Vanegas inducted in Pan American Academy
of Engineering in Buenos Aires ceremony

Jorge Vanegas, dean of the College of Architecture at Texas A&M, was inducted as a member of the Pan American Academy of Engineering at an Oct. 21, 2010 ceremony in Buenos Aires.

"I am sure that your work, advice and initiatives will enrich the programs of the academy, improving its position on the American continent as a group of excellence," academy president Miguel Angel Yadarola said in a letter heralding Vanegas' acceptance into the academy.

Created in 1996 by the International Directorate of the Pan-American Federation of Engineering Societies, the academy aids the development of each country in the Americas through the contributions of distinguished engineers' intelligence, experience and time.

Lou Tassinary, executive associate dean for the college, announced Vanegas’ induction in the academy during an Aug. 27 faculty/staff meeting in the college’s Preston Geren Auditorium. On hand for the surprise announcement were Texas A&M VIP guests R. Bowen Loftin, president, Jeffrey R. Seemann, vice president for research, and Karan Watson, interim provost and executive vice president for academic affairs.

Vanegas’ induction to the Pan American Academy of Engineering comes on the heels of another prestigious award. On Sept. 2 he became the first academician to receive the Engineering and Construction Contracting Association Achievement Award, which recognized his visionary leadership and lasting impact on the competitive face of the engineering and construction industry.

Vanegas' primary areas of expertise include built environment sustainability and advanced strategies, tools and methods for integrated capital asset delivery. His scholarly focus also includes management, creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship for the architecture, engineering and construction industries.

A registered architect in Colombia, Vanegas holds a degree in architecture from Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, as well as Master of Science and doctorate degrees in construction engineering and management from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University.

Vanegas is a member of numerous professional organizations, among them the American Institute of Architects and the American Society of Civil Engineering. He also serves as a board member for the FIATECH Consortium, an Austin-based nonprofit group focused on development and deployment of technologies dedicated to improving how capital projects and facilities are designed, engineered, built and maintained.

He has also worked as a consultant and advisor to a variety of businesses, governments and organizations throughout the world, including the International Center for Sustainable Development of the City of Knowledge in Panama.

Among Vanegas’ numerous professional honors are the 2007 FIATECH STAR Award for Superior Technical Achievements, the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers' 2001 Educator of the Year Award, the 1995 Outstanding Instructor Award from the Construction Industry Institute, and the National Science Foundation National Young Investigator Award in 1992.

Before coming to Texas A&M, Vanegas held academic appointments at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Purdue University.

He earned a Ph.D. in Construction Engineering and Management in 1998 and a Master of Science in Construction Engineering and Management in 1985 at Stanford University and a Bachelor of Science in Architecture at the Universidad de Los Andes in 1979.

- Posted: Nov. 11, 2010 -

Contact:   Phillip Rollfing, prollfing@archone.tamu.edu or 979.458.0442.