About

Jenna Hays is a second-year master's student in structural engineering at UT Austin. She is originally from Anchorage, Alaska and received her undergraduate degree from Northern Arizona University. Jenna has worked a few internships, including one focused on bridge inspection, and has been involved in structural engineering research at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. She is currently a GRA at Ferguson Structural Engineering Lab, where she works on concrete bridge research under Dr. Bayrak and Dr. Ferche. In her free time she enjoys long-distance running, rock climbing, biking, hiking, reading, and painting.

Austin Krueger is a MS student in structural engineering at UT Austin, currently working as a Graduate Research Assistant in the Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory under Dr. Bayrak. His research focuses on implementing a new reinforced concrete bridge deck design that originates from Spain to Texas. His thesis project involves analyzing the contribution of webs of lattice wire trusses to the shear capacity of reinforced concrete bridge decks. When he is not researching, he enjoys trying new food, hiking, photography, and playing cards. 

Vikram Tati is a Ph.D. student in structural engineering at UT Austin, currently working as a Graduate Research Assistant in the Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory under Dr. Ferche and Dr. Bayrak. His research focuses on reinforced-concrete structures — especially durability issues such as corrosion, alkali-silica reaction (ASR), and freeze-thaw damage, as well as vehicular bridge collisions. He holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering (from India) and has experience in advanced numerical modelling. When he’s not investigating how and why concrete deteriorates, he enjoys trail running, playing cricket, chess, and badminton, as well as exploring the outdoors.

Tiffany Tran is an M.S. student in structural engineering at The University of Texas at Austin and currently serves as a Graduate Research Assistant in the Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory under the supervision of Dr. Ferche and Dr. Bayrak. Her research focuses on reinforced concrete structures, with particular emphasis on the design of inverted T-beams. Her thesis investigates the feasibility of AASHTO LRFD Section 5.8.4.3.5 provisions for hanger reinforcement and explores alternative design approaches when the current provisions prove inadequate. Outside of the laboratory, she enjoys reading fiction, painting, and window shopping at The Domain.

Ashish Kumar completed his Master’s in Structural Engineering at UT Austin in 2025 and is currently pursuing his Ph.D. under Prof. Salvatore Salamone. His research centers on Nondestructive Testing and Structural Health Monitoring, with specialization in Acoustic Emission–based techniques. He's currently a part of the team working on the development of chipless RFID sensors embedded in additively manufactured metal components for Structural Health Monitoring. When he’s not in the lab, Ashish can often be found reading, watching films, taking photographs, hiking local trails, writing poems, or singing. He enjoys blending creativity with engineering and is passionate about exploring both science and art in his journey.

Sanjiv H-K is a first-year Masters student in the Mechanics, Uncertainty, and Simulation in Engineering program at UT Austin. His current research under Dr. Spyros Kinnas examines viscous effects on water turbine performance. In his free time he likes to play drums and hike the forests and mountains of West Texas.

Tianna Battistini is a first-year master’s student in structural engineering at UT Austin. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Structural Engineering from UC San Diego and is originally from Monterey, California. She has completed internships focused on the structural design of concrete and steel projects. Outside of academics, Tianna enjoys playing tennis and staying active outdoors.

Djoser is a civil engineering student in the class of 2029. He has 4 years experience presiding over The Kepher Organization, an official non-profit organization he founded in 9th grade. He has 2 years work experience as a maintenance engineer for Aimbridge Hospitality and 2 years work experience as a construction worker for Amn Ranch LLC. In addition to being UT’s SEAoT Corporate Relations officer, he is the President of UT’s NSBE Freshman Action Team. His goal is to build sustainable infrastructure (specifically structures and buildings) for underserved communities. He believes that there is a direct relationship between the infrastructure within a community and the opportunities presented and given to the members within that community.

Sophia is an undergraduate student studying architectural engineering at UT Austin, with a focus on structural engineering as her intended career path. She has completed internships with TxDOT and will be joining Salas O’Brien as a Structural Intern. In her free time, she enjoys playing volleyball and tennis, crocheting, and reading architecture books.

Dr. Salamone is a Professor, and holder of the Phil M. Ferguson Centennial Teaching Fellowship in Civil Engineering, in the Fariborz Maseeh Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering (CAEE), at University of Texas (UT) at Austin. Before joining UT, he was a faculty member at University at Buffalo (SUNY), and a postdoctoral fellow at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). He received his PhD from the Universita’ degli studi di Palermo, in Italy. Salamone’s current research interests include structural health monitoring (SHM), non-destructive evaluation (NDE), ultrasonic sensing methods for smart structures, wave propagation in solids, digital signal processing and pattern recognition. Dr. Salamone knowledge of SHM/NDE approaches have granted him research with several agencies including the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Office of Naval Research (ONR), the US Airforce, the Department of Energy (DOE), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the Federal Rail Administration (FRA), the Pipeline Hazard Management Safety Administration (PHMSA), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and National Institutes of Health (NIH), Texas Department of Transportation, the University Transportation Research Center 2, the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute, ExxonMobil and Chevron. He has published over 150 referred journal articles and conference publications. He is an elected Fellow of the American Society for Nondestructive Testing (ASNT). He received several awards, including the SHM Person of the Year (2022), the Department Teaching Award (2019), the ASNT Fellowship Research Award (2018, 2023), the Achenbach Medal (2014) and the ASNT Faculty Grant Award (2011). He is serving in several technical committee including, the ASCE Structural Health Monitoring and Control, and ASME Ultrasonics for Mechanical Systems. Dr. Salamone serves as Associate Editor in several journals, including the Structural Health Monitoring: an international journal, and ASCE Journal of Bridge Engineering.