Arthur and Jean Boresi Scholarship Fund

Arthur Peter “Art” Boresi was a professor of civil and architectural engineering at the University of Wyoming. Before that, he was a professor of theoretical and applied mechanics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The child of Italian immigrants, Art grew up in Illinois, where he earned a bachelor’s in electrical engineering and a master’s and doctorate in materials engineering. His degree was interrupted by his service in the U.S. Army in an engineering battalion in the Philippines. His duties included teaching general engineering, mapping, bridge construction, and heavy equipment. Art and Clara Jean “Jean” Gordon were married in 1946, and they had three daughters.

After earning his doctorate in 1953, Art served as a professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for 26 years. He published foundational texts such as Engineering Mechanics—Statics and Dynamics (McGraw-Hill, 1959) and Elasticity in Engineering Mechanics (Prentice-Hall 1965), as well as many journal articles. After Art retired from UIUI, he joined the Civil and Architectural Engineering department at the University of Wyoming, where he taught for 13 years and served as head of the department.

Art and Jean were generous supporters of the University of Wyoming, establishing the Arthur and Jean Boresi Scholarship Fund for students in the College of Engineering and Applied Science Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering. They financially supported the fund and the department for almost 30 years.

Art passed away in 2021, while Jean passed away in 2012. Art will be remembered as a devoted husband and father and as a respected scholar and a gentleman, a giant in mechanics and a role model as well as a great mentor for young faculty members.