Ex-Cabinet member lands at CMU

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Two years ago, when he was U.S. transportation secretary, Anthony Foxx came to Pittsburgh to review the city’s application for a $50 million Smart Cities grant. Many of the grant’s technology components were developed at Carnegie Mellon University.

Now, Mr. Foxx is spending this school year as a distinguished executive in residence at CMU, where he will work with the College of Engineering, the Heinz College of Information Systems and Policy, and Metro: 21 Smart Cities Institute.

“As a distinguished executive in residence with the Heinz College team, Secretary Foxx will provide realworld applications and strategic counsel on our smart city initiatives,” Ramayya Krishnan, dean of Heinz College, said in a news release Thursday.

As transportation secretary in the Obama administration from 2013 to 2017, Mr. Foxx pushed for the use of technology to improve mobility and the flow of traffic. He also had been mayor of Charlotte, N.C., and he holds a law degree.

In the news release, Mr. Foxx said he looks forward to “sharing my passion with the CMU community and sharing our model for innovative future cities with the world.”

James Garrett, dean of the College of Engineering, said Mr. Foxx’s background will provide “an invaluable learning opportunity” for students.