Erdle Chair
The Philip J. Erdle Chair in Engineering Science was fully endowed by gifts to ARDI from Carolyn Knies Erdle and the International Education Foundation in honor of Dr. Philip Erdle (Brig Gen, USAF, Retired).
Philip J. Erdle
General Erdle was a career Air Force officer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. A native of Bethlehem, PA, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the U.S. Military Academy and entered the fledgling U.S. Air Force. General Erdle was a command pilot, flying dozens of aircraft throughout his Air Force career, most notably the F-84, F-100, and T-33. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Michigan and his doctorate from the University of Colorado.
Having miraculously survived a horrific crash in an F-84, his Air Force career put him on a path to a new passion and began a lifetime of support to the newly formed U.S. Air Force Academy. General Erdle was among the first academic cadre instructors when the U.S. Air Force Academy opened its doors at its permanent location in Colorado Springs. He spent the remainder of his military career at the Academy, which notably included a return to flying status.
General Erdle’s career at the Academy was truly remarkable and diverse in his impact on the Air Force’s future leaders – mechanics instructor, baseball coach, NCAA representative, and Vice Dean of Faculty. He was the youngest colonel in the Air Force when he was appointed the Academy’s 13th Permanent Professor. He served as the Permanent Professor of Engineering Sciences (1964-1965) and subsequently as the Permanent Professor for the newly designated Department of Engineering Mechanics (1965-1973). He also served as the 6th Vice Dean of the Faculty (1973-1979) and held the title of Permanent Professor Emeritus. Following his retirement from the Air Force in 1979, General Erdle worked for the Bechtel Corporation, establishing an educational system in Jubail, Saudi Arabia for the Bechtel operation. While with Bechtel, he managed numerous education and construction contracts that helped transform the educational system of Saudi Arabia.
Upon returning to Colorado, he founded the International Education Foundation, mentoring small, minority owned businesses in a first-of-its-kind business incubator in Colorado Springs. In 1984, General Erdle co-founded the Academy Research and Development Institute (ARDI), establishing and managing endowed professorial chairs for the Air Force Academy. He later served as ARDI President and CEO. General Erdle and ARDI have been major supporters of the Dean of Faculty and the Air Force Academy mission for more than a quarter of a century. In recognition of his contributions, General Erdle was named an honorary member of the USAFA Association of Graduates and was also a recipient of the Superintendent’s Award for Distinguished Service to the United States Air Force and the Air Force Academy. In 2002, the Philip J. Erdle Chair in Engineering Science was designated in his honor. He was a visionary leader for the Air Force Academy academic program.
General Erdle passed away in May, 2013, at the age of 82. He was devoted to his wife of 61 years, Carolyn, and his five children and 15 grandchildren. He was always quick with a joke and generous to a fault, always eager to help those less fortunate than he. He is missed dearly by his family and friends, and by the thousands of Air Force Academy cadets and officers whose lives he touched.
Current Distinguished Visiting Professor
Dr. Charles Schwartz
Education
Doctor of Philosophy, Civil Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1979)
Master of Science, Civil Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1977)
Bachelor of Science, Civil Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1974)
Honors & Awards
Carl L. Monismith Lecture on Pavement Engineering (2020)
Honors & Awards
Analytical and numerical mechanistic modeling of pavement structures; characterization and laboratory/field testing of pavement materials.
Professor
Dr. Charles Schwartz
Dr. Charles W. Schwartz received his BS, MS, and PhD in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is currently the Philip J. Erdle Chair of Engineering Science within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Prior to this, he was Professor and past Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Maryland College Park, where he taught courses on pavement design and analysis, advanced soil mechanics, and computational geo- and pavement mechanics. His research interests and experience span the areas of analytical and numerical mechanistic modeling of pavement structures and the characterization and laboratory/field testing of pavement materials.
Dr. Charles W. Schwartz received his BS, MS, and PhD in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is currently the Philip J. Erdle Chair of Engineering Science within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Prior to this, he was Professor and past Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Maryland College Park, where he taught courses on pavement design and analysis, advanced soil mechanics, and computational geo- and pavement mechanics. His research interests and experience span the areas of analytical and numerical mechanistic modeling of pavement structures and the characterization and laboratory/field testing of pavement materials.
National research projects in which Dr. Schwartz has played a leadership role include the Transportation Pooled Fund Study TPF-5(285) Standardized Lightweight Deflectometer Measurements for QA and Modulus Determination in Unbound Bases and Subgrades, NCHRP 9-51 Material Properties of Cold In-Place Recycled and Full Depth Reclamation Asphalt Concrete for Pavement Design, NCHRP 1-47 Sensitivity Evaluation of MEPDG Performance Prediction, NCHRP 9-30A Calibration of Rutting Models for HMA Structural and Mix Design, NCHRP 9-30 Experimental Plan for Calibration and Validation of Hot Mix Asphalt Performance Models for Mix and Structural Design, NCHRP 9-19 Superpave Performance Models, and the FHWA projects Evaluation of LTPP Climatic Data for Use in MEPDG Calibration and Other Pavement Analysis and Using Radio Frequency Identification Technology to Better Manage and Assess Pavements. He was also a member of the flexible pavement team on NCHRP Project 1-37A 2002 Pavement Design Guide. Dr. Schwartz regularly assists local agencies and private firms on pavement-related topics. Dr. Schwartz in the past has also been active in the development and implementation of pavement management systems for airfield and highway pavements, including pioneering systems at John F. Kennedy, Newark, and LaGuardia International airports, the State of Delaware, and others.
Dr. Schwartz has been an active member of TRB (Past Chair, Standing Committee AFD80—Pavement Structural Modeling and Evaluation, ASCE (Past Chair, Geo-Institute Pavements Committee; Member, T&DI Highway Pavements Committee), AAPT, and ISAP. He serves on the editorial boards for the International Journal of Pavement Engineering and Transportation Geotechnics. He also was a co-developer of the National Highway Institute course Geotechnical Aspects of Pavement Design (NHI Course 132040).
Experience
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY
2022 – present: Philip J. Erdle Chair of Engineering Science, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
2014 – 2021: Chair, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
2010 – 2021: Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
1984 – 2010: Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
1979 – 1984: Assistant Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
OTHER
1975-1979: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA. Graduate teaching and research assistant in the Department of Civil Engineering.
1974-1975: Stone and Webster Engineering Co., Boston, MA. Staff structural engineer for the design of nuclear and hydroelectric power plants.