G. Day Ding Papers, 1921-81 | University of Illinois Archives

Gar Day Ding (1929-2005) was professor of architecture (1973-80); head of the Department of Architecutre (1973-80); and research professor emeritus (1981-84) at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). He had a distinguished 50-year career as a professor of architecture and civil engineering.

Ding was born in Fah-Yuen Province, China, on November 14, 1929. He earned a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Auckland, New Zealand (1953), a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand (1959), and a Master of Engineering Science from the University of New South Wales, Australia (1961). He held many teaching positions throughout his long career, including at the University of Sydney (1959â??66), the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (1966â??72), the University of Cincinnati and Miami University (1972�­â??73), the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (1973â??84), California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California (1984â??93), and the Savannah College of Art and Design (1999â??2004). Ding was coauthor of Models in Architecture (Architectural Science), a 1968 textbook series. And he served in many professional engineering and architecture societies, including the Central Illinois Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and as chair of the Task Committee of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute Reconnaissance Study of the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake and the Advisory Task Panel.

Ding was married to Maisie Ding and had four children: David, Judy, Walter, and Derek. He died in Midlothian, Virginia, on February 24, 2005.

Source:

"Gar Day Ding" (obituary), Savannah Morning News (savannahnow.com), March 1, 2005,  accessed April 16, 2020, https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/savannah/obituary.aspx?n=gar-day-ding&pid=3228679.