Bridget N. Bero, Ph.D., P.E.
Associate Professor of Environmental Engineering
(520) 523-2051
I have been at NAU since 1995 and find NAU and Flagstaff great places to live and work. My professional interests lie in the areas of environmental health and risk assessment, hazardous waste management, and air quality. I am very interested in the pedagogy of engineering education and how our students are challenged to learn and thereby succeed. I am also a strong proponent of international education for engineers. Being a degreed chemical engineer, my contribution to the program lies in my process engineering background. My research projects include the study of low temperature fluidized drying regimes for biomass such as wood slash (funded by the USDA-FS) and environmental management systems (for NAU itself, in conjunction with the NAU Office of Sustainability; funded by the State of Arizona’s ERDENE program). I also work closely with NAU’s Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals (ITEP) on two large projects: the 15-year old American Indian Air Quality Training Program (AIAQTP) sponsored by the EPA Office of Air and Radiation, and a new project involving risk assessment from hazardous waste sites on or impacting Indian Country which is funded through EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. In 2002-2003, I had the opportunity to be a Fulbright Scholar in Zittau Germany where I worked on environmental management systems in a university setting, but more importantly, fell in love with the culture and dynamic of Europe. I plan to return to Dresden, Germany in 2009-2010 for another sabbatical working on a design/teaching project at the University of Applied Sciences. I continue to struggle with the German language, finding Italian much easier for my (genetically) Italian brain!
I have two grown sons: one is a Computer Science engineering working in the field on biological recognition softwares; the other is working on his MS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of West Virginia, with an emphasis in alternative energy systems. I also have one young heeler mix who enjoys the Flagstaff forests as much as anyone. My passions include road cycling, running, yoga, hiking/snowshoeing, backpacking and canoeing. I support the environment by carpooling, biking when I can, buying local produce from the Flagstaff Community Supported Agriculture cooperative, recycling, composting, and trying to live a simple but connected life.
EDUCATION:
- Ph.D., Chemical Engineering, 1994, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho. Dissertation: “Characterization of Lead Contaminated Soils and Evaluation of Vacuuming and X-Ray Fluorescence Techniques for Sampling Carpeted Surfaces.”
- B.S., Chemical Engineering, 1981, Cleveland State University, Fenn College of Engineering, Cleveland, Ohio. Summa cum laude.
CLASSES I TEACH:
- CENE150 Introduction to Environmental Engineering
- CENE150L Introduction to Environmental Engineering Lab
- CENE332 Solid and Hazardous Waste Management
- CENE386W Engineering Design: The Methods
- CENE480/502 Environmental Transport Processes
