Workshop on Education in Underground Engineering and Science in the United States; San Francisco, California; June 27, 2008

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The American Rock Mechanics Association (ARMA) Foundation will hold a Workshop on Education in Underground Engineering and Science in the U.S. that will bring together 25-35 faculty members from disciplines that use geo-mechanics to discuss the state of underground engineering and science education in this country in terms of curriculum and research. The workshop participants will recommend rock mechanics educational opportunities at the Sanford Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (SUSEL) and, if constructed, the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL) facilities, both at the former Homestake Mine in Lead, South Dakota. The one-day workshop will be held on June 27, 2008 preceding the 42nd U.S. Rock Mechanics Symposium in San Francisco. The purposes of the workshop and the work preceding it are to: 1. Survey U.S education institutions that teach geo-mechanics (rock mechanics and rock engineering) taking into account the various disciplines that make use of rock-related information. 2. Assess the educational infrastructure in terms of its ability to teach and the ability to attract students for underground engineering and science at the undergraduate and graduate levels. 3. Recommend educational opportunities at the SUSEL/DUSEL. An organizing committee of 5 persons representing a variety of expertise and geographic locations have been assembled chaired by Dr. Herbert Einstein of MIT. The results of these deliberations will be summarized in a final report that will be widely distributed in academic institutions. This project will advance the disciplines of underground science and engineering by identifying for improvement the challenges and opportunities in the U.S. educational infrastructure. Broader impacts resulting from this workshop will take place as students graduate and go on conduct research at the underground laboratories and/or enter industrial/educational positions. Such research may improve our understanding of how rock behaves resulting in enhancements to national security, hazard mitigation, civil infrastructure systems, radioactive waste storage and other areas that involve understanding the underground.