Ferdinand P. Beer. Born in France and educated in France and Switzerland, Ferd received an M.S. degree from the Sorbonne and an Sc.D. degree in theoretical mechanics from the University of Geneva. He came to the United States after serving in the French army during the early part of World War II and taught for four years at Williams College in the Williams-MIT joint arts and engineering program. Following his service at Williams College, Ferd joined the faculty of Lehigh University where he taught for thirty-seven years. He held several positions, including University Distinguished Professor and chairman of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics, and in 1995 Ferd was awarded an honorary Doctor of Engineering degree by Lehigh University.

E. Russell Johnston, Jr. Born in Philadelphia, Russ holds a B.S. degree in civil engineering from the University of Delaware and an Sc.D. degree in the field of structural engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He taught at Lehigh University and Worcester Polytechnic Institute before joining the faculty of the University of Connecticut where he held the position of chairman of the Department of Civil Engineering and taught for twenty-six years. In 1991 Russ received the Outstanding Civil Engineer Award from the Connecticut Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

David F. Mazurek. David holds a B.S. degree in ocean engineering and an M.S. degree in civil engineering from the Florida Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. degree in civil engineering from the University of Connecticut. He was employed by the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics Corporation and taught at Lafayette College prior to joining the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, where he has been since 1990. He has served on the American Railway Engineering & Maintenance-of-Way Association’s Committee 15—Steel Structures since 1991. Professional interests include bridge engineering, structural forensics, and blast-resistant design. He is a registered Professional Engineer in Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

Beer and Johnston’s collaboration has spanned more than half a century and many successful revisions of all of their textbooks, and their contributions to engineering education have earned them a number of honors and awards. They were presented with the Western Electric Fund Award for excellence in the instruction of engineering students by their respective regional sections of the American Society for Engineering Education, and they both received the Distinguished Educator Award from the Mechanics Division of the same society. Starting in 2001, the New Mechanics Educator Award of the Mechanics Division has been named in honor of the Beer and Johnston author team.