DeCarolis named head of Engineering and Public Policy

Joseph F. DeCarolis, an internationally-recognized leader with technical expertise in energy systems, climate change, computing and public policy has been named head of the Department of Engineering and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University effective November 1, 2025.

DeCarolis will succeed Peter Adams, professor of engineering and public policy and civil and environmental engineering who has served as the department’s head since 2019. Adams will return to engineering faculty following the transition.

DeCarolis earned his Ph.D. at Carnegie Mellon in Engineering and Public Policy. He will return to the university after spending four years at the Environmental Protection Agency and 17 years at North Carolina State University. From 2022-2025 DeCarolis served in a Presidentially-appointed, Senate-confirmed role as administrator of the Energy Information Administration, the official statistical and analytical agency within the Department of Energy. In this role he led 350 federal employees and 300 contractors with a $135 million annual budget.

With more than 60 peer-reviewed research publications, DeCarolis has focused his research on the need to rapidly develop sustainable energy systems. His work combines domain knowledge in energy systems with numerical and mathematical modeling, life cycle assessment, and energy economics with the aim of providing practical energy-related insights to decision makers.