Bryan J. Katz, Ph.D., P.E., PTOE, F.ASCE, a professor of practice at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, and the president of ToXcel LLC, a science and engineering firm headquartered in Gainesville, has been named a fellow by the ASCE Board of Direction.
Having earned his degrees, Katz began serving in leadership roles while in college as an ASCE Officer with the Virginia Tech Student Chapter for two years as an undergraduate. He currently serves as the research chair for the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (NCUTCD), of which ASCE is a sponsoring organization.
Katz has 25 years of civil engineering experience, with 19 years in engineering education as a professor at Virginia Tech. He is a recognized expert in Transportation Safety and Operations, having worked on projects for clients such as the Federal Highway Administration, Virginia Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, among others. Specifically, he is experienced in traffic control devices, transportation safety countermeasure selection, behavioral safety countermeasures, and speed management techniques. Katz has also focused on critical public safety issues such as the illegal passing of stopped school buses and examining the effectiveness of school bus seatbelt installations.
He Katz is an award winner of external awards, such as the Wilbur Smith Distinguished Transportation Educator Award through ITE (2023); the Southern District ITE Excellence in Transportation Education Award (2018); the Eugene Arnold Outstanding Individual Activity Award from the Virginia Section of ITE (2016); and the Mid-Atlantic Universities Center Student of the Year, USDOT (2001).
In addition, he has been awarded several awards through Virginia Tech, including the G.V. Loganathan Faculty Achievement Award (2021), Virginia Tech Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Teaching Excellence Award (2017), Certificate of Teaching Excellence through the College of Engineering (2016), and Outstanding Young Alumni Award (2009).
At Virginia Tech, Katz has taught over 75 courses and advised over 30 M.S. and Ph.D. students. He teaches the Introduction to Civil and Environmental Engineering course in addition to several transportation courses, including Introduction to Transportation Engineering, Geometric Design of Highways, and Transportation Safety.
In the area of civil service, he previously served as a volunteer for the Fairfax County Police Department, where he worked with the Traffic Safety Division to look on various initiatives to improve safety around the county. Additionally, Katz was a member of the Montgomery County Planning Commission (Maryland), appointed by the Board of Supervisors.
In addition to his contributions in the field, Katz has also been admitted to the grade of fellow with the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and currently serves as the vice chair of the Education Council for ITE and the vice president of the Virginia Section of ITE.
He bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees are from Virginia Tech.
