On most days, Ezekiel Salama moves between two worlds that rarely intersect. In one, he spends hours inside research laboratories developing new techniques for metal additive manufacturing, an emerging technology reshaping modern manufacturing. In the other, he steps into the throwing circle, where precision, power and discipline have made him one of FAMU's most decorated track and field athletes.
Rather than forcing a choice between academics and athletics, Salama has turned both pursuits into complementary parts of a remarkable career.
The FAMU doctoral student has maintained a perfect 4.0 grade-point average while conducting advanced engineering research at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering. At the same time, he has captured three Southwestern Athletic Conference championships and established himself as one of the most accomplished throwers in school history, setting a university record along the way.
His success reflects a level of consistency that faculty members say is uncommon even among elite graduate students.
"Success is built off of showing up continuously," Salama said. "Success doesn't happen out of nowhere. To work, having a drive, and even when you're showing up, you know, have a positive impact on the people around you. You don't wanna just show up and be like draining on energy. Even though I'm tired, I'm still here. Let's do it. Let's go. Let's work."
Salama's research focuses on metal additive manufacturing, more commonly known as metal 3D printing, a rapidly expanding field that allows engineers to produce complex metal components layer by layer. The technology is increasingly being used in aerospace, defense, medical devices and advanced manufacturing, making expertise in the discipline highly sought after.
His advisor, Tarik Dickens, Ph.D., interim associate chair of the Materials Science and Engineering Department, said Salama's athletic background has strengthened the very qualities required for high-level scientific research.
"The time management piece I think he kind of learns from just being a hard-core athlete, especially in his particular discipline and sport and arena," Dickens said. "Those things actually make a very good combination for having an excellent potential career and moving some of the technology that we're trying to take from FAMU and actually put it into the arena of industry and other national labs."
Balancing graduate coursework, laboratory research and the demands of Division I athletics requires long days that often begin before sunrise and end well after sunset. Salama said the discipline cultivated through years of athletic training has helped him persevere when exhaustion threatens to slow his progress.
"When I didn't feel like lifting, when I didn't feel like going to the lab today, I'm tired. I got up at 6, 7 a.m., and then I had to go to practice. I had to go to the lab, and then I had to go to class," he said. "At those times when I feel like I don't know if I can do this, my faith is what brought me through."
The resilience developed through competition, he said, has become just as valuable inside the laboratory as it is on the field.
As Salama continues pursuing his doctorate, he hopes his journey demonstrates that students do not have to abandon one passion to pursue another. He envisions a career in research and development, helping design and advance the next generation of manufacturing technologies while serving as an example for future scholars and student-athletes.
Salama embodies a broader mission for FAMU, that of producing graduates capable of competing at the highest levels of both academic research and athletic excellence— proving that championship performances can be measured not only by medals won, but also by discoveries made.