Engin Egeseli, a faculty member in the Dr. Robert A. Savoie College of Engineering who began teaching at the University of New Orleans in the early 1980s, died on July 20 at the age of 79. Egeseli was a professor of professional practice in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He brought more than 25 years of professional engineering experience to his role at UNO.

Egeseli, who held a doctorate in civil engineering from the University of Pittsburgh, was an expert in structural engineering, steel design and construction, and ship design and analysis. At UNO, he taught classes in statics, mechanics of materials, structural analysis, matrix methods, finite element analysis, and ship hull strength.

Egeseli was a longtime employee at Avondale Shipyard. He began at UNO as a part-time faculty member in 1982. In 2014, he was promoted to professor of professional practice.

“In his time at UNO, he impacted the lives of so many of our students as a teacher and a mentor,” said Lizette Chevalier, dean of the Dr. Robert A. Savoie College of Engineering. “He has always fostered a sense of community within our college. He led an extraordinary life and leaves behind the legacy of a teacher that has had a profound impact on our students.”