Victor R. McCrary, Jr. (born May 16, 1955) is an American physical chemist who is vice president for research at the

University of the District of Columbia The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) is a public historically black land-grant university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1851 and is the only public university in the city. UDC is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall ...

. He is a fellow of the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

and former president of the

National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers The National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers or NOBCChE (pronounced No-be-shay) is a nonprofit, professional organization. NOBCChE's goal is to increase the number of minorities in science, t ...

Early life and education

McCrary was born and raised in

Washington, D.C ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry from the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U.S. ...

, a PhD in chemistry from

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

, and a Master of Science in engineering and technology management from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

Career

After earning his doctorate, McCrary joined

Bell Labs Nokia Bell Labs, originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories (1925–1984), then AT&T Bell Laboratories (1984–1996) and Bell Labs Innovations (1996–2007), is an American industrial research and scientific development company owned by mult ...

as a member of the technical team. In 1995 he joined the

National Institute of Standards and Technology The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical sci ...

, where he led convergent systems. McCrary joined

Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (Applied Physics Laboratory, or APL) is a not-for-profit university-affiliated research center (UARC) in Howard County, Maryland. It is affiliated with Johns Hopkins University and empl ...

in 2003. In 2007, he was made President at the

(NOBCChE). McCary worked as vice chancellor at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

and vice president of

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a public historically black research university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In 1867, the university, then known ...

. In October 2016 McCary was appointed to the

National Science Board The National Science Board (NSB) of the United States establishes the policies of the National Science Foundation (NSF) within the framework of applicable national policies set forth by the President and the Congress. The NSB also serves as an ind ...

. He was made vice chair in July 2020.

Personal life

McCrary is

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, a long-time member of the

Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney on March 29, 1882. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. It is led by Patrick E. Kelly, the order's 14th Supreme Knight. ...

, and parishioner at Saint John the Evangelist in Columbia, Maryland.

Awards and honors

* 2002

Percy L. Julian Award The Percy L. Julian Award was first given in 1975 by the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE). The award is given every one to two years. It honors black scientists who have mad ...

* 2007 DVD Association DVD Hall of Fame * 2011 Black Engineer of the Year Awards Scientist of the Year

Select publications

* * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCrary, Victor Living people 1955 births Howard University alumni American physical chemists Johns Hopkins University faculty Fellows of the American Chemical Society National Institute of Standards and Technology people University of Tennessee faculty Morgan State University faculty Scientists at Bell Labs African-American Catholics