Henry T. Yang joined UC Santa Barbara as chancellor in 1994. He also holds a faculty appointment in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, where he teaches an undergraduate course in structural analysis each year and guides several graduate students. He was formerly the Neil A. Armstrong Distinguished Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at Purdue University, where he also served as the dean of engineering for ten years, and as co-director of the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center for Intelligent Manufacturing Systems for ten years. He received his Ph.D. from Cornell University.
In addition to his administrative responsibilities, Dr. Yang has remained active in teaching and research. He has authored and co-authored more than 190 articles for scientific journals, served as principal or co-principal investigator for 36 sponsored research grants, and received 13 outstanding undergraduate teaching awards. His book Finite Element Structural Analysis, published by Prentice-Hall, has been adopted by many universities and has also been published in Japanese and Chinese.
Dr. Yang has served on numerous governmental, corporate, and academic committees and advisory boards, such as the Defense Science Board, USAF Scientific Advisory Board, Naval Research Advisory Committee, NASA’s Aeronautical Advisory Committee, the Engineering Advisory Committee of the National Science Foundation, the President’s Committee for the National Medal of Science, and the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering Judging Panel. He is a past chair of the Association of Pacific Rim Universities and the Association of American Universities. He serves on the Kavli Foundation board, and is chairman of the board for TIO, the Thirty Meter Telescope International Observatory.
He has received many honors and awards for his research, teaching, and service, including eight honorary doctorates; the Benjamin Garver Lamme Medal from the American Society of Engineering Education; and the Structures, Structural Dynamics, and Materials Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. In 2016 he received the National Academy of Engineering’s Arthur M. Bueche Award. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the American Society for Engineering Education, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
