Dr. John Niedzwecki, Cain '13 Senior Chair in Offshore Technology and Regents Professor in the Zachry Department of Civil Engineering and the Department of Ocean Engineering at Texas A&M University, was invited to join the international advisory board for the Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Ship and Deep-Sea Exploration (CISSE).
CISSE is a research center of excellence established by the Chinese government, lead by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), and supported in part by the offshore industry. The mission of the center is to define and implement a comprehensive science-based research program that engages international expertise from industry, universities and research institutes.
The center is expected to be a catalyst for increasing international collaborative research and student exchanges in ocean science and engineering. CISSE partners in China include the China State Shipbuilding Corporation, China National Offshore Oil Corporation, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Tianjin University, Dalian University of Technology, China Ship Scientific Research Center and China Classification Society.
Niedzwecki will attend the CISSE board of advisors meeting hosted at SJTU in May. He also serves on the editorial board for the Journal of Ocean Engineering and Science, the university’s new journal that is published by Elsevier.
Niedzwecki came to Texas A&M more than 30 years ago as an assistant professor. In 1998, he was named head of the civil engineering department, a position he held until 2003. During his tenure, Niedzwecki was instrumental in leading the department to rank among the nation's top 10 programs. He then served as executive associate dean for the Dwight Look College of Engineering and associate agency director for the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES).
In June 2010, he returned to the civil engineering department where he again served as department head until April 2013, whereupon he returned to teaching and research. He specializes in offshore civil engineering and was instrumental in securing the National Science Foundation Offshore Technology Research Center for TEES and The Texas A&M University System. Niedzwecki is a fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and was elected diplomate in the specialty of Ocean Engineering by its Academy of Coastal, Ocean, Port and Navigation Engineers. He remains actively engaged with faculty at the Norwegian Institute of Science and Technology and the University of Stavanger, and holds visiting appointments at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.