Ashley, who will join USC Viterbi as a professor of engineering practice, is interested in the development and implementation of risk-analysis techniques appropriate for project management and construction engineering. He served as the eighth president of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas from 2006 to 2009 and was formerly the founding executive vice chancellor and provost at the University of California, Merced and dean of the College of Engineering at the Ohio State University. At Ohio State, he was responsible for curriculum development activities, where he developed and implemented a first-year curriculum focused on creating early engineering experiences and team problem solving. “I am joining an outstanding group of colleagues in the Astani Department with the hope of helping advance the academic stature and impact of our civil and environmental engineering programs,” Ashley said. “We plan to focus on critical infrastructure and built environment issues such as resilience, reliability and sustainability.”