Dr. Robert J. Birgeneau ’59

Dr. Robert J. Birgeneau is an internationally distinguished physicist, a leader in higher education, and is well known for his commitment to diversity and equity in the academic community. He was the ninth chancellor of the University of California, Berkeley, where he strengthened its standing as one of the top universities in the world. Under his leadership, Berkeley became the first university in the United States to offer comprehensive financial aid to undocumented students and the first public university to provide significant financial aid to middle-class students.

A Toronto native, Birgeneau received his BSc in mathematics from the University of Toronto in 1963 and his PhD in physics from Yale University in 1966. He served on the faculty of Yale for one year, spent one year at Oxford University, and was a member of the technical staff at Bell Laboratories from 1968 to 1975. He joined the physics faculty at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1975, became chair of the Physics Department in 1988, and dean of science in 1991.

In 2000, Birgeneau became the 14th president of the University of Toronto, where he served for four years. He is a fellow of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society of London, the American Philosophical Society, and other scholarly societies.

His awards include a special Founders Award from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the 2008 Carnegie Corporation Academic Leadership Award as a ‘Champion of Excellence and Equity in Education,’ and the Shinnyo-en Foundation’s 2009 Pathfinders to Peace Prize for his contributions to bringing about a more peaceful world.

At Berkeley, Birgeneau holds the Arnold and Barbara Silverman Distinguished Chair in the Departments of Physics, Materials Science and Engineering, and Public Policy. He and his wife, Mary Catherine, have four grown children, and nine grandchildren.