Christopher D. Schmitz was born in Pana, Illinois in 1969. An Electrical Engineer, he received his BS with University Honors in 1993 and his MS in algorithmic fault-tolerant adaptive systems in 1996 from the University of Illinois. He completed his Ph.D. in multi-user cellular communication in 2002 from the University of Illinois.
He worked for TRW Space and Electronics Group from 1995 until 1997 and at the University of Illinois from 2002 to present. His research interests are in adaptive digital signal processing, digital communications, and education pedagogy. He currently serves the ECE department of the University of Illinois as a Teaching Professor and an undergraduate advisor. He enjoys spending time with his family, hiking and camping, hands-on projects around the home, and beekeeping.