PASADENA, Calif., June 1, 2006 -- Jean-Lou Chameau, provost and vice president for academic affairs at the Georgia Institute of Technology, has been named the new president of the California Institute of Technology. He will take office on or before Sept. 1. He succeeds David Baltimore, who is stepping down from the presidency after nearly nine years in the post. Baltimore will remain at the institute, where he intends to focus on his scientific work and teaching.
Chameau, 53, was previously dean of the College of Engineering at Georgia Tech. He was selected by the Caltech Board of Trustees after a nationwide search conducted by the faculty search committee.
"Chameau places a strong emphasis on improving the educational experience of students, increasing diversity, and fostering research, entrepreneurial and international opportunities for faculty and students," CalTech said in a statement. "He was a champion for programs that contributed to Georgia Tech's leadership role in the education of minority students in engineering, and in the recruitment, retention and promotion of women on the faculty. He was instrumental in positioning Georgia Tech as an internationally recognized university through the creation of innovative educational and research programs and partnerships around the world, including campuses and platforms in Asia and Europe."
As part of his responsibilities at Georgia Tech, Chameau engaged in numerous development activities, leading efforts to secure major donations for the university's endowment. He was also active in state and federal relations and professional organizations such as the US Council on Competitiveness and the Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable.
Chameau received his secondary and undergraduate education in France and his graduate education in civil engineering from Stanford University. In 1980, he joined the civil engineering faculty at Purdue University, where he subsequently became full professor and head of the geotechnical engineering program. In 1991, he became the director of the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Georgia Tech. In 1994-95, he was the president of Golder Associates Inc., an international geotechnical consulting company. He currently serves on the boards of MTS Systems Corp., Prime Engineering and l'Ecole Polytechnique and is a trustee and treasurer of the Georgia Tech Research Corp. He is also serving as president of Georgia Tech Lorraine, the European platform of Georgia Tech.
His technical interests include sustainable technology, environmental geotechnology, soil dynamics, earthquake engineering and liquefaction of soils. He was the recipient of a National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award, the ASCE A. Casagrande Award and the Rodney Chipp Memorial Award from the Society of Women Engineers.
Chameau is married to Carol Carmichael, the director of the Institute for Sustainable Technology and Development at Georgia Tech. He is the eighth person to lead "modern-day" Caltech; his predecessors were James A. B. Scherer, Robert A. Millikan, Lee A. DuBridge, Harold Brown, Marvin L. Goldberger, Thomas E. Everhart, and Baltimore.
For more information, visit: www.caltech.edu