George Leventis (’85, M.S., Civil Engineering) has been elected by the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) to its Class of 2026. He is among nine newly elected members that have an affiliation with The Grainger College of Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Election to the National Academy of Engineering is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. Academy membership honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to engineering research, practice, or education. Members are also recognized for pioneering new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing and implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.
The NAE selected Leventis for his work in geotechnical engineering, deep foundations, seismic risk assessment and mitigation, and construction of complex civil works. He joins a long tradition of CEE alumni and faculty that have been elected to the NAE.
Leventis serves as managing principal and executive vice president, Langan Engineering and managing director, Langan International LLC, and spearheaded opening offices in the Middle East and London. Between 1998 and 2001, Leventis served as Director General of the Organizing Committee for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. He has over 30 years of land development engineering experience on waterfront, residential, commercial and supertall buildings; and has been Technical Advisor on large P3 concessions including: Rion-Antirion Link, Greece; Chacao Channel Bridge, Chile; Kastelli Airport, Crete and Olympia Odos Motorway, Greece. Currently, he is Full Adjunct Professor at Columbia University teaching a graduate course on deep foundations for supertall buildings. He is also Regional Director of ACEC, ASCE Fellow, member of The Moles, member of Board of Directors of New York Building Congress, and member of Advisory Board of Columbia University CE department and of Stevens Institute of Technology School of Business.
In 2018, Leventis received the CEEAA Distinguished Alumni Award, honoring his contributions to advancing the engineering, architectural, construction and development profession on projects worldwide through thoughtful, creative, practical and innovative geotechnical design.
Leventis has also received numerous ACEC State and National project awards, the 2005 ASCE Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement OPAL and 2007 DFI Outstanding Project Award for Rion-Antirion Bridge, and has been named a 2017 ENR Newsmaker for his Greek Motorway work.
NAE members are among the world’s most accomplished engineers from business, academia, and government. Founded in 1964, the NAE provides independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation, offering leadership and insights to address complex challenges. Members are elected by their peers; the ballot for the Class of 2026 was finalized in December, and the final vote took place in January. Individuals elected to the Class of 2026 will be formally inducted during the NAE Annual Meeting in the fall. A list of the newly elected members and international members follows, along with their primary affiliations at the time of election and brief statements describing their principal engineering accomplishments.