UMN Annual Geotechnical Engineering Conference - Distinguished Achievement Award
The Distinguished Achievement Award (DAA) recognizes an individual who has practiced in the State of Minnesota and has made outstanding contributions to the advancement of the fields of geotechnics or geoengineering. Nominations are accepted on an annual basis and every year only one individual, if any, receives this honor.
I. Eligibility
The Distinguished Achievement Award is given to an individual over the age of 50 who has at least 20 years of practice in the State of Minnesota, and who has made outstanding contributions to the advancement of the field of geotechnics or geoengineering.
II. Nomination Procedure
Nominations are requested each year, and self-nominations are not permitted. The nomination packet (< 10 pages) should be submitted electronically to <geoconf@umn.edu> by September 30 with the subject line of DAA Nomination and consist of
• nomination letter
• resume
• list of accomplishments (projects, publications, citations, etc.)
III. Voting Procedure
Following discussion at a planning meeting, the awardee is selected by a simple majority vote of the University of Minnesota (UMN) Annual Geotechnical Engineering Conference Planning Committee using (1) a closed ballot of the planning committee members present at the meeting or (2) an e-mail message to the conference chair within 24 hours of the meeting.
IV. Award Presentation
The award, consisting of a plaque and complimentary lifetime registration to the UMN Annual Geotechnical Engineering Conference, is presented at the upcoming UMN annual geoconference.
Summary
Over 50 yr of age, 20 yr of practice in MN
Self-nominations not permitted
Nomination packet requested September 30 each year
Award presentation UMN Annual Geoconference
Past Distinguished Achievement Award Winners
27th conf, 1979 Kersten Lecture
54th conf, 2006 Drescher Scholarship, 55th conf, 2007 Kersten Scholarship
57th conf, 2009 Merv Mindess DAA
62nd conf, 2014 Doug Barr, DAA
65th conf, 2017 Chuck Nelson, DAA
70th conf, 2022 Michael Heuer, DAA
Karl Terzaghi Award Reciepients
Given for outstanding contribution to the field of geotechnical engineering
1963 - Arthur Casagrande
1965 - M. Juul Hvorslev
1968 - Willard J. Turnbull
1969 - Ralph B. Peck
1971 - Laurits Bjerrum
1973 - H. Bolton Seed
1975 - T. William Lambe
1977 - Stanley D. Wilson
1979 - Gregory P. Tschebotarioff
1980 - F. E. Richart, Jr.
1981 - Alec W. Skempton
1983 - Lymon C. Reese
1985 - James K. Mitchell
1987 - Robert V. Whitman
1989 - Gerald A. Leonards
1991 - G. Geoffrey Meyerhof
1993 - Jörj O. Osterberg
1995 - George F. Sowers
1997 - Raymond J. Krizek
1999 - Charles C. Ladd
2001 - Michael B. Jamiolkowski
2003 - J. Michael Duncan, P.E.
2005 - Fred H. Kulhawy, Ph.D., P.E., G.E., Hon.M.ASCE
2007 - Chandrakant S. Desai, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE
2009 - Richard Finno, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE
2011 - Edward Kavazanjian, Jr., Ph.D., P.E., G.E., D.GE, F.ASCE
2013 - Tuncer B. Edil, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE, F.ASCE
2015 - Gholamreza Mesri, Ph.D., M. ASCE
2017 - Sandra L. Houston, Ph.D., D.GE, M.ASCE
2019 - Jonathan D. Bray, Ph.D., P.E., NAE, F.ASCE
2021 - Craig H. Benson, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE, NAE, F.ASCE
2023 - Ning Lu, Ph.D., F.EMI, F.ASCE
2025 - Jean-Louis Briaud, Ph.D., P.E., BC.GE, Dist.M.ASCE