Dr. David Basco served as the Director of the Coastal Engineering Center and Professor for the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department from 1986 through 2014. Dr. Basco is the pioneer of what is now the Online Coastal Engineering Certificate Program (CECP) and Master of Science Degree through the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. Dr. Basco has been honored by the American Society of Civil Engineers as the 2016 International, Coastal Engineer of the Year. He has also been selected in 2017 as a Distinguished Alumni from the IHE-UNESCO, International Hydraulic Engineering Courses in Delft, the Netherlands. He is the author of five books that include, "Design of Coastal Hazard Mitigation Alternatives for Rising Seas" (July 2020). He is a registered professional engineer in Virginia and President of Beach Consultants, Inc. Norfolk, Virginia, where he is still active as a coastal engineering consultant and research engineer.

Dr. Ishibashi served as the graduate program director of the department from 1997-2021 and as assistant chair from 2017-2022. An expert in the area of geotechnical and earthquake engineering, he authored or co-authored more than 100 technical papers and published four textbooks, including "Soil Mechanics Fundamentals and Applications" (July 2015). In addition to serving as graduate program director and associate chair, Dr. Ishibashi took on membership and leadership roles on many University-level committees throughout his 36 years of service at ODU.