Dr. Sam L Grogg

Sam L Grogg is currently the Interim Provost and Executive Vice President at Adelphi University. He had been the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Adelphi since 2011.

Dr. Grogg holds a Ph.D. degree in American literature with specializations in popular culture and film from Bowling Green University. In 1972, with two colleagues, Dr. Grogg founded The Journal of Popular Film and Television which continues to be published as one of the leading academic journals in its field. As the American Film Institute’s Executive Director of National Education during the 1970s, Dr. Grogg served as Education Editor of American Film, a monthly national magazine, and edited three editions of The AFI Guide to College Courses in Film and Television. His early research and publications focused on popular culture pedagogy, film and television criticism and related areas.

Dr. Grogg left AFI in 1980 to head the USA Film Festival in Dallas, Texas, where he subsequently founded FilmDallas, a motion picture financing, production and distribution company. Dr. Grogg’s financing and producing credits include Kiss of the Spider Woman and The Trip to Bountiful, both pictures garnering numerous Oscar nominations and receiving Best Actor and Best Actress Academy Awards. He has executive produced or produced numerous theatrical and television films, including Da, Patti Rocks and Spike of Bensonhurst. In 1989, he and Oscar-winning visual effects artist John Dykstra founded Magic Pictures, where Dr. Grogg executive produced and produced numerous visual effects productions, television commercials, large format presentations for theme parks and other productions while serving as President of Apogee Productions and Magic Pictures. Dr. Grogg has been a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences since 1986.

In 1993, Dr. Grogg was named the founding Dean of the School of Filmmaking at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts where he created a new conservatory for filmmakers. While Dean at UNCSA, Dr. Grogg continued to produce, focusing on television movies including Firestorm (ABC), Target Earth (ABC) and Above Suspicion (USA Network). In 1999, Dr. Grogg rejoined AFI as Dean of the AFI Conservatory. He was honored by the AFI Board of Trustees in 2004 as the fourth “Master” teacher and filmmaker to lead the Conservatory since its founding in 1967. In 2005, Dr. Grogg received the Ray and Pat Browne Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the study of Popular Culture from the National Popular Culture Association. Dr. Grogg was named Dean of the School of Communication at the University of Miami in the spring of 2005.

Dr. Grogg led revolutionary changes while at the University of Miami, expanding its campus media; establishing the Knight Center for International Media; executive producing One Water, a television special narrated by Martin Sheen; and overseeing a complete revision of his School’s curriculum while greatly increasing philanthropic support. Dr. Grogg received the William R. Butler Award for Support of Student Government in 2006 and in 2010 was honored by the Online News Association for his work to advance multimedia journalism.

Dr. Grogg’s wife of 30 years, Susan, is a teacher, acting coach and former stage and motion picture actress. He has two children, Zubin and Brady. Dr. Grogg also holds black belts in the martial arts of tae kwon do, hapkido and shotokan karate.