Laurie E Locascio

Laurie E. Locascio, Ph.D., is the Vice President for Research at the University of Maryland, College Park and the University of Maryland, Baltimore. In this role, Dr. Locascio oversees the University of Maryland’s vibrant research and innovation enterprise at these two campuses, which garner a combined $1.1 billion in external research funding each year. Within Locascio’s purview are the development of large interdisciplinary research programs, technology commercialization, innovation and economic development efforts, and strategic partnerships with industry, federal, academic, and nonprofit collaborators. She is a professor in Maryland’s Fischell Department of Bioengineering, and professor (secondary) in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Prior to the University of Maryland, Dr. Locascio had a long fruitful career as a researcher, innovator, and scientific leader at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Her last role at NIST was Acting Principal Deputy Director and Associate Director for Laboratory Programs. In that position, she was responsible for leading the internal scientific research and laboratory programs across two campuses in Gaithersburg, MD and Boulder, CO. Locascio received a B.Sc. in chemistry from James Madison University, a M.Sc. in bioengineering from the University of Utah, and a Ph.D. in toxicology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore. As a biomedical researcher, she published more than 100 scientific papers and 11 patents.