Strategic Communications and Marketing News Bureau

Two Illinois faculty members elected to National Academy of Engineering

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Two University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty members from The Grainger College of Engineering have been elected to the National Academy of Engineering.

The new members are Kiruba Haran, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and the Grainger Endowed Director’s Chair in Electric Machinery and Electromechanics, and Taher Saif, the Edward William and Jane Marr Gutgsell Professor in mechanical science and engineering.

They are among 114 new members and 21 international members elected to the academy this year. This brings the total U.S. membership to 2,310 and the number of international members to 332. Academy membership honors those who have made “outstanding contributions to engineering research, practice or education,” according to the NAE. 

At Illinois, Haran studies high specific power cryogenic and non-cryogenic machines for electrified transportation and renewable energy applications. In 2022, he was named director of the National Science Foundation Engineering Center for Power Optimization of Electro-Thermal Systems – a key enabler in providing an increase in power density through advanced technology and workforce development. He also is affiliated with the Carle Illinois College of Medicine at Illinois.

Saif studies the effects of forces at small scales, focusing on nanoscale materials and living cells. His work on deformation in nanomaterials could lead to self-healing metal components, and his work on the effects of cellular forces has opened new research avenues in neuron function, cancer progression and biological robotics. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. He also is affiliated with bioengineering , the Beckman Institute , the Cancer Center at Illinois , the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology and the Carle Illinois College of Medicine.

The new members will be formally inducted Sept. 29 during the NAE’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

Read Next

Campus news Vikram Adve, Rohit Bhargava, Andrew Suarez and Jennifer Teper.

Faculty members honored with 2025 Campus Awards for Excellence in Faculty Leadership

Four University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty members were honored by the Office of the Provost with the 2025 Campus Awards for Excellence in Faculty Leadership.

Campus news University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign students Lindsay Bitner-Mitchell and Cecelia Escobar have been selected to participate in the U.S.-U.K. Fulbright Commission’s Summer Institutes program. Photo collage: Fred Zwicky

Two Illinois students selected for Fulbright’s Summer Institute to the UK

Two University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign students received places in the Fulbright Commission’s Summer Institutes program.

Research news Portrait of Lissette Piedra standing in front of a bookcase wearing a beige jacket and black shirt

Study reveals how social networks shape health in later life

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. ― A new study sheds light on the powerful connection between social networks and health in later life and reveals a surprising path for improving health equity among older adults. Published in the journal Innovation in Aging, the study tracked over 1,500 older adults for a decade using three rounds of data from […]

Strategic Communications and Marketing News Bureau

507 E. Green St
MC-426
Champaign, IL 61820

Email: stratcom@illinois.edu

Phone (217) 333-5010