Dr. Hunter Schroer, an assistant professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering at Missouri S&T, has been awarded a 2026 Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award from Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU). 
 
Schroer is one of 36 faculty members selected nationwide for the honor. 
 
ORAU is a consortium of colleges and universities that advances scientific research and education through partnerships with government agencies, academia and industry. Established in honor of former ORAU President Ralph E. Powe, the program supports the research and professional growth of junior faculty at ORAU member institutions and provides researchers with seed funding for their research. 
 
“I’m honored by this recognition, both for what it means for my lab and for the broader role synthetic biology and bioengineering can play in environmental engineering,” Schroer says. “Our approach is to treat biological systems as tools we can design and direct toward solving pressing environmental problems, from clean water to sustainable materials and energy.  
 
“This award is a meaningful vote of confidence in that vision, and the support it provides will directly help us push this work forward.” 
 
Schroer joined the Missouri S&T faculty in 2024. Prior to joining S&T, he was a research scientist at the University of Iowa and worked as a consulting engineer with Apex Companies LLC in Colorado, where he became a licensed professional engineer. 
 
He earned a Ph.D. and master’s degree in environmental engineering from the University of Iowa and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Baylor University.  

To learn more about S&T’s civil, architectural and environmental engineering programs, visit care.mst.edu. 

About Missouri S&T

Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is a STEM-focused research university of over 7,000 students located in Rolla, Missouri. Part of the four-campus University of Missouri System, Missouri S&T offers over 100 degrees in 40 areas of study and is among the nation’s top public universities for salary impact, according to the Wall Street Journal. For more information about Missouri S&T, visit  www.mst.edu.