Pines

The University of Maryland, College Park, named Darryll Pines, dean of the Clark School of Engineering, as its new president, effective July 1.

In his current role since 2009, he raised student retention to 91% and the graduation rate to 75% and led an effort at the American Society of Engineering Education to develop a precollege course on engineering principles and design that will be implemented as a pilot nationwide. The university awards more than 1,100 B.S. degrees in engineering and hundreds more post-graduate degrees annually, according to federal data. It is among the top 25 U.S. public universities.

Thomas F. “Tom” Prendergast has joined AECOM as head of transit within its design and consulting services Americas unit, based in New York City, the firm said on March 2.

Formerly executive vice president and chief strategic officer at design firm STV since 2017, he also had been chairman and CEO of the regional Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the largest U.S. public transportation agency, and is former president of its NYC Transit Authority and Long Island Rail Road units.

According to broad industry and media speculation, AECOM may be acquired by Canada-based design giant WSP Global. CEOs of both firms have declined to confirm or deny a planned deal, but WSP chief Alexander L’Heureux said in a Feb. 27 quarterly earnings call that “it’s very, very hard to time the large-size acquisitions.”

Sarah Feinberg has been named interim president of the New York City Transit Authority, effective on March 9, replacing Andy Byford, who resigned from the post in January after two years. She has been a board member of its parent, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and was Federal Railroad Agency administrator from 2015 to 2017. MTA Chairman Patrick Foye said Feinberg will serve in the role while the board searches for a permanent replacement for Byford, but did not confirm a timeframe. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) appointed her to the MTA board in early 2019.

The Clark Construction Group has elevated Barbara Wagner to executive vice president.  She was senior vice president and continues to oversee the contractor’s national healthcare market sector. Wagner is past chair of the Design-Build Institute of America and president emeritus of its western Pacific region.

Chris Williams has joined Stantec as senior vice president leading its U.S. federal program. Based in Denver, he was a division vice president at Jacobs and a former group vice president in its CH2M unit, acquired in 2017.

Lanford

John C. “Jack” Lanford, 89, a former Virginia contractor executive and ex-chairman of the American Road & Transportation Builders Association, died Feb. 21 in Roanoke, says ARTBA and an obituary in the Roanoke Times.

ENR recognized Lanford and his brother Stan as 1999 Newsmakers for launching a scholarship program for children of workers killed or permanently disabled in road work-zone accidents. Since then, it has awarded about $600,000 to more than 80 students.