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Key Personnel Executive Officers

University Transportation Center for Railway Safety (UTCRS) College of Engineering and Computer Science

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Center for Railway Safety (UTCRS)
Engineering Portable
EPOB4 1.100
Email: railwaysafety@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 665-8878
Fax: (956) 665-8879
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Executive Officers

Constantine Tarahnew, Ph.D., Louis A Beecherl, Jr. Endowed Professor

UTCRS Director
Phone: 956-665-2607
Email: constantine.tarawneh@utrgv.edu
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Constantine Tarahnew, Ph.D., Louis A Beecherl, Jr. Endowed Professor

Education

  • Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, 2003
  • M.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, 1999
  • B.S., Mechanical Engineering, University of Jordan-Amman, Amman, Jordan, 1996

Biography

Constantine Tarawneh is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) where he worked since 2003. He obtained his MS and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) in 1999 and 2003, respectively. He founded the University Transportation Center for Railway Safety (UTCRS) in 2013 and the NSF CREST Center for Multidisciplinary Research Excellence in Cyber-Physical Infrastructure System (MECIS) in 2021 and serves as the Founding Director for both Centers. He also serves as the Sr. Associate Dean for the College of Engineering and Computer Science since 2016. His various research and educational activities have resulted in $43.4 Million in funding from federal, industry, state, private, and local sources. He has more than 22 years of experience conducting a variety of railroad research with emphasis on advanced bearing condition monitoring technologies. He received 36 teaching, mentoring, and research awards highlighted by the UT System Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award in 2009. In Fall of 2017, he was appointed as the Louis A. Beecherl, Jr. Endowed Professor in Engineering, and in Fall 2023, he was inducted into the UTRGV Academy of Distinguished Teachers. To date, he has mentored and supervised over 1500 undergraduate and graduate students.

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UTCRS Director
Email: constantine.tarawneh@utrgv.edu
ENGR 1.294D
Phone: 956-665-2607

Manuela Cantu

Program Assistant for Center Activities
Phone: 956-665-8878
Email: manuela.cantu@utrgv.edu
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Manuela Cantu

Education

  • High School Diploma, La Joya High School, La Joya, TX, 1996

Biography

Download full CV


Program Assistant for Center Activities
Email: manuela.cantu@utrgv.edu
POB4 1.100
Phone: 956-665-8878

Carlos Pena-Caballero, M.S.

Web Developer
Phone: 956-665-7229
Email: carlos.penacaballero01@utrg...
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Carlos Pena-Caballero, M.S.

Education

  • M.S., Computer Science, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, 2018
  • B.S., Computer Engineering, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, 2016

Biography

Mr. Carlos Pena-Caballero is currently Lecturer for the Computer Science department at UTRGV.  He is the web developer for the UTCRS and MECIS websites. 

Download full CV


Web Developer
Email: carlos.penacaballero01@utrgv.edu
IEAB 3.216
Phone: 956-665-7229
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