The University of Rhode Island Graduate School is pleased to welcome Samantha A. Meenach, Ph.D. as its new Associate Dean, bringing more than a decade of experience in graduate education, research training, student mentorship, and academic leadership to the role.
A professor in the Departments of Chemical, Biomolecular, and Materials Engineering and Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Meenach has been a member of the URI community since 2013. Throughout her tenure, she has led and developed numerous federally funded training initiatives, including URI ESTEEMED, URI MARC, the BBB@URI REU Site, and the RI-INBRE Training Core. She also served as URI’s Graduate Assessment Coordinator from 2021 to 2023.
In her new role, Meenach will help advance the Graduate School’s mission of supporting graduate students, strengthening academic programs, and fostering collaboration across the university.
“I am excited to be joining the Graduate School leadership team. Graduate education at URI happens in every college, and the Graduate School is the one place that sees all of it; that university-wide view is what drew me to the role.”
Meenach’s priorities as associate dean include supporting graduate students throughout their academic journeys, providing Graduate Program Directors with clearer guidance on admissions, student records, and assistantship administration, expanding mentor training opportunities for graduate faculty, and strengthening partnerships across colleges, departments, and research administration.
A nationally recognized researcher whose work focuses on pharmaceutical engineering, pulmonary drug delivery, and nanotherapeutics, Dr. Meenach also brings extensive experience as a mentor and advocate for student success.
Having served as major professor to graduate students across engineering, pharmacy, and chemistry disciplines, she understands both the opportunities and challenges students may encounter during their graduate education.
“Most problems in graduate education are fixable if someone hears about them early. If something in your program is not working, say so; the Graduate School would much rather hear about it now than read about it in an exit survey.”
Meenach also emphasized her commitment to supporting Graduate Program Directors, whose work is essential to the success of URI’s graduate programs.
“Program Directors do a great deal of work that stays invisible until something breaks. Tell me where the friction is; I would rather fix a process than defend it.”
As the Graduate School continues its commitment to enhancing the graduate student experience and strengthening support for graduate programs, Meenach’s collaborative leadership, extensive administrative experience, and student-centered approach will help advance these efforts across the university.
The Graduate School welcomes Dr. Meenach to her new role and looks forward to her contributions to the continued success of graduate education at URI.
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