Soil Mechanics, Bearing Capacity and Slope Stabilization Seminar
DISCLAIMER
Before purchasing, review the rules of your licensing or certifying entity. It is your responsibility to confirm this course meets your CE requirements. See the credit tab on the course page for details.
What’s Included: Full webinar recording, written course materials, expert instruction, a mandatory quiz, and a certificate upon completion.
Deliverability Timeline: All courses are generally available within 1-2 weeks after the live presentation.
CE Credits: AIA and/or LA/CES accreditation is available by request for courses recorded prior to March 11, 2026. All courses after that date include those accreditations by default, if applicable. With these accreditations, our courses qualify for credit in nearly all states for engineers, surveyors, architects, and landscape architects.
Learn more about the on-demand format in our FAQ or contact us at (715) 835-5900 or customerservice@halfmoonseminars.org
Agenda
Registration: 8:00 – 8:30 am
Morning Session: 8:30 am – 12:15 pm
Lunch (On your own): 12:15 – 1:15 pm
Afternoon Session: 1:15 – 4:30 pm
Soil Investigation and Classification
Properties of soil
• Importance of recognizing soil properties
• Formation of soils
• Types of soils
Soil investigation
• Site reconnaissance
• Geology and visual observations
• Drilling and boring
• Test pits
• Establishing appropriate investigational methods
• Obtaining and reviewing geotechnical reports
Reviewing Hydraulic and Mechanical Properties of Soils
Soil permeability
Compressibility of soil
Soil hydraulics
• Saturation, hydraulic gradient, and conductivity
Drained and undrained shear strength
• Vertical and lateral earth pressure
Stress and failure in soils
Determining and Increasing Bearing Capacity
Calculating bearing capacity
Bearing capacity of shallow foundations
Bearing capacity of piers and piles
Increasing bearing capacity
• Draining and compaction
• Soil improvement
Determining and Increasing Slope Stability
Natural and engineered slopes
Reviewing basic concepts of slope stability
Understanding slope failures
Impact of surface water and groundwater
Examining slope stabilization methods
• Unloading
• Draining and compaction
• Reinforcement
• Soil improvement
Credits
Professional Engineers &
Geoscientists
6.5 PDHs
Architects
6.5 HSW CEPHs/CE Hours
6.5 AIA HSW Learning Units
Landscape Architects
6.5 HSW CEPHs/CE Hours
6.5 LA CES HSW PDHs
Floodplain Managers
6.5 ASFPM CECs
Contractors
Non-Credit Continuing Ed.
Continuing Education Credit Information
This seminar is open to the public. It offers 6.5 PDHs to professional engineers and geoscientists and 6.5 HSW CEPHs/continuing education hours to architects and landscape architects in most states, including Texas. Educators and courses are not subject to preapproval in Texas.
This seminar is approved by the American Institute of Architects for 6.5 HSW Learning Units (Sponsor No. J885) and the Landscape Architecture Continuing Education System for 6.5 HSW PDHs. Only full attendance can be reported to the AIA/CES and LA/CES.
HalfMoon Education is an approved continuing education sponsor for architects in Florida and is deemed an approved continuing education sponsor for New York architects and landscape architects. HalfMoon Education is an approved continuing education sponsor for engineers in Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, New Jersey (Approval No. 24GP00000700), New York (NYSED Sponsor No. 35), North Carolina, and North Dakota.
The Association of State Floodplain Managers has approved this event for 6.5 CECs. ASFPM approval qualifies this program for Texas floodplain managers.
This course offers a non-credit continuing education opportunity to construction contractors. It has not been approved by any state contractor licensing entity.
Attendance will be monitored, and attendance certificates will be available after the seminar for most individuals who complete the entire event. Attendance certificates not available at the seminar will be mailed to participants within fifteen business days.
Speakers
James “Jay” A. McKelvey, III, P.E., D.GE, F.ASCE
Director-Geotechnical Design Division at Earth Engineering Inc. in East Norriton, Pennsylvania.Dr. McKelvey is the director of the Geotechnical Design Division at Earth Engineering Inc. in East Norriton, Pennsylvania. He is a registered professional engineer (P.E.) in California, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Dr. McKelvey is also a Diplomate (D.GE) of the Academy of Geo-Professionals and a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers (F.ASCE).
Dr. McKelvey has extensive experience in geotechnical engineering including site assessment and field investigations, deep and shallow foundation design for buildings, bridges, and other structures, retaining wall design, embankment stability, mechanically stabilized soil structures, and subsurface hydrology.
He also has significant experience in mitigating heavy construction claims and in litigation support pertaining to impacted heavy construction projects. Dr. McKelvey has also handled construction support and construction quality assurance projects. His environmental engineering experience includes technical contributions to the remediation of many Superfund sites and over 50 landfill design projects.
Dr. McKelvey has published over 30 technical papers in journals, conference proceedings and trade magazines. He is the past chair for the Delaware Valley Geo-Institute (DVGI) and is a voting member in ASTM committees Soil and Rock (D18), and Geosynthetics (D35). He is an editorial board member of the Geotechnical Testing Journal. Dr. McKelvey also serves on two Geo-Institute committees: Earth Structures and Embankments and Dams. For the latter, he is a member of the subcommittee on landslide risk assessment.