Karl A. Smith is a metallurgical engineer, academic and author. He is an emeritus Cooperative Learning Professor of Engineering Education at Purdue University's School of Engineering Education, as well as an emeritus Professor of Civil, Environmental, and Geo-Engineering, Morse-Alumni Distinguished University Teaching Professor, and Faculty Member at the Technological Leadership Institute at the University of Minnesota.
Smiths work has focused on developing research and innovation capabilities in engineering education, exploring cooperation in learning and design, and managing projects and knowledge. His publications comprise research articles and eight books including Teamwork and Project Management, How to Model it: Problem Solving for the Computer Age and New Paradigms for College Teaching'. He is the recipient of the University of Minnesota Distinguished Alumni Award (2006), an Honorary Doctorate from the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (2014) along with the Chester F. Carlson Award (2001), the Distinguished Service Award (2006), and the Lifetime Achievement Award (2015), all from the American Society for Engineering Education.
Smith is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Society for Engineering Education, where he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2023. He served as the Guest Editor of a Special Issue of the Journal of Engineering Education, and as the Editor-in-Chief of Annals of Research on Engineering Education (AREE).