Graham

Samuel Graham, Jr., is dean of the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland (UMD). He became dean of the Clark School in October 2021.Graham holds an appointment as Nariman Farvardin Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. His research centers on the development of electronics made from wide bandgap semiconductors for a range of applications in communications, power electronics, and neuromorphic computing. His work has earned several awards including the 2022 American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Allan Kraus Thermal Management Medal for “expertise in the thermal engineering of wide bandgap semiconductor devices and interfaces, including heterogeneous integration methods for thermal management.” 

Graham currently chairs the Department of Commerce Emerging Technology Technical Advising Committee, and serves on three other federal advisory boards: the Department of the Navy Science and Technology Board; National Science Foundation Engineering Directorate Advisory Committee; and National Nuclear Security Administration’s Advisory Committee for Nuclear Security. He also serves on the Engineering Science Research Foundation Advisory Board of Sandia National Laboratories and the Visiting Committee for the Department of Mechanical Engineering at MIT. In January 2023, Graham was chosen as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and in 2014 was chosen as a fellow of the ASME. Graham is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and previously received the Society of Manufacturing Engineers International M. Eugene Merchant Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer Award. 

Prior to joining UMD, Graham was Eugene C. Gwaltney, Jr. Chair of the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Senior Member of Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratory. He has served on the Defense Science Study Group and Air Force Scientific Advisory Board, and was the recipient of a 2005 National Science Foundation CAREER Award. 

Graham earned his B.S. from Florida State University and his M.S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Georgia Tech.