Chancellor James R. Martin II - Biography

James R. Martin II, Ph.D., was elected as the 13th chancellor of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University on June 21, 2024, by a vote of the University of North Carolina System Board of Governors, following his nomination by UNC System President Peter Hans.

Martin previously served as vice chancellor for STEM Research and Innovation at the University of Pittsburgh, where he drove transformative initiatives ranging from developing the university's core STEM landscape to leading research strategy and development for Pitt's four regional campuses around Pennsylvania.

Focused on enhancing Pitt’s $1.3 billion research portfolio and expanding STEM access, he led collaborations that foster research growth, built innovation ecosystems and connected rural areas to city centers via urban-rural research bridges. As a senior advisor and thought leader, he influenced national action from the White House to major funding agencies to think tanks. He was a board member for Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority and a foundational advisor for Neighborhood 91 at Pittsburgh International Airport.

Before the vice chancellor role, Martin served the University of Pittsburgh as the U.S. Steel Dean of Engineering. Under his leadership, Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering achieved unprecedented milestones, logging record research expenditures, doctoral and first-year student enrollment and diversity in faculty and student representation. He also led the Swanson School to best-ever retention and graduation rates and annual giving participation rates, as well as ushering in novel industry and government partnerships, including relationships with national labs. He played a pivotal role in the university's COVID-19 response, co-chairing the central task force with the provost.

Prior to Pittsburgh, Martin was Clemson University’s Bob Benmosche Professor and Chair of the Glenn Department of Civil Engineering. In that role, he led development of new curricula and degree programs, fostered record research growth and produced innovative industry partnerships. He chaired the strategic plan for the engineering college, successfully advocated for expansion of regional innovation campuses and served as founding director of the Risk Engineering and Systems Analytics Institute, a pioneering collaboration between academia and industry.

Before Clemson, Martin served more than two decades at Virginia Tech as a professor of civil engineering and six years as a university center director. He built an international reputation for his work in geotechnical earthquake and risk engineering, research that had a significant impact on national building codes. Leading global field teams following major earthquakes, Martin contributed to field studies in Turkey, Japan and throughout the United States while serving as director of the Disaster Risk Management Institute at Virginia Tech. He has provided international engineering consulting for nearly 100 firms and government agencies on major infrastructure projects.

Martin earned a B.S. in civil engineering from The Citadel. His completed M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in civil engineering at Virginia Tech. He has received numerous national, state, and university awards for research, teaching, scholarship, and service, including the American Society of Civil Engineer’s Norman Medal, the highest honor for published work in his field.

He was inducted into Virginia Tech's Civil Engineering Department's Academy of Distinguished Alumni in 2015. His dedication to broadening participation, fostering innovative collaborations, and regional engagement continues to shape STEM education, research, and innovation.

 

 

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NC A&T Board of Trustees

 

The University of North Carolina

 

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University

Office of the Chancellor
1601 E. Market St.
Dowdy Building, Suite 418
Greensboro, NC 27411

Phone 336-334-7940
Fax 336-334-7082
chancellor@ncat.edu