ALICE E. SMITH is the Joe W. Forehand, Jr. Distinguished Professor of the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department at Auburn University, where she served as Department Chair from 1999 to 2011. She also has a joint appointment with the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering.

Previously, she was on the faculty of the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh from 1991-99, which she joined after industrial experience with Southwestern Bell Corporation. Dr. Smith has degrees from Rice University (BSCE), Saint Louis University (MBA), and the Missouri University of Science and Technology (PhD), along with a recent BA in Spanish from Auburn University. She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) in 2025.

Dr. Smith’s research focus is analysis, modeling, and optimization of complex systems with emphasis on computation inspired by natural systems integrated with traditional operations research and statistical approaches. She holds one U.S. patent and several international patents and has authored publications which have garnered over 18,000 citations, an H Index of 53, and an i10 Index of 137 (Google Scholar). Dr. Smith is in the top half of the List of Top 2% of Scientific Researchers worldwide recently compiled by Stanford University based on publishing impact.

Her books include Women in Computational Intelligence: Key Advances and Perspectives on Emerging Topics and Women in Industrial and Systems Engineering: Key Advances and Perspectives on Emerging Topics, both published by Springer. Several of her papers are among the most highly cited in their respective journals including the most cited paper of Reliability Engineering & System Safety, the 7th most cited paper of IEEE Transactions on Reliability, and the most cited paper of The Engineering Economist.

She won the E. L. Grant Best Paper Awards in 1999 and in 2006, and the William A. J. Golomski Best Paper Award in 2002. Dr. Smith is the Editor in Chief of INFORMS Journal on Computing and an Area Editor of Computers & Operations Research.

Dr. Smith has been a principal investigator on over $12 million of sponsored research with funding by Department of Homeland Security, NASA, U.S. Department of Defense, Missile Defense Agency, National Security Agency, NIST, U.S. Department of Transportation, Frontier Technologies Inc., Lockheed Martin, Adtranz (now Bombardier Transportation), the Ben Franklin Technology Center of Western Pennsylvania, and U.S. National Science Foundation, from which she has been awarded 18 distinct grants including a CAREER grant and an ADVANCE Leadership grant. Her industrial partners on sponsored research projects have included DaimlerChrysler Electronics, Toyota, Eljer, Frontier Technology Inc., Extrude Hone, Ford Motor, and Crucible Compaction Metals. International research collaborations have been sponsored by Germany, Mexico, Japan, Turkey, United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Egypt, South Korea, Iraq, China, Colombia, Chile, Algeria, and the U.S., and by the Institute of International Education. She is a four-time Fulbright Scholar (2013, 2016, 2017, 2020) with residencies in Turkey, Chile, and Colombia.

For accomplishments in research, education, and service she was named the Joe W. Forehand, Jr. Distinguished Professor in 2023 and previously she was the Joe W. Forehand / Accenture Distinguished Professor, the H. Allen and Martha Reed Professor, and the Philpott‐WestPoint Stevens Professor, all at Auburn University. Dr. Smith was named a 2020 Yellowhammer Women of Impact (20 women are honored each year in the State of Alabama https://alabamawomen.org/#2020). In 2017, she received the inaugural Auburn University 100 Women Strong Leadership in Diversity Faculty Award. Dr. Smith was awarded the Wellington Award in 2016, the IIE Albert G. Holzman Distinguished Educator Award in 2012, and the INFORMS WORMS Award for the Advancement of Women in OR/MS in 2009. Dr. Smith received the Senior Research Award of the College of Engineering at Auburn University in 2001 and the University of Pittsburgh School of Engineering Board of Visitors Faculty Award for Research and Scholarly Activity in 1996.

Dr. Smith is a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), a Life Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), a Fellow of the Institute for Operations Research and Management Science (INFORMS), a Fellow of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE), a senior member of the Society of Women Engineers, a member of Tau Beta Pi, and a Registered Professional Engineer. She is a current IEEE Distinguished Lecturer and INFORMS Official Speaker and has given frequent keynote/plenary talks at international conferences. She served as Chair of the Council of Industrial Engineering Academic Department Heads and as President of the INFORMS Association of Chairs of Operations Research Departments. She was selected as an INFORMS Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Ambassador in 2021. Her leadership roles in conferences sponsored by INFORMS and IEEE have been numerous.

During her tenure as Chair, the Industrial and Systems Engineering Department at Auburn University witnessed unprecedented growth in student enrollments (+200%), research funding (+500%), and private donations (+400%). Facilities expanded significantly, and the department became a leader of three federally funded research centers. Interdisciplinary educational programs were developed, and the diversity of the student body and faculty flourished. Ranking (U.S. News) significantly surpassed all other Auburn University engineering departments.