Dr. Joseph J. Rencis was born and raised in Northwestern New Jersey. He attended Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE), where he received A.A.S. and B.S. degrees in Architectural and Building Construction Engineering Technology. From there, Dr. Rencis went on to earn his M.S. from Northwestern University and Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve University in Civil Engineering. From 1985 to 2004 he served as Assistant, Associate, and Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). At WPI, he was Director of Engineering Mechanics from 1995 to 2004. From 2004 to 2010 he was Department Head and the inaugural holder of the Twenty-first Century Leadership Chair in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. At Arkansas, Dr. Rencis was also a Professor of Mechanical Engineering. He is an inaugural fellow of the Southeastern Conference Academic Consortium Leadership Development Program. From 2011 to 2017 he served as Professor of Mechanical Engineering, the Dean of Engineering, and the inaugural holder of the Clay N. Hixson Chair for Engineering Leadership at Tennessee Tech University. Since 2017 he has served as Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Dean of Engineering at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
In the course of his career, Dr. Rencis’ principal research interests have been in boundary elements, finite elements, mechanics of materials, multiscale modeling, and engineering education. His research has been supported by National Science Foundation and industry. Dr. Rencis has published over thirty five journal articles and over one hundred and ten conference articles. He is an associate editor of the International Series on Advances in Boundary Elements and Journal of Online Engineering Education. Dr. Rencis also serves on the editorial board of Engineering Analysis with Boundary Elements, The Open Mechanics Journal, and International Scholarly Research Notices. He is a fellow of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), and Wessex Institute of Great Britain. Rencis is the recipient of the ASEE New England Section Outstanding Teaching Award and ASEE Mechanics Division Archie Higdon Distinguished Educator Award. He is a registered professional engineer in Massachusetts.
Dr. Rencis is active in various professional organizations at the local and national levels. Rencis has served as ASEE President-Elect, President, and Immediate Past President from 2014-17 and also served on the ASEE Board of Directors. He was a member of the ASEE Engineering Deans Council Public Policy Committee and served on Board of Directors for Advancement Scientific and Engineering Technology of Tennessee. Rencis was also the Chair and Vice Chair of the ASME Mechanical Engineering Department Heads Committee and a member of the ASME Center for Education Board of Directors. Other past positions include Chair ASEE Professional Interest Council III, Chair ASEE Mechanical Engineering Division, Chair ASEE Mechanics Division, and member ASME National Nominating Committee. Dr. Rencis has been a ABET program evaluator and has conducted reviews of new M.S. and Ph.D. programs. He has served on the advisory boards of United Arab Emirates University, John Brown University (past President), and three high schools. Dr. Rencis received the ASEE New England Section Outstanding Leader Award, ASEE Mechanics Division James L. Meriam Service Award, and ASEE Midwest Section Outstanding Service Award. He is listed in several Who’s Who publications.