Mung Chiang 

Mung Chiang, dean of Purdue’s College of Engineering from 2017 to 2023, was inaugurated as the 13th president in the 154-year history of Purdue University on Jan. 1, 2023. Taking office at age 45, he became the youngest president of a top 50 American university in recent history. Chiang began his academic career in 2004 as an assistant professor at Princeton University. He became a full professor of electrical engineering in 2011 and the Arthur LeGrand Doty Professor of Electrical Engineering in 2013. The holder of 25 patents, he founded three companies and was named New Jersey’s CEO of the Year in 2014. Chiang left Princeton in 2017 to become the John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering and the Roscoe H. George Professor of Electrical Engineering at Purdue. During his tenure as dean, Purdue’s College of Engineering became the largest-ever top 5 engineering college in the U.S., and it reached milestones in education, research, fundraising, physical infrastructure, online learning, industry partnership, economic development, global engagement, diversity, and visibility. Chiang spent 2020 as the science and technology advisor to the U.S. secretary of state. In April 2021, Purdue named Chiang executive vice president for strategic initiatives while he continued leading the College of Engineering. He earned three degrees from Stanford University: a bachelor’s degree with honors in electrical engineering and mathematics (1999), a master’s degree in electrical engineering (2000), and a PhD in electrical engineering (2003). Among numerous accolades, Chiang is a National Academy of Inventors fellow, a Guggenheim fellow, and an IEEE INFOCOM Achievement Award recipient.