Vijay Kumar, the Nemirovsky Family Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, has been elected to the American Philosophical Society. Founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1743 for the purpose of “promoting useful knowledge,” the society is the oldest learned society in the United States, continuing its founder’s spirit of inquiry by providing a forum for the free exchange of ideas.

Dr. Kumar joined the Penn Engineering faculty in 1987 and has appointments in mechanical engineering and applied mechanics, computer and information science, and electrical and systems engineering. He has served as Engineering’s deputy dean for education, deputy dean for research, chair of mechanical engineering and applied mechanics and director of the General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Laboratory.

During a scholarly leave 2012–2014, Dr. Kumar served in the White House as assistant director for robotics and cyber physical systems in the Office of Science and Technology Policy. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers.