John Baugh

John Baugh is a Professor at North Carolina State University in Civil Engineering. He is also a member of the Operations Research Program, and the Computational Engineering and Sciences Program. He received the Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University in 1989.

Dr. Baugh’s research and educational activities overlap with issues of national importance to the country of Japan in areas such as natural hazard mitigation and active seismic protection of building structures. His current and prior studies have included formal verification of active control systems for earthquake resistant structures, and models for improving disaster preparedness in coastal regions considering the effects of hurricanes, flooding, and other events on critical civil infrastructure systems as part of a Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence.

Recent funding sources for Dr. Baugh’s research program include the Department of Energy, National Science Foundation, Department of Homeland Security, Federal Transit Administration, US Environmental Protection Agency, and the North Carolina Supercomputing Center. Before pursuing the Ph.D., he worked as a Research Engineer in Applied Mechanics and Structures at Battelle’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. He is a member of ACM, INFORMS, Phi Kappa Phi, Tau Beta Pi, and Chi Epsilon, and is Past-Chair of ASCE’s Emerging Computing Technology Committee.

As Director, Dr. Baugh initiated a collaborative relationship with the NCSU Department of Foreign Languages, with the goals of having better academic oversight for the Center’s courses, involving university-level educators, and improving the learning outcomes of its students. In response to the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami in Japan, a major fundraising and rebuilding effort named Project Kokoro was undertaken in collaboration with the Triangle Community Foundation and numerous other organizations, leading to construction of a volunteer firehouse in Yamada-machi, where 700 were killed and more than half of its 7,200 households lost homes. Dr. Baugh also played a leadership role, working in partnership with the North Carolina Governor’s office and Department of Commerce, in attracting Japanese investment to the State, most recently with the relocation of CBC Americas to the area.

Regarding personal and cultural interests in Japan, Dr. Baugh has traveled throughout its cities and more remote areas, an interest that began with the poetry of Zen monk Ryokan and the Man’yoshu poets.

たくほどは   かぜがもてくる   おちばかな   (良寛)