B.S. – MECHANICAL ENGINEERING ’84
M.S. – ENGINEERING MECHANICS ’86
PH.D. – ENGINEERING MECHANICS ’89
Charles Karr completed his B.S. in mechanical engineering in 1984 and his master’s and doctorate in engineering mechanics in 1987and 1989, all at UA. After graduation he spent seven years with the U.S. Bureau of Mines. While there Karr served as a part-time instructor at UA in engineering mechanics and aerospace engineering. He was eventually named head of the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics in 2001. In 2004,he became the College’s associate dean for research and graduate studies.
He was appointed dean of the UA College of Engineering in 2005. During Karr’s 16-yeartenure as dean, UA’s College of Engineering ascended in national rankings. Undergraduate enrollment more than tripled, the College’s freshman class mean ACT score increased, and the faculty size grew substantially. Research activity flourished under Karr’s leadership, and academic offerings expanded to meet the demand of industry and society. Dr. Karr supported the construction of approximately $250million in new facilities to bolster research and learning opportunities. In November of2021, Karr was named interim president of The University of Alabama in Huntsville to succeed retiring president Dr. Darren Dawson.
Karr has received several awards and has been involved with numerous professional societies. He was the Engineer of the Year for the U.S. Bureau of Mines, Tuscaloosa Research Center in 1990, and the Young Scientist of the Year for the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration’s Industrial Minerals Division in 1991. He received the Outstanding Young Engineer Award from the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration’s Mineral and Metallurgical Processing Division in 1993, and he was named the Bureau of Mines Technology Transfer Person of the Year in 1993. In 2005, he received the T. Morris Hackney Faculty Leadership Award from the College.
While at the University, Karr was consistently recognized for his teaching abilities, winning the Charles Henry Ratcliff Memorial Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Engineering Mechanics Teaching five times, and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (UA chapter) Outstanding Faculty Member Award twice. Chuck and his wife Jodie have two sons, Nathan and Noah.