Joel D Bumgardner, PhD

My Story

Dr. Joel D. Bumgardner obtained his BS Degree with Honors in Biology from Florida State University, and his BS in Materials Science, and MS and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering all from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dr. Bumgardner was a faculty member in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Mississippi State University (1994-2004) and professor and co-Director of academic programs in the Biomedical Engineering Department at The University of Memphis and in the University of Memphis-University of Tennessee Health Science Center-Memphis Joint Graduate Biomedical Engineering Program (2004-2019). He currently serves as Chair of the Biomedical Engineering Department at The University of Memphis (2019-present). His area of research is in the dental/craniofacial and orthopedic alloys and corrosion and in chitosan-based materials for implant coatings, bone tissue engineering, and drug delivery. He has over 105 journal articles, 17 book chapters, 6 patent disclosures (2 licensed for infection abatement therapies using chitosan materials), and 215+ presentations and invited lectures. He is a co-editor of a recent two-volume book series on chitosan-based materials. He has mentored over 60 students; 9 of which have received NSF and or Whitaker graduate fellowships, 4 Fulbright Fellowships, and more than 18 students accepted to medical, dental, or law school.

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Awards:

• 2012 Outstanding Instructor Award in the Herff College of Engineering University of Memphis,

• Outstanding Professor (2001 & 2002) Awards in the Bagley College of Engineering, Mississippi State University,

• University of Alabama Engineering School Alumni recognition award as one of the ‘40 Engineers Making a Difference’ 2011.

• Elected Fellow (2011) of American Institute of Medical & Biological Engineering,

• Elected Fellow (2016) Biomaterials Science & Engineering,

• JW Fulbright Scholar (1994), Umeå University, Umeå Sweden.

Leadership:

An active in several professional organizations such as the American Association for Dental Research, the Society for Biomaterials (SFB), and the American Institute of Medical & Biological Engineering (AIMBE). He has held numerous leadership positions in these organizations including

• Program Chair of the 2005 Society for Biomaterials Annual Meeting,

• President (2012-2013) of the Society for Biomaterials

• Chair of the AIMBE Bylaws committee (2011-2015)

• Chair of the AIMBE Council of Societies (2016-2018)

• Associate Editor of the Journal of Biomaterial Materials Research: Part B.

• He is also a regular reviewer for the NIH, NSF and DoD and many biomaterials related journals.