Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Agent Training

About Us

Joseph Picone (Professor), PhD

Project Manager

Dr. Joseph Picone provides the overall coordination of the project and is the contact person. Dr. Picone is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Temple University. He is known for his innovative approaches to engineering education and is currently heavily involved in overhauling the way software is taught in engineering.


Email: joseph.picone@gmail.com

Bechara Abboud (Associate Professor), PhD, P.E.

Subject Matter Expert

Dr. Bechara Abboud is the Co-Principal Investigator (PI) of the project. Dr. Abboud is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. His research intestest include the evaluation/selection and design of scour countermeasures for bridges, winter roadway maintenance enhancers material (field) evaluation, electronic construction model definition and community gateway rain gardens.


Email: abboud@temple.edu

Ryan Anstotz (Graduate Research Assistant), BS

Subject Matter Expert

Ryan Anstotz is an MS student in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Drexel University and worked in industry as a civil engineer (EIT) prior to entering Temple University for his master’s degree. Ryan has experience in composing technical reports and performing complex engineering analysis.


Email: ryananstotz@gmail.com

Robert Clark (Consulant), PhD

Instructional Design

Dr. Clark is owner/president of Clark Professional & Curriculum Services and serves as a consultant on instructional, administrative, and research projects for educational organizations. Dr. Clark holds a Ph.D. in Agricultural Education and specializes in instructional design in career and technical education.


Email: rclark02@gmail.com

Daniel M. Perna (Consultant), EdD

Instructional Design

Dr. Daniel Perna is the Owner/President of James Daniel & Associates. He has his doctoral degree in Educational Leadership and is an instructional design consultant assisting with the development of course training material. He has taught graduate level courses in curriculum and instruction for Wilkes University and has published three books focusing on how to engage students in the learning process. His company James Daniel & Associates, LLC is known for the online instructional design tool Guides4Learning.


Email: jamesdanielassociates@gmail.com