C.R. “Chuck” Pennoni is one of the University's most successful alumni, a 2000 inductee into the National Academy of Engineering and an instrumental figure in Drexel governance.

He is Chairman of Pennoni Associates Inc., Consulting Engineers, a multidisciplinary engineering firm he founded in 1966. Focusing on civil infrastructure systems, Pennoni Associates today employs more than 850 professionals and support staff with 20 offices in Pennsylvania , New Jersey , Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York.

Dr. Pennoni is Drexel President Emeritus, having served as Interim President once before (1994-95). He served as a University Trustee (1993-2006) and Chairman of the Board (1997-2003). He received his Drexel bachelor's (1963) and master's (1966) degrees in Civil Engineering, and was recognized with an honorary doctorate from the University in 1992.

Dr. Pennoni has been President of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and Director and President of the ASCE Foundation; a Trustee and President of United Engineering Trustees, Inc. (UET); President of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET); and a member of the United States Council for International Engineering Practice (USCIEP). He served on the Engineering Advisory Boards of Widener University, the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel, and he is vice chair of the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education.

Dr. Pennoni serves on the corporate boards of Parke Bank, GCA Services, Inc., and The Granite Group. In the realm of civic activity, he previously served on the Board of the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia and is a past Chair of the PENJERDEL Council.

A licensed engineer in 11 states, Dr. Pennoni has taught strength of materials and structural design at Temple University, lectured at numerous colleges and universities and authored 44 papers (seven refereed) on the subjects of engineering, planning, ethics, accreditation and professional development.

He is a recipient of the ASCE Edmund Friedman Professional Recognition and William H. Wisely American Civil Engineer awards, the Drexel University A.J. Drexel Award and Business Leader of the Year Award, the National Society of Professional Engineers Professional Development Award, the George Washington Medal of the Engineers Club of Philadelphia, the Robert Morris Citizenship and Excellence in Education awards of the Boy Scouts of America and the March of Dimes Service to Humanity Award. He is a member of the Golden Key National Honor Society and Tau Beta Pi, and received the Order of Merit of the Republic of Italy.

Dr. Pennoni and his wife of 50 years, Annette Ribar Pennoni, have four children (three engineers and an environmental consultant, including two Drexel alumni) and 12 grandchildren.

Pennoni Honors College