UC Irvine Appoints Julián José Rimoli as Chair of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

July 3, 2023 -  Julián José Rimoli, the Henry Samueli Faculty Excellence Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, will serve as the next chair of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in the UCI Samueli School. His term begins July 1, 2023, and will extend for three years.

As chair, Rimoli will be responsible for steering the department's teaching, research and outreach efforts. "I am deeply honored to have been chosen for this role,” Rimoli said. “My goal is to foster a collegial and innovative environment that advances cutting-edge research, promotes transformative education and strengthens our outreach to industry and community. I look forward to working collaboratively with our esteemed faculty and dedicated students and staff to achieve these objectives."

Rimoli earned his engineering diploma in aeronautics from Universidad Nacional de La Plata in 2001, and his master’s and doctoral degrees in aeronautics from Caltech in 2005 and 2009, respectively. Following his graduation, Rimoli joined the MIT Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics as a postdoctoral associate. In 2011, he went to Georgia Tech, where he was the Pratt & Whitney Professor of Aerospace Engineering until joining the UCI faculty in 2022.

His research involves the computational mechanics of materials and structures, with special interest in problems involving multiple length and time scales, and in the development of theories and computational techniques for seamlessly bridging them. Rimoli is an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, winner of an NSF CAREER Award and a recipient of the Donald W. Douglas Prize Fellowship and Ernest E. Sechler Memorial Award in Aeronautics. A dedicated researcher, Rimoli is also deeply committed to teaching excellence. His passion for education earned him the title of Provost Teaching and Learning Fellow at Georgia Tech, along with multiple teaching awards including the Class of 1934 Outstanding Innovative Use of Education Technology Award and the Lockheed Dean’s Excellence in Teaching Award.

"We are thrilled to welcome Professor Rimoli in his new role,” said Samueli School Dean Magnus Egerstedt. “His distinguished career, commitment to scientific innovation and passion for education make him an ideal fit for this position. We are confident that under his leadership, the department will continue to uphold its tradition of excellence and advance to new heights."

Rimoli succeeds Roger Rangel, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, who served two terms as chair, from 2005-09 and again from 2020-23.

– Lori Brandt`