Strategic Plan FY06 - FY09
III. MANAGEMENT
APPROACH
B. Center Director
It is proposed that Melissa S. Tooley, PhD, PE, will serve as the Director of the UTCM. Dr. Tooley previously served as the Director of the Mack-Blackwell Rural Transportation Center (MBTC), a UTC located at the University of Arkansas. She will engage at least 60% of her total budgeted time as UTCM Director over the course of the grant, and up to 85% of her time the first year. Dr. Tooley is a civil engineer with a Professional Engineer’s license in the state of Arkansas (and soon to be licensed in Texas as well), is the immediate past president of CUTC, and a former Young Engineer of the Year for the state of Arkansas. She is currently serving on the Executive Committee and Board of Directors for ARTBA, and is the current President of ARTBA’s Research and Education Division. She reports to Dr. Dennis Christiansen, who is the Deputy Director of the Texas Transportation Institute.
Dr. Tooley is very much a product of the UTC program, as well as other DOT programs developed to increase the number of trained transportation professionals. She is a former Eisenhower Fellow at the Master’s and PhD Award levels, and MBTC’s first Student of the Year in 1992. Many of the graduate courses she took, the professors she worked with, and the research she conducted, were all sponsored by the UTC at the University of Arkansas. She was named an Eno Fellow due to the experiences made available to her by MBTC. Her first job as a graduate student was to assist the original Director of MBTC, and after she graduated and joined the faculty at the Universities of Florida and Arkansas, she was selected to be the Director of MBTC. As a result of her experience, she is dedicated to providing these opportunities for others and to the continued success of the UTCP. Dr. Tooley’s resume is included as Appendix C.
There will be three advisory groups that provide guidance and input into UTCM research, education, and technology transfer programs.
- The research advisory group is made up of individuals from TTI who are involved in mobility issues
- The academic advisory group is made of up persons whose activities are primarily academic in nature and/or who are well versed in academic issues at TAMU
- The industry advisory group is made up of persons from industry and agencies who are concerned with mobility issues. The UTCM DOT liaison is a part of this group.
These three groups will review Problem Statements and proposals, and provide input as required to enhance the programs of the UTCM.
UTCM’s USDOT Liaison will be involved in the research and program selection process at all levels. UTCM is fortunate to have Edward Weiner from the USDOT Office of the Secretary as our Liaison. His global perspective and "Big Picture" thinking will greatly enhance the ability of UTCM to remain in accordance with DOT priorities from all modes. Such a close working relationship with the Office of the Secretary is a first for the UTCP, and will be greatly beneficial to the center and the USDOT.
The Executive Committee will be made up of management level personnel at TTI and will make the ultimate decisions regarding UTCM research and programs with input from the Center Director and the USDOT Liaison.
Dr. Tooley will plan, execute, and report the approved activities of the Center. She has principal responsibility for complying with the provisions of the UTC grant and maintaining a sound relationship with the UTC program office at RITA. She will be assisted by an Administrative Assistant, who has yet to be hired. It is anticipated that the UTCM will take full advantage of the experience and expertise of the Director and staff of SWUTC, and of business and accounting specialists both in the TAMU Research Foundation (TAMRF) and TTI, where the detailed financial management, accounting, and reporting will be conducted. The USDOT grant contract is administered by TAMRF, and any state agency contracts will be administered by TTI.
The detailed duties and responsibilities of the UTCM Director will be:
- To Serve as Chief Executive Officer of the Center. As the leader of the UTCM, the Director accepts primary responsibility for the timely planning of, the execution of, and reporting of the activities of the Center.
- To actively seek out and build partnerships with other departments and centers at TAMU who are involved in transportation-related activities, and use these partnerships to identify additional sources of funding to help meet the goals and objectives of the UTCM.
- To serve as the primary representative of the UTCM in external relationships. The Director is responsible for interactions and attending formal meetings with RITA and other program sponsors, CUTC, potential and existing clients and partners, and others.
- To develop policy for the UTCM with advice and guidance from research, academic, and industry advisory groups, and the Executive Committee.
- To provide leadership and vision for future developments of UTCM. The Director will nurture a vision for the UTCM, and will maintain the relevance of the Center's theme, goals, objectives, and policies; and incorporate them into an annual comprehensive, integrated plan.
- To be held accountable for the performance and activities of the UTCM.
- To develop clearly understandable measures and methods for systematically explaining the effectiveness of the Center in managing its resources to achieve its goals and pursue its theme-oriented activities.
- To expand the resource base for UTCM activities.
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