Jason R. Kerrigan

Jason R. Kerrigan serves as Commonwealth Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Courtesy Professor in Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Virginia's School of Engineering and Applied Science. He directs the Center for Applied Biomechanics (CAB), the world's largest injury biomechanics research facility with over 50 personnel and $6M annual funding operating from a dedicated 30,000 sqft laboratory complex.

His educational background includes:

• B.S. in Integrated Science and Technology from James Madison University
• M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from the University of Virginia

Dr. Kerrigan's research spans injury biomechanics with emphasis on automobile safety, traffic injury prevention, athlete injury/performance, and medical device biomechanics. His work integrates field data analysis, computational modeling, multiscale tissue characterization, and impact experiments across diverse domains including occupant protection for automated vehicles, restraint design for obese/female occupants, lumbar spine/pelvis injury tolerance, pedestrian safety, and cartilage repair. The 15 most recent publications reveal strong focus on sex-specific injury risk functions, reclined seating biomechanics, obese occupant safety, and advanced computational modeling techniques.

His scientific recognition includes:

• UVA Research Achievement Award (2023)
• Copenhaver Associate Professorship (2023-2026)
• SAE Forest McFarland Award (2017)
• IRCOBI Young Researcher Award (2008)

As CAB Director, Kerrigan manages substantial research funding from global industry, government, and academic partners supporting projects like Toyota collaborative safety initiatives and US DOT roadway safety research. His teaching portfolio includes graduate Continuum Mechanics, Mechanical Vibrations at multiple levels, and undergraduate Strength of Materials. He actively serves on the UVa Faculty Senate and SEAS Faculty Council while leading CAB's comprehensive research infrastructure encompassing impact testing, tissue characterization, high-speed imaging, and 3D motion capture capabilities.