DONALD P. DUBOIS, P.E.
Assistant Surgeon General
Rear Admiral, USPHS (ret.)

Donald P. Dubois was born in Spokane, Washington in 1935 and grew up on his family’s ranch near Colville, Washington. His professional career included service as a PHS Commissioned Officer in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare and in the Environmental Protection Agency. After he left Federal service, Dubois worked with the Washington State Department of Ecology followed by a lengthy career in private sector environmental engineering.

Donald Dubois received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from the Washington State University in 1957 and a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering with a focus on Environmental Engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 1961.

In the fall of 1957 Dubois began his career as a Commissioned Officer in the U.S. Public Health Service with his first assignment in the Division of Water Supply and Pollution Control in Washington, D.C.

In November of 1958 he transferred to the PHS Regional Office in Charlottesville, Virginia to work on sewage works construction plan review. His early career included an assignment to the Portland, Oregon Regional office to work on water quality planning as well as management of the National Water Quality Network stations in the northwestern U.S. and Alaska. He later returned to an assignment in Washington, D.C. where he managed a new computerized system for water quality data storage used for water pollution control nation-wide. For example, he led the development of a master system of special maps for coding all streams in the U.S. and cataloging water quality data for each.

From 1966 to 1968, Dubois served as the assistant to the Chief Engineering Officer and managed the Corps-wide Engineer Career Development Program. He transferred to the new Consumer Protection and Environmental Health Service in 1968 and in 1969 he became the Regional Assistant Administrator for that agency in the Denver Regional Office with responsibilities for air quality, drinking water, radiation protection and solid waste management.

In 1970 Donald P. Dubois was transferred to the newly created Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and assisted in the development of its regional office in Denver, Colorado as well as developed the model for operation of all ten of the EPA regional offices. In 1971, he was appointed Deputy Regional Administrator in the Denver office. His duties in that post included service on the Board of the International Joint USA-Canadian Commission on Water Quality.

In July 1976 Dubois was appointed Regional Administrator for the EPA Seattle Regional office. In recognition of his leadership responsibilities and professional competence, Donald Dubois was also appointed as an Assistant Surgeon General with the equivalent rank of Rear Admiral (RADM) in the PHS Commissioned Corps. He continued as Regional Administrator through July of 1981 when he retired from the PHS.

After two years of work as an engineer consultant, Dubois became Assistant Director of the Washington State Department of Ecology and in 1985 joined the Jacobs Engineering Group for what was to become a ten-year private sector career. His work with that firm included senior management of engineering efforts with a focus on environmental restoration of major contaminated land sites. He retired from the firm in July of 1995.

RADM Dubois’ Public Health Service awards include the Commendation Medal and the Distinguished Service Medal. He is a registered engineer in the states of Oregon and Colorado, a Diplomate of the American Academy of Environmental Engineers, and a long-time member of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

He and his wife, Antoinette, live in Aurora, Colorado.

5 February 2008

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