Ian A. Waitz joined the ULRI Board of Trustees in 2025. He brings substantial technical scientific expertise to the Board.

Mr. Waitz currently serves as the vice president for research and Jerome C. Hunsaker Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at MIT. He also serves as MIT’s senior research officer, responsible for research strategic direction, administration, and policy, and oversees the MIT Lincoln Laboratory and more than a dozen interdisciplinary research laboratories and centers.

Mr. Waitz has served in numerous leadership roles while at MIT, including head of the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics and vice chancellor for undergraduate and graduate education. As dean of the School of Engineering, he launched the MIT-wide Institute for Data, Systems, and Society and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science.

Mr. Waitz earned his Ph.D. in Aeronautics from Caltech, his M.S. from George Washington University, and his B.S. from Penn State. He is also a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and has been recognized with multiple awards for teaching and research, including MIT’s MacVicar Fellowship.