Joseph W. Goodman held the William Ayer Chair in Electrical Engineering at Stanford, and also served in several administrative posts, including Chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering, and Senior Associate Dean of Engineering for Faculty Affairs. He is now the William Ayer Professor Emeritus. His work has been recognized by a variety of awards and honors, including the F.E. Terman Award of the American Society for Engineering Education, the Dennis Gabor Award of the International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE), the Max Born Award, the Esther Beller Hoffman Award, the Ives Medal from the Optical Society of America, and the Education Medal of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and has served as president of the Optical Society of America and the International Commission for Optics.