Dr. Prashant Kumta holds the Edward R. Weidlein Endowed Chair Professor with Tenure at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering and School of Dental Medicine and is a professor in the Departments of BioEngineering, Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, and Oral Biology. He was also the Engineering Director of the Center for Craniofacial Regeneration (CCR) and is the Founding Director of the Center for Complex Engineered Multi-Functional Materials (CCEMM), both at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Kumta is the recipient of the Research Initiation Award from the National Science Foundation in 1993.