FOR RELEASE: March 4, 1996 CONTACT: Tom DeRocco (202) 208-3983 MMS PROGRAM MANAGER CHARLES E. SMITH SELECTED AS INTERIOR'S ENGINEER-OF-THE-YEAR The U.S. Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service's (MMS) Program Manager for Technology Assessment and Research (TA&R) Dr. Charles E. Smith, P.E., has been named the Department's "Engineer of the Year." Smith, one of 29 federal agency engineers recently recognized by the National Society of Professional Engineers' practice division (Professional Engineers in Government) as the top engineers for their agencies, was also one of ten finalists for the Federal Engineer of the Year Award. "It's gratifying to us that Dr. Smith has received this well-earned recognition from his peers," said MMS Director Cynthia Quarterman. "His efforts in formulating and directing technology assessment and research initiatives -- particularly in the design of offshore structures --have made major contributions to support safe offshore natural gas and oil operations. We're very proud of him." A native of Newport News, Virginia, Smith received a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (1965) from the Virginia Military Institute; a Master of Science degree in Structural Engineering (1967) from the Georgia Institute of Technology; a Master of Engineering in Applied Mechanics (1972) from the University of Virginia; and Doctor of Science in Structures and Dynamics (1994) from The George Washington University. He joined the Interior Department in 1981 as assistant research program manager for the Research and Development Program, Offshore Minerals Operation, and assumed his present position with MMS in 1982. The TA&R program conducts research with universities, private companies and government laboratories to assess the structural integrity of offshore platforms and pipelines, well control methods, and oil-spill containment and cleanup procedures to ensure safe, pollution-free operations. (more) MMS HOMEPAGE ADDRESS ON THE INTERNET: [http://www.mms.gov] Smith is a registered professional engineer (P.E.) in the State of Virginia, the author or co-author of more than 50 technical papers, a member of the Tau Beta Pi Honor Society, and listed in Who's Who in Science and Engineering. He is a member of the U.S.-Japan Cooperative Science Program, the American Concrete Institute, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the American Society of Testing and Materials, and the Society of American Military Engineers, among other organizations. MMS is the federal agency that manages the Nation's natural gas, oil and other mineral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf, and collects, accounts for and disburses about $4 billion yearly in revenues from offshore federal mineral leases and from onshore mineral leases on federal and Indian lands. --MMS--