Rate My Professor Jeffrey Weidner

Jeffrey Weidner is an Associate Professor in the Civil Engineering Department at the University of Texas at El Paso, where he has served since August 2016, advancing from Assistant Professor. His academic background includes a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Drexel University in 2012, with a dissertation on structural identification of a complex structure using conventional and multiple model approaches; an M.S. in Structural Engineering from Lehigh University in 2007, focusing on analytical design and experimental validation of a plate-confined, unbonded, post-tensioned precast concrete wall panel; and a B.S. in Architectural Engineering from Drexel University in 2005. Prior to UTEP, Weidner was Practice Lead for Research at Intelligent Infrastructure Systems in Philadelphia from 2012 to 2016, leading proposal development and designing field testing and structural health monitoring for bridges. He also served as an Adjunct Professor at Drexel University in 2013, Research Engineer and Ph.D. student at Drexel from 2007 to 2012, and Teaching and Research Assistant at Lehigh University from 2005 to 2007.

Weidner's research specializations encompass structural health monitoring, bridge performance assessment, deterioration modeling, load testing, nondestructive evaluation, digital twins, transportation infrastructure in desert cities, and seismic resilience. He has authored or co-authored numerous publications, including "Comparison of Markovian-Based Bridge Deterioration Model Approaches" in the Journal of Bridge Engineering (2023, with J. Collins), "Integrating the Risk of Climate Change into Transportation Asset Management to Support Bridge Network-Level Decision-Making" in the Journal of Infrastructure Systems (2021, with C. Chang and O. Ortega), "Truck Platoon Impacts on Steel Girder Bridges" in the Journal of Bridge Engineering (2019, with M.T. Yarnold), and "Pinned-end Moments in Simple Span Multi-Girder Bridges" in Engineering Structures (2021, with T. Golecki and M. Yarnold). As principal investigator or co-principal investigator, he has secured grants totaling over $2 million from sources including the Texas Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation University Transportation Centers, and the National Park Service, such as the $689,995 project for developing a continuous live load prefabricated steel accelerated bridge construction unit (2021-2024). Weidner has received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching from the College of Engineering (2025) and participated in the NHERI Summer Institute funded by the National Science Foundation (2021). He teaches courses including Structural Analysis and Senior Design, has advised approximately 80 undergraduates, and contributes to presentations at conferences like AGU Fall Meetings and ASCE events.