Dr. Heidebrecht is an earthquake engineer of international repute. He has distinguished himself in research on structural response to seismic loading and in his contributions to the development of seismic loading provisions of the National Building Code of Canada.  At McMaster, he served as Dean of Engineering (1981-1989) and Provost and Vice-President Academic (1989-1994).   He was the founding Director of the McMaster-Mohawk Bachelor of Technology Partnership (2006-2009) and also served as the Director of the Walter G. Booth School of Engineering Practice (2014-2016).  He is currently Professor Emeritus, Department of Civil Engineering at McMaster.