Troy Morgan 

Troy Morgan, a Ph.D. candidate in Structural Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, has been selected as the 2005-2006 NEHRP Graduate Fellow in Earthquake Hazard Reduction. The Earthquake Engineering Research Institute awards this fellowship each year in a cooperative program with the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. The award is given to foster the participation of capable individuals in furthering the goals and practice of earthquake hazard mitigation. The fellowship provides $12,000 for a nine-month stipend and $8,000 for tuition, fees, and research expenses.

Troy Morgan was chosen from a group of six applicants. The applications were reviewed by Kenneth Elwood; assistant professor of Structural Engineering at the University of British Columbia, Youssef Hashash, assistant professor of Geotechnical Engineering at the University of Illinois, and Michael Valley, a structural engineer with Magnusson Klemencic Associates in Seattle. The candidates were drawn from four universities in California, Michigan, and Washington. They represented the fields of structural and geotechnical engineering.

The focal point of Morgan's research is to apply and extend PEER's performance-based methodology to the design and evaluation of isolated structures over a broad range of performance criteria. He intends to carry out an experimental program to validate modeling of isolated structures where nonlinear behavior is expected in the superstructure, an important consideration for non-essential isolated buildings not covered at present by the building code. This research will have application internationally with the increasing interest in damage-resistant and economic loss-resistant seismic design.

According to Stephen Mahin, professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, Morgan's doctoral research could have "a major impact on the field of earthquake hazard reduction through innovative and effective use of seismic isolation and other innovative methods for response modification. The work currently underway at the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Center on advancing performance-based design concepts will provide a unique foundation for Troy to establish a new framework within which to explore new applications for seismic isolation and to develop improved (and simpler) design methods that will make seismic isolation more economic and versatile."

The objective of EERI is to reduce earthquake risk by advancing the science and practice of earthquake engineering, improving understanding of the impact of earthquakes on the physical, social, economic, political and cultural environment, and by advocating comprehensive and realistic measures for reducing the harmful effects of earthquakes.

Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
499 14th Street, Suite 320
Oakland, California 94612-1934

(510) 451-0905 fax: (510) 451-5411