University of Arizona, College of Engineering graduate Dylan Taylor is funding the Patrick R. Taylor Endowed Department Leadership Chair to honor his father, a renowned expert in metallurgy, materials science and thermal plasma technology.

Taylor and his wife, Gabrielle, are making a $1 million gift to create the Patrick R. Taylor Endowed Department Leadership Chair in Materials Science and Engineering. Endowed chairs help the university attract and retain distinguished faculty members, as the annual payout from the endowment provides its recipient with unrestricted funding for scientific pursuits.

"My dad has always been a great example of someone who really loves what he does," said Dylan Taylor, adding that the endowed chair was a perfect way to commemorate his father's lasting impact in the field and on his family. "He's been a source of inspiration to me my whole life."
He told his dad about the endowment as a Fathers' Day gift.

"MSE is the department I graduated from, so that's near and dear to my heart," said Dylan Taylor, an Honors College student who earned his bachelor's degree as a Tau Beta Pi in 1993. "The education was first class, and the overall experience was fantastic. I feel a deep sense of gratitude to the university."

The University of Arizona ranks in the top 4 percent of all U.S. universities in research and development expenditures, according to 2021 data from the National Science Foundation. MSE researchers are working in diverse areas including space mining, quantum science, additive manufacturing and artificial intelligence.

"This gift is remarkable for so many reasons," said University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins. "Whenever an alumnus chooses to give back, they not only affirm the value of a University of Arizona education, but they also leverage their post-graduation success to benefit the institution in perpetuity. Dylan Taylor has gone one step further by honoring his dad with an incredible Father's Day gift. I am inspired and grateful for this generosity."

Patrick Taylor has had an illustrious career in mining and materials engineering. He currently is the George S. Ansell Distinguished Professor of Chemical Metallurgy, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering and the director of the Kroll Institute for Extractive Metallurgy at the Colorado School of Mines. Previously, he was the Fred N. Peebles Professor and head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Tennessee, and professor of metallurgical engineering and head of the Department of Materials, Metallurgical, Mining and Geological Engineering at the University of Idaho.