Leathem Named New BSCI Undergraduate Program Chair

Associate Professor Tom Leathem, J.E. Wilborn Endowed Chair, has been named the Undergraduate Program Chair in the McWhorter School of Building Science, succeeding Associate Professor J. Mark Taylor. Taylor has served as the program chair since the fall of 2016.

In his new role, Leathem will be responsible for the program leadership, curriculum review and academic standards and will assist with student recruitment and coordinate student competition teams. A renowned educator and pedagogical enthusiast, Leathem served as an Auburn University Biggio Faculty Fellow for 2020-21. He holds a bachelor’s degree in construction management from Western Illinois University, a Master of Design-Build from Auburn and a Ph.D. in curriculum and assessment from Mississippi State University. He currently serves as the editor for the proceedings of the Associated Schools of Construction’s Annual International Conference.

“Our undergraduate program has a strong legacy of great students led by amazing faculty and it humbles me to be selected as one of those leaders,” Leathem said. “Mark Taylor has done an amazing job as Undergraduate Chair for the last six years and I know I have some big shoes to fill. I look forward to continuing the great work he’s done and helping take the Building Science Undergraduate Program to the next level.”