Honorary Member 2013

Jay Forrester (United States) – Honorary Member Citation

Professor Emeritus Jay Forrester directed the system dynamics program within the MIT Sloan School of Management until 1989. Earlier, Forrester pioneered in the development of digital computers, leading the development of Whirlwind, MIT’s first digital computer. He then headed a Lincoln Laboratory division designing computers for the SAGE air defense system. Forrester received the BSc degree in electrical engineering from the University of Nebraska in 1939, the MSc degree from MIT in 1945, and received honorary doctorates in subsequent years from nine universities in the United States and Europe. Jay Forrester is a member of the National Academy of Engineering. Among his notable honors are: Valdemar Poulsen Gold Medal, Danish Academy of Technical Sciences (1969); Medal of Honor, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (1972); National Inventors Hall of Fame (1979); James R Killian Faculty Achievement Award, MIT (1987); National Medal of Technology (1989). Prof. Forrester continues his interdisciplinary contriubutions as he forges into the dynamics of economic behavior while also pioneering a ‘systems’ framework for K-12 education. Therefore, the Omega Alpha Association Board of Directors is delighted and honored to welcome Professor Forrester to Honorary Membership in the International Honor Society for Systems Engineering.