Eric Meslow appointed Chair of ETIC, Art Johnson as Vice Chair
The Oregon University System (OUS) announced today that Eric C. Meslow, president and CEO of Timbercon, Inc., was appointed as chair of Oregon’s Engineering and Technology Industry Council, or ETIC, by OUS chancellor George Pernsteiner. At the same meeting, Art Johnson, vice president of KPFF Consulting Engineers was appointed vice chair of ETIC. Both Meslow and Johnson will serve two-year terms in these leadership positions with ETIC.
A successful public-private partnership for almost 15 years, ETIC is a collaboration of the OUS engineering and technology programs and the private sector to graduate more highly trained engineers, computer scientists and technologists; expand research in these areas to support student training and industry needs; and to provide and support pre-college outreach programs for K-12 students in the engineering and applied sciences.
Bruce Schafer, ETIC executive director, said, “We are very pleased and excited that Eric and Art will be leading ETIC’s planning and oversight work. Their incredibly strong and diverse backgrounds, commitment to building Oregon’s strength in engineering and technology fields, and understanding of how to support the needs of industries and companies in the state will ensure that ETIC’s goals continue to be met.”
Eric Meslow, who has been on the ETIC board since 2006 and was most recently its vice chair, co-founded Timbercon, Inc., located in Lake Oswego, in 1997 and has served as president and CEO since its inception. Under his leadership, Timbercon has received numerous awards including placement on Inc’s 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in America, Deloitte & Touche Fast 50, Deloitte Technology Fast 500, and Portland Business Journal’s Top 100 Fastest Growing Private Companies for the last nine years. Prior to founding Timbercon, Mr. Meslow spent several years in the data communications, data storage, software, and high technology industries. Besides his involvement in ETIC, Meslow sits on the Board of Directors of the Pacific Northwest Defense Coalition and TechAmerica Oregon. He holds a B.S. in Secondary Education from Oregon State University.
Art Johnson, who has been on the ETIC board since 2008, is vice president and structural engineering manager of KPFF Consulting Engineers. After six years as a stress analyst with the Boeing Company, he joined KPFF in Seattle and opened its Portland office in 1974. Mr. Johnson has over 40 years of professional engineering experience in the analysis and design of complex structures, including: Oregon Convention Center, Portland International Airport, Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse, and the US Department of State Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. Art currently serves on the Board of Directors of several organizations and is past chair of the Council of American Structural Engineers, the American Council of Engineering Companies of Oregon, the Architecture Foundation of Oregon, and the MCECS Advisory Board at Portland State University. Johnson received his B.S. in Civil Engineering and his M.S. in Structural Engineering from the University of California.
The Engineering and Technology Industry Council (ETIC) is a public-private partnership that was launched by the Oregon Legislature in 1997. This innovative legislation successfully brought the state’s universities and industry together in full collaboration with clear goals: graduate more and better engineers, computer scientists, and technologists; and expand research. The partnership is made up of executives representing a wide variety of industries from throughout Oregon as well as leadership from Oregon universities. For more information on ETIC, go to: www.oregonetic.org For more information on the Oregon Pre-Engineering & Applied Sciences Initiative go to www.opas.ous.edu.
Oregon University System (OUS) comprises seven distinguished public universities, reaching more than one million people each year through on-campus classes, statewide public services and lifelong learning. The Engineering and Technology Industry Council, or ETIC, is a partnership between the private sector and Oregon’s public universities. For additional information, go to www.ous.edu.
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