For more than 245 years, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences has been honoring excellence and providing service to the nation and the world. Through independent, nonpartisan study, its ranks of distinguished “scholar-patriots” have brought the arts and sciences into constructive interplay with the leaders of both the public and private sectors. The academy was founded during the American Revolution by John Adams, James Bowdoin, John Hancock, and other leaders who contributed prominently to the establishment of the new nation, its government, and its Constitution. Its purpose was to provide a forum for a select group of scholars, members of the learned professions, and government and business leaders to work together on behalf of the democratic interests of the republic.
Year Faculty name Related stories 2025 Donald L. Brenneis Anthropologist Donald L. Brenneis elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2024 Patricia Zavella, Lise Getoor, and Karen Tei Yamashita Three UC Santa Cruz faculty members elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2023 Beth Shapiro Biologist Beth Shapiro elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2022 Sandra Chung Linguist Sandra Chung elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2021 Angela Davis, James Estes, and Barbara Rogoff Three UCSC professors elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2020 Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz Astronomer Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2019 Natalie Batalha Astronomer Natalie Batalha elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2018 Marc Mangel Mathematical biologist Marc Mangel elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2015 Gail Hershatter UC Santa Cruz history professor elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2012 Peter Young Physicist Peter Young elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2011 Thomas Banks, James Clifford, and James Zachos UCSC professors elected to AAAS 2010 Michael Dine, Gary Glatzmaier, Susan Strome, and John Thompson Four UCSC professors elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2008 Thorne Lay Seismologist Thorne Lay elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences 2006 David Haussler Three UCSC professors elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2002 Douglas Lin and Claire Max Two UC Santa Cruz astronomers elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2001 Stanford Woosley Stanford Woosley elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 1999 Harry Noller 1994 Joseph Miller UCSC appoints Joseph Miller as Vice Provost for Silicon Valley Initiatives (mentions membership)1992 Elliot Aronson UCSC Professor Emeritus Elliot Aronson receives lifetime achievement award from the Association for Psychological Science (mentions membership)1989 Sandra Faber Astronomer Sandra Faber honored in White House ceremony (mentions membership)Former faculty members 2005 M.R.C. Greenwood Greenwood and Soulé elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2003 Geoffrey Pullum Linguistics professor elected to American Academy of Arts & Science 1999 Marcia McNutt 1994 Steven Feld 1985 Frederic Jameson In memoriam 1974 Frank Drake Pioneering radio astronomer Frank Drake dies at 92 2006 Harry Berger, Harold Widom Three UCSC professors elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences 2005 Michael Soulé Michael Soulé, father of conservation biology, dies at 84 1991 Hayden White Influential historian Hayden White dies at 89 1974 Robert Kraft Robert P. Kraft, eminent astronomer and former director of UC Observatories, dies at age 87 1973 Harry Beevers Eminent plant physiologist dies at 80 1970 George Herbig 1969 Robert Edgar In Memoriam: Robert S. Edgar (1930–2016) 1968 Donald Osterbrock Donald Osterbrock, eminent astronomer and former director of Lick Observatory, dies at age 82 1966 Tibor Scitovsky 1965 Robert Sinsheimer Pioneering biologist Robert L. Sinsheimer dies at age 97 1961 Richard Musgrave Richard Musgrave, renowned pioneer of public finance, dies at 96 1959 Joseph Bunnett In Memoriam: Joseph Bunnett 1954 Albert Whitford Albert Whitford, eminent astronomer and former director of Lick Observatory, dies at 96