Henry Tzu-Yow Yang (; born November 29, 1940) is a Chinese American engineer, university administrator, and the fifth and current chancellor of the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

, a post he has held since 1994.

Early life and education

Yang was born in Chongqing, China, on November 29, 1940. In 1949, his family moved out of Mainland China to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. Yang earned a

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...

from

National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; ) is a public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1928 during Japanese rule as the seventh of the Imperial Universities. It was named Taihoku Imperial University and served d ...

in 1962, and later moved to the U.S. to earn an M.S. in

structural engineering Structural engineering is a sub-discipline of civil engineering in which structural engineers are trained to design the 'bones and muscles' that create the form and shape of man-made structures. Structural engineers also must understand and cal ...

from

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State Coll ...

in 1965 and a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

in structural engineering from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

in 1968.

Career

Career at Purdue

Regarded as an expert in

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astr ...

structures,

structural dynamics Structural dynamics is a type of structural analysis which covers the behavior of a structure subjected to dynamic (actions having high acceleration) loading. Dynamic loads include people, wind, waves, traffic, earthquakes, and blasts. Any structur ...

, transonic

aeroelasticity Aeroelasticity is the branch of physics and engineering studying the interactions between the inertial, elastic, and aerodynamic forces occurring while an elastic body is exposed to a fluid flow. The study of aeroelasticity may be broadly classi ...

, wind and earthquake

, intelligent manufacturing systems, and finite elements, Yang was on the staff of

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mone ...

for 25 years. He first joined the faculty as an assistant professor in 1969, before being elevated to the head of the Purdue University School of Aeronautics and Astronautics which he served for five years from 1980 to 1984. Yang was named the dean of the

Purdue University College of Engineering The Purdue University College of Engineering, established in 2004, is one of eight major academic divisions, or ''colleges'', of Purdue University. Its forerunner began in 1874 with programs in Civil and Mechanical Engineering. The college no ...

on July 1, 1984, a role he held for 10 years until his departure to UC Santa Barbara. Yang is an eight-time winner of the Elmer F. Bruhn Award, which honors outstanding teachers at the Purdue University School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He was named as the university's Neil A. Armstrong Distinguished Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, a title bestowed on him from 1988 through 1994.

Career at UC Santa Barbara

After a seven-month search process by the

of over 150 applicants, Yang was named as the school's fifth chancellor in March 1994. He began his post on June 23, 1994. He has authored or co-authored 170 articles for scientific journals, as well as a widely used textbook on finite element structural analysis. He has guided 54 Ph.D. and 20 M.S. recipients. In addition to his role as chancellor, he is also a professor of mechanical engineering at

UC Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

, and continues to teach an undergraduate engineering course each year. He is currently supervising three Ph.D. students with support from

National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...

grants. He is also a co-principal investigator for the

Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) is an academic preparation program for pre-college, community college and university-level students. Established in 1970 in California, the program provides academic support to students from edu ...

(MESA) program of the University of California.

Boards and committees

Yang has served on scientific advisory boards for the Department of Defense, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy,

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

, and the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of ...

. He is a past chair of the

Association of Pacific Rim Universities APRU (the Association of Pacific Rim Universities) is a consortium of 61 leading research universities in 19 economies of the Pacific Rim. Formed in 1997,

(2010–2014) and the

Association of American Universities The Association of American Universities (AAU) is an organization of American research universities devoted to maintaining a strong system of academic research and education. Founded in 1900, it consists of 63 universities in the United States ( ...

(2009–2010). Yang currently serves on the President's Committee for the

National Medal of Science The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...

, being appointed originally by George W. Bush in 2009 and again by

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

in 2011. He was named as chairman of the board for the

Thirty Meter Telescope The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is a planned extremely large telescope (ELT) that has become controversial due to its location on Mauna Kea, on the island of Hawaiʻi. The TMT would become the largest visible-light telescope on Mauna Kea. S ...

project in 2007 and still holds the position. He also currently serves on the board of directors of The Kavli Foundation.

Awards and honors

Yang holds honorary doctorates from

(1996),

Hong Kong University of Science and Technology The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) is a public research university in Clear Water Bay Peninsula, New Territories, Hong Kong. Founded in 1991 by the British Hong Kong Government, it was the territory's third institut ...

(2002),

(presumably 2004),

City University of Hong Kong City University of Hong Kong (CityU) is a world-class public research university located in Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1984 as City Polytechnic of Hong Kong and became a fully accredited university in 1994. Currently, CityU is ...

(2005),

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university and ...

(2008),

(2011), and Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2011). He is the 1998 recipient of the Benjamin Garver Lamme Award from the

American Society for Engineering Education The American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) is a non-profit member association, founded in 1893, dedicated to promoting and improving engineering and engineering technology education. The purpose of ASEE is the advancement of education ...

and the 2008 recipient of the Structures, Structural Dynamics, & Materials Award from the

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is a professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA is the U.S. representative on the International Astronautical Federation and the International Council of ...

. Yang was elected as a member of the

in 1991.

References

External links

UCSB Chancellor biography

UCSB Department of Mechanical Engineering biography

Kavli Foundation biography

APRU biography

CCST biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yang, Henry T. American aerospace engineers Cornell University College of Engineering alumni Engineering educators Living people American mechanical engineers National Taiwan University alumni Purdue University faculty American structural engineers Taiwanese emigrants to the United States University of California, Santa Barbara faculty Chancellors of the University of California, Santa Barbara West Virginia University alumni Members of Committee of 100 People from Santa Barbara, California 1940 births American academics of Chinese descent Taiwanese people from Chongqing Chinese Civil War refugees Foreign members of the Chinese Academy of Engineering