FSU PC faculty honors Adalier with Provost Sallie McRorie award
Dean Randy Hanna on April 15 announced that FSU Panama City faculty had chosen professor Korhan Adalier, Ph.D., as the 2026 recipient of the Provost Sallie McRorie Excellence in Teaching and Service Award.
“This award was established by the faculty at FSU Panama City in 2022 as an acknowledgement of exceptional work in the classroom with our students as well as outside in the community,” Hanna said.
The award is presented annually by the FSU Panama City faculty as part of the events leading up to graduation, Hanna added. It was created in honor of former FSU Provost Sally McRorie.
Adalier said he was honored by the recognition, adding that, “Teaching, academic advising, and mentoring students is the most rewarding part of my profession, and I take great pride in helping prepare the next generation of civil engineers. It is especially meaningful to see a large majority of our graduates remain in Northwest Florida and contribute to the local workforce and economy.”
Adalier, Ph.D., is the director of FSU Panama City’s engineering programs and serves as a teaching professor. He has been the coordinator of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Program since 2005. Before joining FSU PC in 2003, he served as a faculty member of Civil Engineering at the Eastern Mediterranean University (Cyprus), Nanyang Technological University (Singapore), and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy-NY).
“My interest in engineering began with a strong appreciation for mathematics and physics,” he said. “Civil engineering, in particular, represents the application of these foundational subjects to solve real-world problems and improve infrastructure and communities. This natural connection led me to pursue a career in engineering, and ultimately in education, where I could share that passion with students.”
Adalier’s primary expertise lies in the areas of geotechnical engineering, soil mechanics, earthquake engineering, soil dynamics, ground improvement and forensic engineering in natural and man-made earth structures. He is an author or co-author of more than 100 technical publications in the fields of geotechnical and earthquake engineering. Adalier said one of the most notable changes he’d observed over time is the increasing role of technology in both engineering practice and education.
“Advances in computational tools, data analysis and modeling have significantly shaped how we teach and apply civil engineering concepts,” he said. “As educators, we continuously adapt our approach to ensure students not only understand fundamental principles, but also develop the skills needed to effectively use modern tools in a rapidly evolving profession.”
A member of numerous technical associations and societies, Adalier has been a reviewer for ten different technical journals and received several professional awards, including the Casimir Gzowski Medal (2005) from the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers. He has taught more than 20 different engineering courses over the last 30 years as a college professor. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Civil Engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1992 and 1996, respectively.
“I am also deeply honored that this award is associated with former Provost Sally McRorie,” Adalier said. “I have great respect for her leadership and contributions to the university, and receiving an award in her name makes this recognition particularly significant to me.”
During McRorie’s tenure, the university set records for the number of first-year applications for admission and enrolled the highest number of graduate students in university history