Dr. Bender is Professor of Civil Engineering and Director of the Composite Materials & Engineering Center at Washington State University and Affiliate Professor at the University of Idaho. Dr. Bender’s research is aimed at development and characterization of building materials that are sustainable and energy efficient. He is currently researching phase change materials as a way to increase the thermal storage capacity of building envelopes. His fundamental work on modeling spatial variability of mechanical properties of wood provided the analytical basis for evaluating the reliability of glued-laminated timbers and wood trusses. He developed design methods for residential decks and post-frame timber structures that have impacted structural engineering practices and been adopted by building codes. Dr. Bender is active in development of design and test standards for wood-based materials, continuing education courses to design professionals and code officials, and he is a technical advisor to several companies and industry trade associations. Dr. Bender has authored over 130 technical papers and proceedings, and received six national-level journal article awards.