UF civil engineering professor to shape building policy as new Jefferson Science Fellow
For three years, University of Florida engineering professor David O. Prevatt, Ph.D., has been chewing on a stubborn problem: Why are bridges and buildings still succumbing to natural hazards when we have the knowledge to build resilient, hazard-resistant structures?
“I am a wind engineer,” said Prevatt. “I study hurricanes and houses and how to make them stronger. I can tell people seven ways ‘til Sunday how to build a better house, but it takes decades to get implemented.”
Then came an epiphany. “Maybe it’s not the ‘engineering.’ Maybe it is how engineering impacts the policies. Maybe it is how we engineers describe solutions to problems to those who can implement change. Maybe it’s engineers who must change.”
And, he thought, maybe now is the time to go back to Washington, D.C.
“As I was thinking about that, the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine put out a call for Jefferson Science Fellowship applications. I said, ‘Hm. perhaps that’s a path I need to take.’”
He took it. Of the dozens of tenured faculty who’d applied, Prevatt became one of four U.S. professors selected by the U.S. Department of State to join its 2024-2025 cohort of Jefferson Science Fellows, and the long-time UF professor has embarked on the 12-month immersive experience in Washington, D.C.
Prevatt is no stranger to the nation’s capital. In the aftermath of hurricanes and tornadoes that caused extensive damage to our communities, he testified before U.S. congressional committees in 2005, 2008, 2013 and 2022.
The fellowship is with the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO) Climate Security & Resilience program. His work will center on the diplomatic building portfolio in approximately 280 locations worldwide, including embassies, diplomatic facilities and residences. OBO is the single real property manager for the planning, acquisition, design, construction, operations, maintenance, and disposal of U.S. governmental diplomatic and consular property overseas.
The Bureau provides the most effective facilities for United States diplomacy abroad to enable U.S. foreign policy through building technologies, sustainability, art, and culture.
Prevatt’s contributions will be on natural hazards adaptations and climate-related planning in the built environment, with a focus on minimizing wind hazard risks. He brings his extensive engineering research background and private sector experience focusing on tropical cyclones and tornado-resilient construction.
He said his contributions will help keep Americans working overseas safe while supporting the U.S. diplomacy and foreign relations missions.
“My contributions of state-of the-art wind engineering knowledge will help OBO advance their engineering tools that keep our overseas buildings safe from the risk of tropical cyclones, tornadoes and other extreme wind hazards,” he said. “It also helps OBO manage future wind-hazard risks that could develop in a somewhat unstable climate.”
OBO has a cadre of engineers, architects, real estate professionals and other top building-industry leaders to design, construct, operate and maintain its overseas portfolio.
“Our mission overseas is similar to engineering domestically in addressing hurricanes,” Prevatt said. “We evaluate the building by looking at its plans, its structure type, and all manner of things to decide if it is safe and fit for its purpose in that location. Is this the safest available building for housing fellow Americans we can find?”
The Climate Security & Resilience program is charged with developing data-driven strategies for the country’s overseas buildings to achieve greater resilience amid natural hazards, noted John D. Pitts, director of Civil and Structural Engineering at OBO.
“Dr. Prevatt’s breadth of experience as a practicing structural engineer and tenured professor at the University of Florida with a focus on wind engineering is a perfect fit for helping us to understand extreme wind and how we can best adapt our overseas facilities to this challenging natural hazard,” Pitts said.
Prevatt’s ultimate mission: accelerate education, knowledge transfer and principles of natural-hazards engineering into building policy and building codes – overseas, in the States and within OBO. Prevatt hopes this experience will advance his knowledge of policymaking and operations of the U.S. Department of State.
“Whom do I need to speak to? How do departments work and meet policy objectives? What’s the strategy for using evidence-based communication in forming policy? Those are skills engineers aren’t necessarily trained in,” he said.
How do you make that transition? He laughs.
“You drink from the fire hose and start learning,” he said. “Every day I continue to absorb knowledge from my gifted colleagues. Eventually one recognizes where the knowledge gaps exist and how I can contribute to closing them.”
"Ultimately, as a federal agency, we work for the American people and their stewards - the U.S. Congress," Prevatt added. "As engineers, our strategy for communicating the whats, whys and hows of hazard risk mitigation is key to giving decision makers a grasp of the constraints, options, and benefits of resilient construction so that it can better inform public policy."
Prevatt is the Kisinger Campo and Associates Term professor of Civil and Coastal Engineering at UF, specializing in wind engineering. His research includes mitigation of hurricane and tornado impacts on structures, community resilience and structural risk assessment. A Clemson University graduate, he also is a licensed civil/structural engineer in Massachusetts and Florida.
Prevatt’s volunteer work includes serving for two cycles on the Mark Samuelian Resilience Awards committee, honoring champions of sustainability and resilience construction in Florida. In addition, he volunteers with the American Society for Civil Engineers and, since 2018, has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Applied Technology Council culminating in his service as ATC’s board president in 2023-2024.