Research Assistant Professor, Assistant Center Director

The Pennsylvania State University•Altoona, PA

6d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Rail Center for Research Enhancing Short-line Transportation (Rail CREST) at Penn State Altoona is seeking a Research Assistant Professor or open rank individual to serve as Assistant Center Director. Rail CREST is a federally funded research center focused on developing affordable technologies, workforce development programs, and safety innovations for the U.S. short-line railroad industry. The Assistant Center Director will be instrumental in supporting the strategic growth and daily operations of Rail CREST, collaborating with the Center Director, partner universities, industry partners, and federal stakeholders. This role involves coordinating research activities across multiple institutions and contributing technically to projects in areas such as rail infrastructure monitoring, sensing technologies, data analytics, and intelligent transportation systems.

Requirements

Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, Railroad Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field.
Demonstrated research expertise in rail infrastructure, structural health monitoring, sensing systems, instrumentation, or transportation infrastructure analytics.
Experience working with data-driven technologies such as sensor networks, machine learning, or AI-enabled infrastructure monitoring.
Strong organizational and communication skills with the ability to coordinate multi-institutional research projects.
Ability to work effectively with industry partners, government agencies, and academic collaborators.

Nice To Haves

Experience with railroad infrastructure systems including track, bridges, or railway operations.
Experience deploying or managing field instrumentation systems or sensing networks.
Experience working with federally funded research programs (e.g., FRA, USDOT, NSF).
Leadership or project management experience within multi-institutional research initiatives.
Teaching experience in engineering programs.
Interest in technology transfer and industry collaboration.

Responsibilities

Support the strategic planning and daily operation of the Rail CREST Center.
Coordinate research activities across multiple partner universities and industry collaborators.
Facilitate engagement with the Industrial Advisory Board, railroads, and federal stakeholders.
Assist with the development of new research proposals and technology transfer initiatives.
Lead and contribute to research projects related to rail infrastructure sensing, structural health monitoring, instrumentation systems, data analytics, and artificial intelligence applications in rail transportation.
Manage or oversee field deployments, laboratory testing, and instrumentation development.
Support workforce development and training programs associated with the center.
Teach occasional undergraduate or graduate courses within the Rail Transportation Engineering (RTE) program when needed.
Assist with industry-facing testing, demonstrations, and commercialization activities related to rail technologies.
Supervise research staff, graduate students, and project teams.