Dr. Sylvia Wilson Thomas is Professor in Electrical Engineering, and leads the USF Advanced Membrane and Materials Bio and Integration Research (AMBIR) laboratory for biomedical, biological, and nano electronic device integration using advanced material systems for membrane technology. She previously served USF as Vice President for Research & Innovation, and President & CEO of the USF Research Foundation; and was formerly Assistant Dean of the College of Engineering at USF. She also formerly assisted in the success of companies including Bell Labs, Agere Systems, Lucent, Kimberly Clark Corporation, IBM, and Procter & Gamble. Dr. Thomas research and teaching endeavors focus on the investigation of bio (biomedical, biological) and nano electronic device integration using advanced material systems for nano membrane technology, energy harvesting, sustainable environments, drug delivery, and bio-applications to meet global technological challenges. With over 30 years of global experience in academia and industry, Dr. Thomas has authored or co-authored over 50 publications and six book/book chapters. She holds 13 patents/pending patents and has received over $4M in funding. Her involvement and constant dedication to STEM education, diversity, and professional development have led to her recognition in local and national news and publications, including Guide to Florida's High Tech Corridor magazine, "The Faces of Technology"; St. Petersburg Times, "Recruiter, Role Model, Engineer"; the United Nations-NGO Briefing on "Girls and Technology: New Educational Opportunities"; and Electronic Design 50th Anniversary Issue among others. Over the course of her distinguished career, she has been recognized with a number of prestigious awards including USF Undergraduate Teaching Award, Women in Leadership and Philanthropy Faculty Research Award, STEM Woman of the Year Award from Pinellas County Girls Inc., USF Graduate Faculty Mentor Award, McKnight Junior Faculty Fellow and more. Dr. Thomas holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, where she was a Patricia Roberts Harris Fellow. She received her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Howard University, as NSF Materials Research Center of Excellence Fellow and was a National Science Foundation (NSF) research engineer in Korea at Chonbuk National University during her doctoral program. Previously, as Vice President for Research & Innovation at the University of South Florida and President & CEO of the USF Research Foundation, Inc., Thomas was a member of USF's presidential and provostial cabinets, and directed, managed, and provided vision for USF's $735M+ research and innovation enterprise. Through USF's AAU (Association of American Universities) membership, Dr. Thomas also served as the AAU Senior Research Officer (SRO) for USF. She has contributed to USF's efforts for research and innovation, executive leadership, strategic planning and renewal, faculty success, consolidation, cultural transformation and community engagement, institutional partnerships (national and international), and student recruitment, workforce development, and research/high impact practice experiences. She has also fostered and been engaged in collaborations and engineering education efforts in Italy, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Portugal, South Korea, Mexico, Panama, and South Africa. Dr. Thomas also serves as the president of the IEEE's Engineering in Medicine and Biology Florida West Coast Section; Secretary/Treasurer of the Florida Education Fund; former advisor for the Society of Women Engineers, Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and National Society of Black Engineers; and an inaugural member of the Board of Directors for Black Girls Code.