Office of the President

David E. Daniel is the fourth president of The University of Texas at Dallas.

He received his bachelor's, master's, and Ph.D. degrees in engineering from The University of Texas at Austin, and served on the faculty at UT Austin from 1980 to 1996. In 1996, he moved to the University of Illinois, finishing his service there as Dean of Engineering before being appointed UT Dallas' president in 2005.

Dr. Daniel’s professional work has been recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers, which awarded him its highest honor for papers published in its journals (the Norman Medal) and on two separate occasions awarded him its second highest honor, the Croes Medal. In 2000, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, the nation’s most prestigious organization recognizing engineering achievement.

In 2005 through 2008, Daniel served as Chair of the External Review Panel of the American Society of Civil Engineers, which reviewed the facts surrounding the performance of New Orleans’ levees during Hurricane Katrina. In 2009 Daniel is serving as President of The Academy of Medicine, Engineering, and Science of Texas (TAMEST), which is an organization comprised of all Texas residents who have won Nobel Prizes or been elected to one of the three National Academies. Daniel serves on the Sandia Corporation Board of Directors, which oversees management of Sandia National Laboratory. He also serves on the Boards of numerous Dallas-area organizations, including the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce.

During his presidency at UT Dallas, the University has doubled its research expenditures, initiated or completed $300 million of construction for new buildings, added 17 new degree programs, raised $100 million in private funds, and won two national collegiate championships in chess.

He has advocated widely for UT Dallas to become one of the nation's top research universities, focusing on hiring world-class faculty members, attracting top students, delivering top-quality education, and partnering with the community in research, education, outreach, the arts, and technology commercialization.