Alan Zehnder joined the faculty at Cornell University in 1988. Since then he has served in a number of leadership roles including Chair of the Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, and Director of the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. He teaches applied mechanics and his research topics focus on fracture, experimental mechanics and nonlinear dynamics of nanomechanical oscillators. He was awarded the 1988 Rudolf Kingslake Medal and Prize for his Optical Engineering paper on optical methods in dynamic-fracture experimentation.