Meet Associate Dean Adam Smith: Building connections that drive innovation

Adam Smith is the Bagley College of Engineering's associate dean for research and engagement. (Photo by Kristen Polk)

By Camille Carskadon

For Adam Smith, engineering has always been about solving problems, but never alone.

As the Bagley College of Engineering’s new associate dean for research and engagement, he brings more than two decades of experience as a researcher, faculty member and academic leader. Raised in and around Memphis, Tennessee and north Mississippi, his career has taken him from the University of Mississippi to the University of Southern Mississippi and Virginia Tech before returning to the University of Mississippi, where he spent 14 years as a faculty member, department chair and associate dean before joining Mississippi State University.

Now, he’s excited to help shape the future of research at Bagley by creating connections between faculty, students, industry and communities.

“I define my success through the success of those that I can empower,” he said.

That philosophy has guided him throughout his career. He credits mentors with helping him grow from an undergraduate engineering student into a researcher and administrator, and he sees mentoring the next generation of faculty as one of the most rewarding aspects of his new role.

“I know I wouldn’t have been successful without those mentors,” he said. “I’ve always been excited to pay that forward.”

The position itself was a natural fit. Through statewide research initiatives, he had already worked closely with MSU faculty and MSU’s Office of Research and Economic Development. Those collaborations introduced him to the university’s culture of teamwork and to Dean David Ford’s vision of pairing research excellence with meaningful industry engagement.

His new role combines research development with industry partnerships, creating opportunities not only to strengthen research funding but also to enhance student experiences and workforce connections.

“I like that it’s not just focused on research,” he said. “It also ties into education and finding ways to connect our students to industry while helping industry engage with our educational mission.”

That collaborative mindset extends beyond campus. He believes today’s biggest challenges require multidisciplinary teams and strong partnerships with industry to ensure research addresses real-world needs.

“The big societal problems are inherently multidisciplinary,” he said. “By bringing together expertise from across departments and working alongside industry partners, we can pursue larger opportunities that make a real impact.”

His immediate priorities include helping faculty submit competitive research proposals, building collaborative research teams and expanding partnerships that strengthen Mississippi’s research ecosystem.

Communication, he said, is just as important as discovery.

“If we can explain how the research happening in our labs improves people’s lives, that’s a powerful story,” he said.

Outside the office, life revolves around family. He and his wife, Deborah, have three daughters whose schedules keep them traveling for soccer, mountain biking, cheerleading and cross-country meets. A longtime mountain biker himself, he now coaches with the Mississippi National Interscholastic Cycling Association, sharing the sport with his children and other young riders.

Whether he’s mentoring faculty, building research collaborations or coaching on the trails, his approach remains the same: invest in people, build strong teams and create opportunities for others to succeed.

“It’s about helping people answer important questions,” he said. “I may not be in the lab every day anymore, but I get to support the people who are, and that’s incredibly rewarding.”