William Ronald Hudson, Ph.D.

YHS Class of 1950

Graduating in the YHS top 10 percent of his class set off a lifetime of engineering achievement for Ronald. His 4-year undergraduate scholarship at Texas A&M led to a Humble Oil fellowship and M.S. degree in 1955. He served 2 years active duty in the U.S. Air Force and 8 years in the reserve as a major. After receiving his Ph.D. at UT-Austin in 1965 he joined that faculty later to serve as D.C. Greer Distinguished Professor of Engineering and associate dean of the School of Engineering. In 1975 he headed a $15 million road research program in Brazil for the World Bank and United Nations. As a result his concepts spread around the world. He is author of 3 books translated into 4 languages dealing with pavement and asset management systems. All 50 U.S. state departments of transportation,about 400 cities and many international governments use his methods. His career grew from a job as a teenage construction worker for Gillis Graham Construction in Cameron. Honors and leadership among national and international professional societies further mark Ronald's life, as do 15 years coaching youth sports in Austin and founding the Austin Western Hills Youth Association. He is an active Episcopalian and counselor.