Skip to content
About Jelena

Jelena SrebricEngineering healthier
places to live.

Connecting air, energy, and people through research that makes the built environment healthier, more comfortable, and more sustainable.

Explore her backgroundOfficial UMD faculty profile
Architectural rendering of Zupnik Hall at the University of Maryland
Zupnik HallUniversity of Maryland · Architectural renderingUMD project details
Academic home
University of MarylandCollege Park
Research leadership
Director, City@UMDCenter for Sustainability in the Built Environment
Doctoral education
Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyPh.D. in Building Technology · 2000
City at UMD logo
Jelena’s lab at the University of Maryland

City@UMD

Center for Sustainability in the Built Environment

Directed by Jelena Srebric, City@UMD connects engineering, public health and environmental research to create healthier, more sustainable places.

Research, leadership & collaboration

Building science
with a human focus.

Jelena Srebric is a mechanical engineering professor at the University of Maryland, Associate Dean for Research in the A. James Clark School of Engineering, and Director of the Center for Sustainability in the Built Environment, City@UMD.

Her work connects computational models with experiments and real buildings. Research spans ventilation and indoor air quality, building energy systems, thermal comfort, urban microclimates, and technologies that respond to the needs of occupants.

She brings together engineering and public health collaborators to translate building science into practical approaches for healthier communities. Her academic path includes a doctorate in Building Technology at MIT and mechanical engineering degrees from the University of Belgrade.

Academic background

Appointments & education.

2024–present

Associate Dean for Research

A. James Clark School of Engineering, University of Maryland

Source
2021–present

Margaret G. and Frederick H. Kohloss Chair Professor

Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maryland

Source
Current

Director

Center for Sustainability in the Built Environment (City@UMD)

Source
2013–present

Professor of Mechanical Engineering

University of Maryland

Source
Doctoral research2000

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Ph.D. · Department of Architecture
From the university archive

Simplified Methodology for Indoor Environment Design

Develops simplified computational tools for indoor-environment design, connecting airflow analysis with building energy analysis and checking models against measurements from an MIT experimental facility.

Author
Jelena Srebric
Thesis advisor
Qingyan Chen
Preserved by MIT Libraries in DSpace@MIT.
Honors & professional community

Selected recognition.

Honors from engineering, building performance, indoor environmental science and the wider academic community.

2021

American Academy of Teachers of Singing Award for COVID-19 Response

AATS

2020

Board of Regents Faculty Award for Excellence in Innovation

University System of Maryland

2019

Fellow

International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA)

Research funding & service

Grants and service.

Recent research grants and roles in the research community. The complete record is in the CV.

Research funding

  • 2026
    The Air We Share, A Public Health Revolution for the 21st Century

    University of Maryland Grand Challenges Grants 2.0 (Team Award) · Co-PI

  • 2021–2027
    Evaluating Modes of Influenza Transmission (EMIT-2) using Innovative Technologies and Designs in Controlled Environments

    National Institutes of Health (NIAID) · Project lead

  • 2020–2022
    RAPID: Energy-Efficient Disinfection of Viral Bioaerosols in Public Spaces: Vital for Lifting of the “Stay-at-Home” Orders during the Covid-19 Outbreak

    National Science Foundation · PI

  • 2010–2015
    EFRI-SEED: Creating Opportunities for Adaptation Based on Population in Urban Landscape for Sustainable Built Environment (PULSE)

    National Science Foundation · PI

Service & leadership

  • Current
    Editorial Board Member

    Building Simulation (Tsinghua University Press / Springer Nature)

  • Member, ISIAQ STC 21 – Ventilation

    International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ)

  • 2024
    Member, International Scientific Advisory Committee (ISAC)

    Indoor Air 2024 (ISIAQ flagship conference)

  • 2022
    Member, International Scientific Committee

    ROOMVENT 2022 Conference, Xi'an

See the full CV
Connect with Jelena

Research begins with a conversation.

For collaborations, academic connections, speaking inquiries or an introduction.

Contact Jelena

Research · teaching · collaboration

Hi! Share a question, a research idea, or a collaboration you have in mind.
0/5000

Sent to Jelena’s inbox at City@UMD.