Thirteen Michigan State University College of Engineering faculty members were among those honored Sept. 29 during MSU’s 2026 Faculty Investiture and State of the University at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts. The program began with the Faculty Investiture, recognizing faculty appointed to endowed chair and professor positions, MSU Research Foundation Distinguished Professorships, Red Cedar Distinguished Professorships, and John A. Hannah Distinguished Professorships.
The positions recognize faculty achievement in research, teaching and service. Thirty-six honorees represented 12 of MSU's 16 degree-granting colleges, hundreds of published works cited thousands of times, decades' worth of world-changing work, and include 13 faculty members from the College of Engineering.
President Kevin M. Guskiewicz, who also was recognized as a John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor, congratulated the faculty honorees and highlighted the breadth of interdisciplinary work represented across MSU.
Following the investiture ceremony, Guskiewicz delivered his annual State of the University address, highlighting MSU’s academic and research accomplishments, philanthropic support and priorities for the university’s future: asking the audience and his cohort of faculty honorees onstage to "Imagine if..."
"We should all have an 'imagine if' aimed at solving a grand challenge," he said. "Our university was conceived more than 170 years ago by forward-thinking founders who, being broadly curious and well-read, also dared to imagine something new.
"As we imagine ways to fulfill our land-grant mission better and enhance our impact and reputation, we can take encouragement that others share our vision and confidence. Simply put, we are on a great trajectory, alongside our outstanding faculty and researchers; our dedicated staff; some of the country’s most accomplished coaches; and let us never forget why we all come together — to serve our ambitious and curious Spartan students."
2026 College of Engineering honorees
Endowed Professors
- Selin Aviyente
- James O. Fishbeck and Lee A. Morgan Professor in Engineering
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Lik-Chuan Lee
- Marvin L. VanDerPloeg Endowed Professor in Mechanical Engineering
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Richard Lunt
- Johansen-Crosby Endowed Professor in Chemical Engineering
- Department of Chemical Engineering and Material Science
- Erin Purcell
- Martin J. Vanderploeg Endowed Professor in the College of Engineering
- Department of Biomedical Engineering
- Arun Ross
- Anil K. and Nandita K. Jain Endowed Professor
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering
- Xiaobo Tan
- Richard M. Hong Endowed Chair in Electrical Engineering
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
MSU Research Foundation Distinguished Professors
- Wen Li
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Jeffrey Nanzer
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Red Cedar Distinguished Professors
- Annick Anctil
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Tamara Reid Bush
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Bora Cetin
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Jinxing Li
- Department of Biomedical Engineering
- Sijia Liu
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Read the full story courtesy of University Advancement.
MSU College of Engineering Media and Public Relations page