William Baker

William F. Baker (MS 80), P.E., S.E., Structural Engineering Partner for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP in Chicago, is the winner of numerous awards for structural innovation. An expert in the engineering of tall buildings and long-span roof structures, Baker is best known for developing the “buttressed core” structural system for Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest manmade structure.Baker holds a master of science in civil engineering (1980) from CEE at Illinois and a bachelor of science in civil engineering (1975) from the University of Missouri. His numerous professional honors include an American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Outstanding Projects and Leaders (OPAL) Lifetime Award for Design (2011), an Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) Gold Medal (2010) and the Fritz Leonhardt Preis (2009). He is a Fellow of ASCE and IStructE and a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He is a Distinguished Alumnus (2009) of CEE at Illinois and of the U of I College of Engineering (2011).

An active supporter of CEE at Illinois, Baker established the Baker Structural Engineering Fund to support a faculty scholar in the department. He is a frequent lecturer on campus, participates in research, and has served on doctoral thesis committees. During his appointment, Baker will continue those activities, he said, as well as the topology optimization research he is currently conducting with the department’s TopOpt research group.