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NSPE Past President Dan J. Wittliff, P.E., F.NSPE, DEE—whose exceptional leadership skills and commitment to education will serve as a model for generations to come—died on October 13, 2025, at the age of 75.

A celebration of the life of Dan Wittliff took place in Austin, Texas, on November 16. He is survived by his wife, Manda Rash; a brother, Dick Wittliff and his wife, Mary; brother, Derek Wittliff and his wife, Diane; a sister, Debbie Nedpodzany and her husband, Kevin; a son, Matthew Wittliff and his wife, Lisa; a daughter, Juliana Taylor and her husband, Robert; and grandsons, Zachary Wittliff, Mark Wittliff, Luke Wittliff, and Levi Taylor. Wittliff is also survived by numerous nieces, nephews and great-nieces and nephews.

Dan Wittliff was born on November 24, 1949, to Joseph and Sally Wittliff in Nueces County, Texas. He graduated from Mary Carroll High School in Corpus Christi, Texas, and earned his degree in mechanical engineering in 1972 from Southern Methodist University in Dallas. Upon graduating, he entered the US Air Force. He earned multiple awards and distinctions during his service, including the Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal with five oak leaf clusters, Outstanding Graduate of Air War College, and the Air Force Communications-Electronics Professionalism Award. He also earned an MBA degree from the University of Oklahoma.

In 2002, Wittliff retired from the Air Force at the rank of colonel and went on to distinguish himself as both an exceptional engineer and leader, serving most recently as managing director of environmental services with Marietta, Georgia-based GDS Associates. Prior to his work with GDS, he was the founder and principal of Dan Wittliff Consulting, PLLC. He also served as the first chief engineer to the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Commission, now known as the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and as manager of environmental services with West Texas Utilities. He was a licensed engineer in Texas, Tennessee, and South Carolina.

A Lasting Impact on the NSPE Community

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Wittliff joined NSPE in 1972. His service to NSPE left an indelible mark on the organization, not just for the range of contributions he made to the profession, but for his consummate leadership and dedication to the importance of the PE as a role model both inside and beyond engineering.

A longtime member of the Texas Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE), Wittliff served as president of the Abilene Chapter and president of the TSPE. He was honored as the TSPE Engineer of the Year in 1998 and as the Distinguished Engineer of the Texas Engineering Foundation in 2001.

At the national level of NSPE, Wittliff served in various volunteer leadership positions including as a member of the House of Delegates and the board of directors. He also helped to found and chair the Software Engineering Licensure Consortium.

During his term as NSPE president (2012-2013), he presided over important milestones for NSPE, including the launch of the software engineering PE licensure exam in 2013. He predicted that this process "will serve as a model for providing emerging engineering disciplines with a path to licensure in the future."

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Recently, he continued his work to ensure that licensed engineers and technicians have a significant role in the development and oversight of emerging technologies through his leadership on NSPE’s Software Professional Certification Task Force He played an essential role in the launch of NICET’s Systems Software Integrator (SSI) Certification Program. He also served on the NSPE Emerging Technologies Committee and on the NICET Board of Governors.

He received multiple recognitions for his expertise, dedication, and service, including being named an NSPE Fellow in 2004 and in 2017, he received the prestigious NSPE Award, the organization’s highest honor, in recognition of "outstanding contributions to the engineering profession, the public welfare, and humankind." Wittliff is also the only NSPE member to receive three NSPE President’s Awards (in 2010, 2016, and 2018).

A Commitment to Mentoring and Educating for the Future

Those fortunate enough to have known Dan Wittliff were consistently impressed with his commitment to ethical leadership and his belief that PEs must recognize their responsibility to serve as teachers to peers and the public. "We are always teaching even when we don’t intend to," he wrote in a 2012 column for NSPE. "The question we must always ask ourselves is, ‘What kind of teacher am I?’"

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Wittliff also demonstrated his belief in the importance of education by his involvement with his alma mater, where in 2017 he and Manda established the Dan J. Wittliff and Manda L. Rash Endowed Engineering Leadership and Professional Development Fund within the Lyle School of Engineering. He was also appointed to the SMU Lyle School of Engineering Executive Board and Board of Industrial Advisors for SMU’s mechanical engineering department.

The common thread through Wittliff’s personal and professional achievements was his steadfast commitment to ethical behavior, a commitment that he lived out even when he was off the clock. In the same 2012 column in which he stressed the PE’s responsibility as a teacher, Wittliff related an anecdote of a vacation trip he and Manda took to the Oregon coast, where, by chance, they stopped at a fruit stand.

He described meeting a young woman at the stand, who asked if he was a teacher. He said yes. Then the young woman asked him a more probing question — "What is the single most important thing you [have] taught people?"

"Realizing that my answer to this question might have a long-term impact beyond this chance encounter, I considered my answer carefully before responding," Wittliff wrote.

"I said, ‘Always do the right thing. You’ll sleep easier not worrying about the past.’"

In honor of Dan Wittliff’s memory, donations can be made to the Dan J. Wittliff and Manda L. Rash Endowed Engineering Leadership and Professional Development Fund at Southern Methodist University (SMU) at PO Box 750402-0402, Dallas, TX, 75275, with checks made out to SMU.