Vanegas

Dr. Jorge A. Vanegas graduated in 1979 with a degree in Architecture from the Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia, South America. He pursued graduate studies in Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Stanford University, Stanford, California, graduating with a M.S. degree in 1985, and a Ph.D. degree in 1988. Subsequently, he held appointments as Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering at Purdue University (Aug.'88–May'93), and as Associate Professor and Professor in Civil & Environmental Engineering at Georgia Tech (May'93–Dec.'05).
Dr. Vanegas joined Texas A&M University in Jan.'06, as a tenured Professor in the Department of Architecture in the former College of Architecture (now School of Architecture) and holds courtesy appointments as Professor in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering in the College of Engineering since Feb.'20, and as Research Professor in the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of the Texas A&M University System since Sept.'11. He served as Interim Dean of the College of Architecture (July/'08 to July'09) and was appointed as Dean of the College for three consecutive terms (July'09 to Dec.'21). He then was appointed as Associate Vice President, Department of Engagement for Sustainability in the Division of Academic and Strategic Collaborations of the Office of the President (Jan.'22 to Oct.'22), and currently serves as Director of the Institute for Sustainable Communities, a position he holds since Sept.'20.
Since 1984, Dr. Vanegas' primary areas of scholarly and professional activities in research & creative work, learning & teaching, and engagement in outreach, service & practice have been, among others: (1) sustainability of the built environment – urban, infrastructure, facilities & housing, with an emphasis on livable, resilient, and sustainable communities enabled by smart and cognitive technologies; (2) problem solving on a foundation of systems thinking fueled by curiosity & imagination and based on creative, innovative & design thinking, pulled by a spirit of entrepreneurship, and infused with digital, systems & critical thinking with an emphasis on innovation & entrepreneurship for social change; and (3) advanced strategies, technologies, methods & tools for integrated capital asset delivery and management in the Architecture, Engineering & Construction (AEC) industry, with an emphasis on innovative, best & value improvement practices for capital projects.