Srebric Named Associate Dean for Research

Jelena Srebric, Margaret G. and Frederick H. Kohloss Chair Professor in Mechanical Engineering, has been appointed associate dean for research in the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland (UMD). She succeeds Robert M. Briber, who announced his retirement earlier this year.

In this role, Srebric will support current and future endeavors at Maryland Engineering, which in 2024 ranked #10 among graduate engineering programs at public U.S. universities.

"Dr. Srebric is an innovative and experienced researcher, a trusted member of the school and university community, and a widely respected practitioner in our field," Maryland Engineering’s Dean Samuel Graham, Jr. said in a statement.

An internationally recognized expert on multi-scale modeling of the built infrastructure and its effects on occupant comfort and respiratory health, she is Director of UMD’s Center for Sustainability in the Built Environment (City@UMD), which has a mission of revolutionizing physical infrastructure systems in urban environments. Through the center, she manages and directly supervises research activities for approximately $1.2 million annually in externally funded projects.

Srebric served as interim associate dean for research during the COVID-19 pandemic, working to help sustain research activities at the Clark School during a time of immense challenges. During the same period, she conducted studies addressing critical issues arising from the pandemic, including airborne infection risk scenarios in airplanes, buses, and classrooms, as well as ways to reduce infection risks for singers and musicians during live performances. Her work related to COVID-19 has been featured in numerous national media outlets from The New York Times to the Today Show.

Harry Dankowicz, chair of the UMD Department of Mechanical Engineering, lauded Srebric as a visionary who combines "deep expertise in her field with an understanding of wider societal and global impacts."

More broadly, Srebric’s work has brought her numerous accolades over the years. In 2013, she was elected an international member of the Serbian National Academy of Engineering. In spring 2016, she was an invited participant at workshops organized by the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering, both aimed at charting new and novel directions for research. She became an Elected Fellow of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate in 2018 and the International Building Performance and Simulation Association in 2019.

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has recognized Srebric’s work with two research and four paper awards. The International Academy of Indoor Air Sciences awarded her the Yaglou Award in 2005 for her work on indoor air quality, and most recently, the University of Maryland Board of Regents awarded her their top honors with a 2020 University System of Maryland Board of Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Innovation.

"Dr. Srebric will be a champion for the innovations our students, faculty, and staff create, and she will help their work develop from bench research into scalable solutions for our society’s greatest challenges," Graham said.

Published September 15, 2024