ORAU recently announced the election of three new board members and welcomed three new institutions to its member university consortium.
The following leaders are newly elected members of the ORAU board of directors, who will begin serving in June:
- Marilyn A. Brown, Ph.D., interim chair and Regents’ and Brook Byers Professor of Sustainable Systems in the School of Public Policy at Georgia Tech.
- Francis Otuonye, associate vice president for research in the Office of Research and Economic Development at Tennessee Technological University.
- Thomas Russell, Ph.D., president and CEO, Defense Science and Technology Consultants, LLC.
Re-elected to the ORAU board of directors were: Deborah L. Crawford, Ph.D., vice chancellor for research, University of Tennessee; Kathleen M Gainey, lieutenant general, US Army (retired); Major Gen. Dennis M. Kenneally, executive director, Southwest Defense Alliance; Karen Kerr, Ph.D., managing director, Exposition Ventures; Cordell M. Overby, Ph.D., associate vice president for research and regulatory affairs, University of Delaware; Kenneth Rueter, president and CEO, UCOR; and Diane Grob Schmidt, Ph.D., adjunct professor in the Department of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati.
Additionally, Joseph A. Heppert, Ph.D., vice president for research and innovation at Texas Tech University, was named vice chair of the ORAU Council of Sponsoring Institutions. Janice S. Blum, Ph.D., interim vice chancellor for research and graduate education, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis; and Terik Tidwell, director of STEM innovation, Johnson C. Smith University, were elected to the joint nominating committee for the ORAU Board of Directors and Council of Sponsoring Institutions.
ORAU also announced the addition of the following universities to its consortium as sponsoring institutions, which are institutions of higher learning that grant doctoral degrees in multiple STEM fields and are among the nation’s top research universities:
- Florida A&M University, a public Historically Black College or University, accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
- University of Maryland, Baltimore County, a public research university accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.
- Wichita State University, a public research university accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
“We’re honored to have these distinguished individuals and institutions help us continue in our mission to advance national priorities and serve the public interest by integrating academic, government and scientific resources globally. Together we will build upon the momentum our team has created to strategically position ORAU for the future,” said ORAU President and CEO Andy Page.