Education: B. S. Naval Architecture, U. S. Naval Academy; M. S. Mechanical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Additional Graduate work in Advanced Mechanics of Materials, UMass Dartmouth.
Background as a U. S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps (CEC) Officer and business owner with duties across facilities engineering responsibilities including project management and construction. Registered PE in PA.
Bill Straus is a former member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the town of Mattapoisett. He served in the House from 1993 through 2024. He did not run for re-election in 2024. He worked on a number of legislative committees during that time including as House Chair of Environment and Natural Resources from 2009 to 2010, and House Chair of Transportation from 2011 through 2024.
Bill has held a number of other public positions. From 2011 through 2024 he was co-chair of the UMass Amherst Oversight Board for the Cranberry Research station in Wareham. He was a public member of the Massachusetts Hazardous Waste Facility Site Safety Council pursuant to chapter 21D from 1987 through 1992, a member of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission from 1989 through 1992, and an Assistant District Attorney in Bristol County from 1982 through 1988.
From 2006 through 2016 he was an Adjunct Lecturer at the Boston University Law School. He was engaged in the private practice of law with an office in New Bedford until 2021.
Bill Straus received a BA from Middlebury College, his law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center, and a Masters of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School.
- Bachelor of Science in Ocean Engineering from U.S. Coast Guard Academy
- Master of Engineering in Naval Architecture from University of California, Berkeley
- Master of Science in Operations Research from University of California, Berkeley
- Master of Science in Environmental Management from University of San Francisco
- DSc in Engineering Management from the George Washington University
- Certified as Project Management Professional®
- Served 26 years in US Coast Guard (retired as Captain)
- Teaching: Supply Chain Management, Project Management, Statistics
- Research: Risk Analysis, Expert Judgment, Project Management, Leadership
- LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulszwed/
