Paul A. Craig

Paul A. Craig is a Professor at the School of Chemistry and Materials Science within the College of Science at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). He holds a Ph.D. in Biological Chemistry from the University of Michigan and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Henry Ford Hospital. His career spans over two decades at RIT, where he also serves as Department Head.

• BS, Chemistry (Oral Roberts University, 1979)
• PhD, Biological Chemistry (University of Michigan, 1985)
• Postdoc, Biophysical Chemistry of Blood Clotting (Henry Ford Hospital, 1985–1988)
• Rochester Institute of Technology (1993–present)

Research Interests
Dr. Craig’s work focuses on integrating computational tools with wet-lab techniques to enhance biochemistry education. He pioneered the BASIL (Biochemistry Authentic Scientific Inquiry Lab) curriculum, which fosters hypothesis-driven learning through protein structure-function analysis. His projects include:

• Python Scripting Workshops: Teaching coding skills via Jupyter Notebooks for biochemistry and molecular biology applications.
• Human Visualization Project: Collaborating across RIT’s College of Science, College of Art and Design, Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences, and Kate Gleason College of Engineering to develop a 3D virtual human model.
• JBioFramework: Java-based simulations for electrophoresis, chromatography, and mass spectrometry.

Scientific Awards
Dr. Craig has been recognized with the

• ASBMB Fellow (2022)

for his contributions to education and diversity.

Advising and Grants
He has mentored numerous students in biochemistry and computational projects. In 2023, he secured an NSF grant ($588,000) to expand the BASIL CURE program nationwide. RIT also received a NIH DEIA award (2024) for diversity and inclusion efforts in biomedical research, reflecting his advocacy for deaf and hard-of-hearing scientists.

Labs and Teams
Dr. Craig leads the BASIL Research Group, collaborating with faculty and students across RIT’s multidisciplinary Human Visualization Project. His team includes contributors to the Electro2D-Tandem MS simulation software, written entirely by RIT students.