He works in the areas of functional analysis and algebra, and he earned his Ph.D. in mathematics at Dartmouth College in 2002.

He was an invited speaker at the 2015 Abel Symposium,[1] and he is a founding member of the Algebras and Rings in Colorado Springs (ARCS) center.

[5] Tomforde has also been active in organizing several conferences on graph C*-algebras and their generalizations, with the goal of bringing together analysts and algebraists to share ideas and collaborate.

[6][7][8][9][10] Tomforde created and directed the Cougars and Houston Area Mathematics Program (CHAMP),[11] which was last active in Spring 2019.

[13][14] In 2019 Tomforde was recognized with the MAA Texas Section's Distinguished College and University Teaching of Mathematics Award.