Distinguished Professor Jiun-Shyan Chen of Structural Engineering was awarded the Raymond D. Mindlin Medal by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Engineering Mechanics Institute. This honor recognizes his seminal contributions to the development of advanced finite element and meshfree methods and their applications to a wide range of applied mechanics problems, including solids and structures under extreme conditions.

Professor J.S. Chen completed his undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering at the National Central University in Taiwan, before earning his M.S. in Civil Engineering and his Ph.D. in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics from Northwestern University. In 2013, he joined UC San Diego, where he made a significant impact on the engineering community. He became the William Prager Chair Professor and a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Structural Engineering, as well as a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. Chen also founded and served as the Director of the Center for Extreme Events Research from 2014-2022.