I am honored to be able to serve you as the Chair of the Glenn Department of Civil Engineering. I am in awe of the legacy and strength of this department and will work with you to achieve the goal of becoming a nationally recognized top-tier program.

I see us going beyond producing top quality graduates for the workforce, by focusing on creating lifetime relationships with our students. We want our students to feel like revered alumni while they are still students so that after graduation they become Clemson Multipliers and expand the mission of this organization. The concept of Alumni Every Day will help us tie each student’s future together with that of the university. 

The department’s transformational RED (Revolutionizing Engineering Departments) initiative, to establish an environment in which students thrive academically and professionally, is beginning to make great strides in establishing these relationships. The RED initiative also offers a unique opportunity to develop an academic experience that will instill a problem-setting mindset in our students. While engineers have traditionally been trained as problem-solvers, now more than ever, they must be fostered as ‘problem-setters’—innovators and thought leaders who not only fix what is broken, but also determine what needs fixing.  Being a problem setter as well as a problem solver will solidify the civil engineer’s role as policy makers, planners, designers, builders, and custodians of society’s infrastructure lifelines.

I fully appreciate the dual and interconnected role of the Chair as steward and fundraiser.  The department is enriched by the generosity of alumni and friends, i.e., Clemson Multipliers, who unselfishly donate their time, wisdom, and financial resources for the betterment of our faculty, staff, and students.  Renewing the teaching laboratories to provide our students with cutting-edge hands-on experiences is also one of my top priorities.  I will reach out early in my tenure as Chair to current and new Clemson Multipliers to thank them for their support thus far and to seek their continued guidance and financial commitment to achieve this priority.

There is no doubt that I have a lot to learn about the Clemson traditions and values.  I invite each of you with whom I will cross paths, to contribute to my education and enlightenment.

Bertha and I are happy to call South Carolina our new home, the weather and the people are warm and wonderful. I must confess though, that I drink unsweetened iced tea.

We are thrilled to be Clemson Tigers and are looking forward to being a part of this community

Jesús M. de la Garza

Chair, Glenn Department of Civil Engineering