Rate My Professor Laura Steinberg

Laura J. Steinberg is Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College. She holds a bachelor’s degree in civil and urban engineering from the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in environmental engineering from Duke University, and a Ph.D. in environmental engineering from Duke University. Her distinguished career includes serving as Dean of the College of Engineering and Computer Science at Syracuse University from 2008 to 2014, where the college grew by over 500 students and 30 faculty members. Subsequently, she was Special Assistant to the Vice Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives and Innovation, Interim Executive Director of the Syracuse Center of Excellence for Environmental and Energy Systems, and Founding Director of the Syracuse University Infrastructure Institute.

In February 2020, Steinberg joined Boston College as the inaugural Seidner Family Executive Director of the Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society, a position she held until the end of 2025. During her tenure, she recruited the Institute’s first core faculty members, developed interdisciplinary programming including the Global Public Health and the Common Good major in collaboration with the Connell School of Nursing, established the Center for Earth System Science and Global Sustainability, and launched internal grant programs such as SI-GECS and SI-RITEA, which supported 63 projects and leveraged $7 million in external funding. The Institute also hosted numerous symposia, seminars, and events, and supported Boston College’s participation in recent United Nations Climate Change Conferences. Following a sabbatical in 2026, she plans to resume teaching and research focusing on environmental issues at the intersection of infrastructure, society, and public policy. Her research interests encompass infrastructure management, disaster preparedness and response, environmental modeling, and environmental justice. Steinberg has contributed to the field through service on the EPA Science Advisory Board’s Drinking Water Sub-Committee, editorial roles for Natural Hazards Review, Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and Journal of Environmental Engineering, and three terms on the American Society of Civil Engineers’ Industry Leaders Council. Notable publications include “The effects of confidence in government and information on perceived and actual preparedness for disasters” (2009), “Accounting for meteorological effects in measuring urban ozone levels and trends” (1996), “Exploring ecological patterns with structural equation modeling and Bayesian analysis” (2006), “When natural and technological disasters collide: lessons from the Turkey earthquake of August 17, 1999” (2004), and “Emerging issues for natech disaster risk management in Europe” (2006).