Professor Derek Paley Wins 2025 Clark School Research Award

Professor Derek Paley Wins 2025 Clark School Research Award

Professor Derek Paley Wins 2025 Clark School Research Award


Dr. Derek Paley, professor of aerospace engineering and director of the Maryland Robotics Center, has been named the 2025 recipient of the Senior Faculty Outstanding Research Award by the A. James Clark School of Engineering.

This prestigious award recognizes senior faculty whose research contributions have significantly advanced the university’s mission and elevated the reputation of the Clark School. Dr. Paley was recognized for his exemplary leadership in establishing a successful robotics laboratory, his dedication to mentoring emerging scholars, and his central role in launching the ARTIAMAS cooperative agreement with the Army Research Lab.

As director of the Maryland Robotics Center, Dr. Paley has helped shape the university’s interdisciplinary robotics research ecosystem, fostering collaborations across engineering, computer science, and the sciences. His research focuses on autonomous systems, control theory, and distributed sensing—areas that directly support national priorities in defense, transportation, and environmental monitoring.

Dr. Paley also holds the Willis H. Young Jr. Professorship in Aerospace Engineering and is an Associate Fellow of AIAA and a Senior Member of IEEE. His work has been continuously supported by major federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, the National Science Foundation, and NASA.

The Clark School will formally recognize Dr. Paley’s contributions at the 2024 Spring Faculty and Staff Awards Ceremony on May 14 in Clark Hall’s Zupnik Forum.

Related Articles:
Stroka Appointed Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies and Director of Undergraduate Programs
UMD Students Sweep 2025 VFS Student Design Competition
Logan Selph Awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Akin Receives 2025 ICES Award for Technical Excellence
Gebhardt Named 2025-26 MWC ARCS Scholar
Rudolph Awarded Women in Defense Scholarship
Edward Eisenstein Elected President of American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
ISR Alumnus Earns Prestigious NSF CAREER Award
Seven UMD Students Receive 2025 Vertical Flight Foundation Scholarships
BIOE Announces Spring 2025 Instructional Impact Awards

April 23, 2025


Prev   Next

Current Headlines

Erika Moore Named to Science News 2025 “Scientists to Watch” List for Fibroid Research

UMD Distinguished University Professor highlights US-France Partnership in France Science Summit

AI Tool Reveals Gaps in Ancestry Reporting Across Biomedical Research

UMD Student Bridging Research Innovation and Education Advocacy

UMD Researchers Develop New Performance Metric to Optimize Elastocaloric Cooling Systems

UMD Team Contends in Semifinals of XPRIZE Competition to End Destructive Wildfires

With AI’s Help, Doctors Could One Day Press ‘Print’ in the Operating Room

Das Elected APS Fellow

News Resources

Return to Newsroom

Search News

Archived News

Events Resources

Events Calendar