MAE alumni Juan Santiago and Scott Smith were inducted into the National Academy of Engineering – one of the highest professional accolades an engineer can receive – for their substantial contributions to academia, industry, and the world.
Juan Santiago
Juan G. Santiago, Ph.D., is the Charles Lee Powell Foundation professor and the vice chair of the mechanical engineering department at Stanford University. The son of hardworking Cuban immigrants, Santiago juggled several jobs while working through his undergraduate studies at UF. Despite financial and personal difficulties, Santiago emerged at the top of his class. He continued his studies at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in supersonic air flow, earning his Ph.D. in 1995. After a brief stint in the industry at The Aerospace Corporation, Santiago returned to the University of Illinois to work on microfluidic chips for DNA analysis. In 1998 he joined Stanford faculty and has since distinguished himself as a leading expert on microfluidic dynamics and applied biophysics with 60 patents issued, 27 of which are currently licensed.
Some of his notable research contributions are his collaboration on CRISPR-based “lab-on-a-chip” COVID-19 diagnostic, as well as a microfluidic channel for purification of nucleic acids via isotachophoresis. Santiago was named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors – the highest distinction of the NAI – just four years prior. He was also recognized with the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) as well as the Outstanding Alumnus Award from UF.
Scott Smith
Kevin “Scott” Smith, Ph.D., is the section head of the Manufacturing Science Division at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). After earning his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at Tennessee Tech, Smith came to UF for his graduate studies under the guidance of Dr. George “Jiri” Tlusty, earning his Ph.D. in 1987. In fact, he was the first selected speaker for the Tlusty distinguished lecture series, established in honor of Smith’s advisor and close collaborator. Together they established the Machine Tool Research Center at UF, the predecessor to the Center for Manufacturing Innovation. Smith served as the associate director until 1997. Afterwards, Smith served as professor and chair of the Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Science department at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Charlotte until 2019, when he joined ORNL.
During his time at UNC Charlotte, Smith was recruited to the US Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office, and inter-agency organization dedicated to creating the US Manufacturing Innovation Institutes – also known as Manufacturing USA. He was instrumental in the establishment of America’s Cutting Edge (ACE), a national machine tool research and development initiative, and assembled the multimillion dollar Intelligent Machine Tool Group at ORNL. In 2023, Smith was named a Corporate Fellow of ORNL – the highest honor for research staff.