Summary of Main Accomplishments

• Total funding generated (40 projects*) = $44.4 million (PI: $7,593,500)
• Peer-reviewed Publications = 85
• Total citations = 2923 (as of May 2020) - https://www.mendeley.com/profiles/rajesh-sani/stats/ 
• h-index = 28 (Scopus and Mendeley, as of May 2020)
• Books edited/Co-edited = 9
• Lab manual (Biochemistry) = 1
• Book chapters published = 23
• Edited special issues in research = 4 (Bioresourse Technology, Frontiers, MDPI Microorganisms) 
• Invention disclosures = 7
• Presentations at Various Institutions and National and International Meetings (Total = 250)
• Keynote talks = 5
• Current Students, Research Scientists, Interns, Visiting professors, and Teachers (Total = 23)
• Taught 15 different courses (6 courses were new and developed by me) in SDSMT and several short courses and workshops in Indian and Chinese universities
• International activities: Signed 7 MoUs with Indian universities to establish - staff exchange and collaboration; joint research activities and publications; dual degree bachelor programs; student exchange program; and online undergrad and graduate courses

*These 40 projects were funded by various federal and non-federal agencies e.g., National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Defense (DoD) - Air Force Civil Engineer Center, The United States Geological Survey (USGS), Governor Office of Economic Development South Dakota, Nelson Foundation, Government of India and Indo-US Science and Technology Forum, Shimadzu Scientific Instruments, Inc., KL Energy, and The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) etc.

In addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate sciences and bioengineering courses at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, I have been conducting, supporting, and overseeing a significant amount of fundamental and applied research in the areas of bioenergy (alternative fuels) and bioprospecting of novel extremophilic microorganisms from different environments. My research expertise includes Extremophilic Bioprocessing, Genome Editing of Extremophiles, Space Biology, Biopolymers, and Metabolic Engineering.  Several of my accomplishments in research and advising include: i) Postdocs supervised (8); ii) Graduate students supervised (MS students, 12 and PhD, 14), and iii) Undergraduate students and K12 teachers supervised (over 60).  We have one patent, seven invention disclosures, and published over 78 peer-reviewed articles in high impact factor journals and have contributed in over 18 book chapters.  We have edited four books and one proceedings for Springer International Publishing AG.  In addition, I have been on proposal panels for Federal Agencies i) National Science Foundation, ii) U.S. Army Research Office, iii) Department of Energy, and iv) U.S. Geological Survey.  I also serve the Industrial Microbiology profession as “Biocatalysis Program Committee Member” of the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB), technical session chair at the Annual American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) and SIMB, and an associate editor. During my tenure as a faculty member, I have taken leadership roles in research, teaching, and service activities, and received several laurels both at national and international levels.  For example, please see a list of selected credentials below:

• Awarded university level “Mines Research Award 2018” ($2.5K) by SDSMT
• We (Aug 2017) have been awarded a NSF grant to study “Building Genome-to-Phenome Infrastructure for Regulating Methane in Deep and Extreme Environments (BuG ReMeDEE consortium).” I am leading this consortium having 75 people (faculty and students)
• PI or co-PI on over $18.4 million in funded research in the past 12 years. Out of $18.4 million, I have been a Lead PI on $7.6 million in funded research.
• Chair of “Biology Program” for the Conference on Science at the Sanford Underground Research Facility, SDSMT (2015 and 2017)
• Chair of “Biocatalysis Program” for the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (2016-2017)
• A member of an International Advisory Committee for the “International Conference on Recent Advances in Bioenergy Research” India (2015 and 2017)
• A member of an Organizing Committee for the “Beneficial Microbes: Food, Pharma, Aqua and Beverage Industry” USA (2016)
• International advisor on a Research project funded by Department of Biotechnology, Government of India (2013-2016)
• A member of “ASM-IUSSTF Indo-US Professorship Awards in Microbiology Selection Committee” (2017-2019)
• Technical session chair at the annual American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) and Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology annual meetings
• Keynote speakers at “Beneficial Microbes” USA and “Sardar Swaran Singh National Institute of Bio-Energy” India
• Associate editor of Frontiers in Microbiology (a reputed peer reviewed journal, Impact factor: 4.165), Canadian Journal of Biotechnology (launched in 2017), and for three text books (Springer publishers)
• Over 70 invited platform presentations at conferences, universities, meetings, and elementary, middle, and high schools
• Panelist and reviewer for the NSF, U.S. Army Research Office, Department of Energy, U.S. Geological Survey, and Sun Grant Initiative for South Central Region
• Recipient of ASM-IUSSF Indo-US Professorship Award to teach a short course in India
• Recipient of the Carol D. Litchfield Outstanding Poster Presentation award at the SIMB 2017 Annual Meeting, Denver, CO
• Recipient of the best paper (NASA related-research) award at the SURF International Conference as well as Society of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology

A. Education

• D., Environmental Biotechnology. Institute of Microbial Technology (National Laboratory), Punjab University, Chandigarh, India, October 1998.
• MS, Biotechnology. Major in Enzyme Biotechnology, Devi Ahilya University, Indore (MP), India, July 1993.
• BS, Non-Biology. Major in Mathematics, Meerut University, Meerut (UP), India, September 1990.

B. Professional Experience and Training

• 2018 – Present Professor, Departments of Chemical and Biological Engineering & Chemistry and Applied Biological Sciences, SDSMT, Rapid City, SD
• 2012 – 2018 Associate Professor, Departments of Chemical and Biological Engineering & Chemistry and Applied Biological Sciences, SDSMT, Rapid City, SD
• 2006 – 2012 Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, SDSMT, SD
• 2005 – 2006 Associate Director, WSU/NSF Center for Multiphase Environmental Research, Washington State University, Pullman, WA
• 2005 – 2006 Teaching Faculty, School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA
• 2002 – 2005 Assistant Research Professor, School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA

C. International Activities

In the past 11 years, I have supervised 68 diverse students and research scientists. They were from India (28), China (1), Nepal (2), Nigeria (3), Malaysia (3), Mexico (1), Taiwan (1), Turkey (2), and USA (27). He found that a good blend of team members with diverse backgrounds gave incredible results, which he calls synergism in extremophilic microbiology.

In last three years, I have signed 7 MoUs (see below, https://www.sdsmt.edu/ThreeColumn.aspx?id=2331) with government funded universities involved in outstanding teaching and cutting-edge research activities. I have personally visited these universities, interacted with their academic Heads/Deans, delivered lectures, talked to the students, and discussed SDSMT teaching/research activities. The main goals for signing these MoUs with Indian Institutes and Universities are to establish: staff exchange and collaboration; joint research activities and publications; dual degree bachelor programs; student exchange program; and online undergrad and graduate courses.

• Guru Nanak Dev University of lndia (GNDU) – Amristsar, India – MOU
• Jaypee University of Information Technology (JAYPEE) – Waknaghat, Solan – MOU
• Kalasalingam Academy of Research and Education (KARE), Krishnankoil – MOU
• Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) – Kalinga – MOU
• Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU), Madurai, Tamil Nadu – MOU
• National Institute of Technology Durgapur (NIT Durgapur), Durgapur, West Bengal – MOU
• Ponnaiyah Ramajayam Institute of Science & Technology (PRIST) – Tamil Nadu, India – MOU

I received a “Research Professorship award” from American Society for Microbiology (USA) to perform research at Guru Nanak Dev University, India. Prof. Sudhir Kumar from Jaypee University, India has spent 1 year (sabbatical leaves) with my group, and we have published 5 joint research articles, 3 text books, and 5 book chapters. More importantly, at this moment, SDSMT has 8 interns from Jaypee University of Information Technology University and 1 intern from Guru Nanak Dev University for their 6 months research projects.