Daniel Berg

Brief Biography

Daniel Berg is an inaugural Fellow of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) and former president of Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute. Berg originally studied physics and chemistry at the City College of New York before receiving master's and doctoral degrees in physical chemistry from Yale University in 1951 and 1953, respectively. After earning his PhD, he accepted a position with the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, where he remained for nearly a quarter of a century. Berg eventually became the technical director of the corporation after rising through the managerial ranks. 

Berg returned to academia upon joining Carnegie Mellon University where he eventually served as Dean of the Mellon College of Science and, later, Provost. There, he helped established the Robotics Institute. Berg left Carnegie in 1983 to become Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost of Rensselaer. He was named Acting President the following year and was appointed President of the university on March 2, 1985. He returned to teaching after two years as a Professor of Science and Technology. Berg was additionally the American editor for the International Journal of Service Systems and Technology. Throughout his later career, Berg has worked closely with James M. Tien, both having left RPI for the University of Miami around the same time. 

In addition to being an INFORMS Fellow, Berg is an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering and a Life Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He was awarded the National Academy of Engineering Service Award in 2003. Berg’s dedicated career and influence as an educator was named the Engineering Management Educator of the Year in 2007 by the IEEE Engineering Management Society. 

Other Biographies

Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute Archives and Special Collections. Rensselaer President Daniel Berg. Accessed April 28, 2015. (link) 

Wikipedia Entry for Daniel Berg

Daniel Berg (2017) Interview by Dick Larson, October 23, 2017.  Houston, TX.

Daniel Berg Interview Transcript

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