Forrest Masters, Ph.D., P.E. (FL), has deep roots in the mission of a land-grant public university serving a coastal state—beginning as a 4Her in his youth and later as a professor of civil and coastal engineering who studies extreme weather effects on the built and natural environment. One of the more interesting aspects of this work is field reconnaissance in extreme storms, which involves deploying instrumentation in the path of hurricanes right up until landfall. 
Prior to joining Oregon State University as the Kearney Dean of Engineering, Dr. Masters has held multiple leadership positions at the University of Florida, including founding one of seven natural hazards engineering research facilities in NSF Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure Program, serving as Associate Dean for Research and Facilities for seven years, leading strategic initiatives in the Office of Research, and serving as the Interim Dean of the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering from 2023-2025. He has received support from more than 60 grants from state, federal, and private sources, including the NSF CAREER Award. He has published over 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings and given more than 100 invited presentations.