Written by Molli Slavin
Though his prospective career revolves around soil, Sean Salazar can’t seem to put down roots. Born in California and schooled in Germany, the United Kingdom and Africa until his sophomore year of high school, Salazar has had more world travels as a young man than many of us will have in a lifetime. He has found a home with the University of Arkansas Engineering program, as his major in civil engineering, with a specialization in geotechnical engineering and soil dynamics, is indicative of. Salazar did not let his German teachings fade away – he is also pursuing a second major in German. He has many accomplishments under his belt, including being a published journal article writer and interning with the National Science Foundation at the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center in the Soil Interaction Laboratory at the University of California Davis. He has also been awarded an Honors College Research Fellowship in which he worked on a project called “Measurement of Small Strain Dynamic Properties of Mississippi Embayment Soils Obtained from the New Madrid Seismic Zone.” Salazar was also a geotechnical undergraduate researcher, in which he studied soil specimens; a recipient of the DAAD-RISE Fellowship in Germany, in which he worked on a project about Structural Engineering; and a transportation undergraduate researcher, where he contributed to a federal highway study of the characteristics of concrete. He is the recipient of more than 10 scholarships and awards, including Dean’s and Chancellor’s list, and an Arkansas Alumni Association scholarship.
Salazar keeps his body fit, as well as his mind, through his job as building supervisor at University Recreation (UREC). He is responsible for the overall operation of the building, as well as being responsible for the supervision of up to 10 employees on weekends. He was awarded the “Employee of the Year” award, selected from a pool of 300+ student employees as the most outstanding employee at University Recreation. Salazar is also involved with UREC Club Sports, racing for the University of Arkansas Cycling race team for two years. He competes between March and May, going as far away as Austin, TX or Baton Rouge, LA, traveling in car caravans to the school hosting the event on Fridays and competing on Saturdays and Sundays, and returning to school before Monday morning. Salazar described his racing as “an adrenaline fueled game of chess” and said that he “encourages all students with a passion for their sport to join a club or at least check out what UREC Club Sports has to offer.”
Salazar plans to graduate in December 2013 and will be obtaining his doctorate in geotechnical engineering at the University of Arkansas, where he has been awarded a Doctoral Academy Fellowship. Salazar would also like to thank the Arkansas Alumni Association for their generous help with helping him reach his goals and continue his studies.
