Rate My Professor Sarah Codd

Sarah Codd is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Montana State University, where she joined the faculty in 2002. She currently serves as Graduate Programs Coordinator for Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Director of Student Programs for Montana INBRE, co-director of the Magnetic Resonance Microscopy Laboratory, and Women in Science Distinguished Professor. Prior to her appointment at MSU, Codd held research positions in England, New Zealand, Germany, and New Mexico following her early career development. She earned a B.S. from Massey University in 1993 and a Ph.D. from the University of Kent in 1996. Her research employs magnetic resonance imaging microscopy for technique development, including spatially resolved studies of gas in ceramics, flow and diffusion in porous media, and fluid dynamics in hydrogels, biofilms, cellular suspensions, and polymer electrolyte membranes. This work addresses complex fluid systems such as bacterial biofilms implicated in medical infections and environmental remediation, as well as supercritical carbon dioxide behavior for underground storage applications.

Codd has authored more than 60 peer-reviewed papers and is frequently invited to present at the International Conference on Magnetic Resonance Microscopy. Her contributions have earned significant recognition, including the National Science Foundation CAREER Award in 2007 valued at $400,000 to support her teaching and research integration, the Gledden Fellowship at the University of Western Australia in 2015 for low-field portable MRI studies, the Women in Science Distinguished Professor Award in 2016 providing $4,000 annually for two years, the Provost’s Award for Undergraduate Research/Creativity Mentoring, the Women’s Faculty Caucus Distinguished Mentor Award, and the President’s Award for Gender Equity in 2024 for her advocacy for women in STEM, mentoring of junior faculty, and efforts to foster inclusion in the College of Engineering. She has delivered public lectures, such as a Provost’s Lecture on MRI research applications to everyday materials like hair gel and yogurt, as well as microbes from Yellowstone. Her leadership has advanced gender equity and student research opportunities at MSU.