Chairman's Award
2024 Recipient
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High-ResJill Hough
Jill Hough dedicated 34 years to advancing transportation research and policy, primarily through her role at UGPTI. For 22 years, she served as the program director of the Small Urban and Rural Center on Mobility, a program she initially developed to serve North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Wyoming and which later gained national prominence.
Hough authored or co-authored numerous research reports and journal articles, focusing on shared-use mobility, intelligent transportation systems, transportation's role in addressing food deserts, and the mobility of the elderly and disadvantaged. Her expertise has led her to several national and international leadership positions, including chair of the Research in Mobility Committee for the Union Internationale des Transports Publics (International Association of Public Transport) and university liaison to the American Public Transportation Association's Research and Technology Committee.
She also served six years on the executive committee of the Council of University Transportation Centers, serving as treasurer, secretary, vice-president, president, and past president. Additionally, Hough completed two three-year terms on the National Academies of Science Transit Cooperative Research Program Oversight Project Selection Committee, where she helped identify and prioritize transit research needs in the United States. Currently, Hough chairs the Transportation Research Board's Standing Committee on Rural, Intercity Bus, and Specialized Transportation.
Her commitment to ethical leadership and academic excellence is evident through her development of the course "Leadership, Ethics, and Academic Conduct." Hough is also a certified John Maxwell leadership speaker, trainer, and coach. She earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees in agricultural economics from NDSU and a Ph.D. in transportation technology and policy from the University of California, Davis. Hough and her husband, Mark Schenck, live in Omaha.
