a new space on campus for students to have a virtual experience with the work they're doing. "He loved to talk about his work, what he was doing, what it meant to the students and what it meant to him," she said. "And he loved to bring you in."  He also loved to talk about Dubai, Murphy said, and stop what he was doing to tell you whatever you wanted to know.  Prior to his time in Dubai, the New York native was an assistant professor at Catholic University of America before spending four years as a senior structural engineer for the Federal Highway Administration. Dr. Small received his undergraduate and doctoral degrees from the University at Buffalo, where he studied civil engineering and construction and infrastructure management. This press release was produced by the University of Delaware. The views expressed here are the author's own.