SDSU Construction Management Major Close to Becoming a Reality – AGC Chair Campaign in Full Swing
2019 Graduating Class, J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management Program
Working closely with construction industry leadership, SDSU is in the final stages of approval for the Construction Management Major (CONM) in the College of Engineering. “This has been a long time in coming, but it is happening. Coursework was approved by the SDSU Senate last year and is now in its second review with the California State University System Chancellor’s Office (CO),” said Program Director, Dr. Thais Alves, Associate Professor and AGC, Paul S. Roel Chair in Construction Engineering and Management at SDSU.
According to Dr. Janusz Supernak, Professor and Chair of the Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering Department at SDSU, once the CONM is implemented, the J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management Program will be one of the few in the nation to offer both Construction Engineering (CONE) and Construction Management (CONM) majors, and both will be housed in the College of Engineering. The program will seek ABET accreditation. CONM has great potential to thrive in association with other existing majors/fields of study at SDSU such as Real Estate and Interior Architecture.
CONM students will take all CONE courses related to: Construction & Culture; Construction Concepts and Building Codes; Construction Methods; Virtual Design and Construction; Analysis and Design of Construction Operations; Construction Ethics, Law, and Contracts; Scheduling; Estimating; Principles of Engineering Economy; Project Management and Safety, and Financial Accounting.
CONM students (ONLY) will take additional management related courses: Fundamentals of Construction Management; Management and Organizational Behavior; Project Controls; Preconstruction Management. Electives include: Environmentally Conscious Construction; Human Resource Management, Introduction to Operations and Supply Chain Management; Real Estate Principles; Real Estate Development.
“Once the CONM is approved by the CSU system, the program can start recruiting students for the first class to start within two years. A big plus is that current students already admitted to SDSU will have the option to switch majors by taking courses before the first class is admitted,” said Dr. Alves. “The goal is to recruit 20 students in year 1, with an expected growth of 20 per year for an overall goal of 100 in the first five years.” After that SDSU plans to establish a minor in Construction Management for engineering students.
In an effort to help SDSU attract and retain the best and the brightest faculty for CONM, Associated General Contractors of San Diego has provided leadership and a $700,000 gift toward a goal of $2.5 million to establish the AGC Chair in Construction Management. According to Dr. Alves, having the AGC Chair campaign in full swing and on its way to being fully funded really let the CSU system know that SDSU was serious about establishing the program. Many requests come to the CSU system, but most come without funding. The AGC Chair campaign is a big win all the way around. With support from industry, SDSU had already raised about $300,000 during a previous attempt at establishing the program several years ago. In addition to that and the AGC gift, Harper Construction and Marathon Construction have each contributed $100,000 to the campaign.
“SDSU is very fortunate to have Jim Ryan, Eddie Sprecco and Mark Filanc providing leadership for the AGC Chair campaign,” said Dr. Supernak. “Industry leadership has always been a big part of SDSU’s success.”
If you or someone you know is interested in learning about ways to support the J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management Program at SDSU, please contact Kate Carinder, Senior Director of Development, College of Engineering at: [email protected].
