Swaroop Kumar Behera, a PhD dissertator in the Department of Materials Science & Engineering, has been selected as one of only two recipients nationwide of the highly competitive AIME Henry DeWitt Smith Scholarship, awarded by The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS) and the TMS Foundation.
The award recognizes Behera’s academic excellence and potential for future contributions to the field of materials science.
The $2,000 scholarship honors Henry DeWitt Smith, an influential figure in the mining and metallurgical industries, and is given to students who demonstrate exceptional promise in metallurgy or materials engineering.
Behera’s research focuses on high temperature aluminum alloys, metal matrix composites and sustainable manufacturing, and he plans to pursue a career that bridges academic research with industrial innovation.
Since 2022 he has served as the UWM Foundry lab manager under the supervision of Professor Pradeep Rohatgi. His dedication to the field includes special recognition from the Foundry Educational Foundation (FEF), for providing outreach activities to recruit students to and inform the public about the metalcasting industry. He has introduced hundreds of students to the fundamentals of foundry engineering and materials science through engaging, hands-on tabletop demonstrations.
Behera also received complimentary registration for the TMS 2026 Annual Meeting & Exhibition in San Diego, California, and a ticket to the TMS-AIME Awards Ceremony Reception, for the formal presentation on Wednesday, March 18, 2026.