This generous bequest was created by Professor Emeritus Gifford H. Albright to provide critical financial support and encouragement for outstanding AE faculty starting their academic career and to encourage the exploration of innovative activities in teaching and research.  The program will involve a rotating professorship within the AE Department.

Gifford H. Albright graduated from Penn State in 1953 with a B.A.E. degree and received a S.M. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1955.  He joined the faculty of PSU-AE in 1958, and from 1963-1983 held the position of Department Head.  He was responsible for the development of a master plan for Penn State’s B.A.E. professional degree program.  An innovative instructor, Albright originated the teaching of computer applications in AE education and initiated the first course in “Integration of Building Systems.”  Albright’s ideas in pioneering computer uses, now used throughout the building industry, were showcased in a cover story of Engineering News Record (ENR) on July 18, 1968. Albright was named an Outstanding Engineering Alumnus by the College of Engineering in 1996.

On behalf of the Department of Architectural Engineering, we wish to sincerely thank Gifford Albright for his generosity and foresight in supporting the academic careers of promising young faculty members in the growing AE  program. His gift will have a lasting impact on the AE Department.