Ron Laue is the Senior Assistant Dean of the Washington University McKelvey School of Engineering. He is also a long-time volunteer at Gateway Arch National Park.

Shortly after graduating college, Ron Laue landed his dream job working as a seasonal park ranger at the National Mall in Washington D.C. His passion for travel, history, and nature initially attracted him to the National Park Service.

While Laue's path eventually led him to a career in higher education, he never lost his connection to the National Park Service. 

Ron spends his volunteer hours at Gateway Arch National Park, interacting with visitors at the Museum at the Gateway Arch, Old Courthouse, and on the Trails & Rails Amtrak train to and from Springfield, IL.

For the past five years, Ron has used his talents to help the National Park Service with the Gateway Arch Engineering Design Competition. This collaborative contest gives high school and college students a unique opportunity to solve real-world engineering problems on the Arch grounds. Since 2017 students from more than 20 schools have participated in the event.

The competition culminates with the student teams presenting their proposals to a panel of expert engineering judges who award the winner. See the winning team from this year here, and be sure to join us this fall for year five of the competition.

In addition to his volunteer work with the National Park Service, Ron also leads Washington University undergraduate engineering students on tours of the Gateway Arch, allowing them to see the incredible architectural marvel up close for the first time.

We are incredibly grateful to Ron and all our volunteers for their dedication to Gateway Arch National Park and our community. Thank you, Ron!