Once again, our staff, students and affiliated faculty have made 2005 yet another banner year of accomplishments. We continue to successfully carry our stated mission and deliver quality research, education and technical services to the citizens of North Carolina and the Nation, while at the same time coping with sustained cuts in state appropriated funds for our operations year after year.
We have continued to grow in staff and expenditures following last year’s trends. In 2005 we had 10 new hires and initiated a new program area on Commercial Vehicles and Safety and successfully recruited Dr. Ron Hughes from UNC-CH to lead it. Our in-house annual expenditures have increased by 26.5% over the previous year, which was a banner year itself. Our overall expenditures increased by an even higher rate of 37%. We are moving ahead toward our goal of enhancing ITRE’s national visibility, evidenced by a substantial increase in project awards from federal sources such as FHWA, EPA, NIH, NCHRP and TCRP, and by involving our staff in national committee activities. Even more than last year, ITRE’s students and staff will have a strong presence at the TRB 2006 Annual Meeting, with 13 papers accepted for presentation, a record number. Finally, we are proud to have provided record support for 34 graduate and undergraduate students this year, who were engaged in our research and technical assistance studies.
I want to thank each and every staff person at ITRE for their continued dedication and professionalism. On a personal note, I want to express my deep gratitude to Dr. John Fisher, Director of the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE), who retired this year after 13 years at the helm, and give a big welcome to Dr. E. Downey Brill, former Head of the CCEE Department here at NC State, who took over the CTE Directorship on November 1 of this year.
Nagui M. Rouphail, Ph.D.
ITRE Director
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