Annual Meeting of the Council of Sponsoring Institutions

Monday, March 3, 2025 (all times listed are in Eastern Time Zone)
11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Speaker and Moderator Lunch, HBCU Research Working Group Meeting
12:00 to 1:00 p.m. Registration, Refreshments, and Networking
1:00 to 2:00 p.m. Opening Remarks and Special Welcome Address Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU Deborah Crawford, Vice Chair, ORAU Board of Directors; and Vice Chancellor for Research, University of Tennessee
2:00 to 3:00 p.m. Keynote Address Michael Molnar, Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office and Office of Advanced Manufacturing, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
3:00 to 3:30 p.m. Break
3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Panel 1: Clean Energy Manufacturing Moderator: Alan Icenhour, Chair, ORAU Board Research Committee Panelists: Howard Grimes, Chief Executive Officer, Cybersecurity Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CyManII), Associate Vice Provost and Vice President for Institutional Initiative, University of Texas at San Antonio William Peter, Director, Advanced Manufacturing Program Director, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Ira Moskowitz, Chief Executive Officer, Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM)
4:30 to 5:00 p.m. Day 1 Wrap Up Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU
5:00 to 5:30 p.m.  Break
5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Poster Session, Reception, and Networking
6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Dinner

Tuesday, March 4, 2025 (all times listed are in Eastern Time Zone)
7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Registration, Continental Breakfast, and Networking
8:30 to 9:00 a.m. Opening Remarks and Charge to the Consortium Rebekah Hersch, Chair, Council of Sponsoring Institutions Quincy Quick, Vice Chair, Council of Sponsoring Institutions
9:00 to 10:00 a.m. Keynote Address Omar Perea, Chief Innovation and Protoyping (OL El Paso), Space Systems Command
10:00 to 10:30 a.m. Break
10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Panel 2: Manufacturing Supply Chain Challenges Moderator: Morris Hassler, Owner, M&M Technical Services LLC Panelists: Ryan Wicker, Director and Founder, Keck Center for 3D Innovation Driving Research, Innovation and Value through Education in Additive Manufacturing (DRIVE AM), University of Texas at El Paso Bill Olbricht, Deputy Division Director, Directorate for Engineering, National Science Foundation (NSF) Alexander “Sasha” Stolyarov, Chief Executive Officer, Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA)
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Lunch and Networking
1:00 to 2:00 p.m. Panel 3: Redefining Manufacturing Jobs Moderator: Michelle Goodson, Director, Workforce Solutions, ORAU Government Services Panelists: John Balchunas, Workforce Director, National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL), Securing American Biomanufacturing Research and Education Center, University of Delaware Scott Halliday, Director, Center for Advanced Manufacturing, Navajo Technical University Justin Smith, Team Lead, Industrial Technology and Assessment Centers/Workforce Deployment, Department of Energy (DOE)
2:00 to 2:30 p.m. Break
2:30 to 3:30 p.m. Panel 4: Transitioning Manufacturing Innovation to Market Moderator: John Dolynchuk, Capture Manager, Business Development, ORAU Panelists: Melinda Coffman, Program Coordinator, SBIR/STTR, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Keith Harris, Bioenergy Division Director, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Susan Ipri-Brown, Strategic Partnership Specialist, Office of Advanced Manufacturing, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Sandra DeVincent Wolf, Executive Director, Manufacturing Futures Institute and NextManufacturing Center, Carnegie Mellon University
3:30 to 4:00 p.m.  Closing Remarks Andy Page, President and CEO, ORAU Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU
4:00 p.m. Annual Meeting Adjourns

Andy Page ORAU	Ken Tobin ORAU	Deborah Crawford Bio (.PDF, 95KB)
Michael Molnar Bio (.PDF, 91 KB)	Alan Icenhour Bio (.PDF, 123 KB)	Howard Grimes Bio (.PDF, 89 KB)
William Peter Bio (.PDF, 105 KB)	Ira Moskowitz Bio (.PDF, 126 KB)	Omar Perea Bio coming soon
Ryan Wicker Bio (.PDF, 108 KB)	Bill Olbricht Bio (.PDF, 90 KB)	Alexander “Sasha” Stolyarov Bio (.PDF, 115 KB)
Michelle Goodson Bio (.PDF, 96 KB)	John Balchunas Bio (.PDF, 106 KB)	Scott Halliday Bio (.PDF, 97 KB)
Justin Smith Bio (.PDF, 88 KB)	Melinda Coffman Bio (.PDF, 94 KB)	Keith Harris Bio (.PDF, 101 KB)
Susan Ipri-Brown Bio (.PDF, 107 KB)	Sandra DeVincent Wolf Bio (.PDF, 104 KB)

View 2024 meeting photo gallery

Key Takeaways and Opportunities (.PDF, 1.7 MB)

Key takeaways from the keynote addresses and panel discussions, along with engagement opportunities for members of the ORAU University Consortium, are outlined in the document.

Monday, March 4, 2024
Opening Remarks and Special Welcome Address Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU Ken Rueter, Chair, ORAU Board of Directors
Keynote Presentation Sudip Parikh, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Publisher, Science Journals, AAAS View presentation (.PDF, 12 MB)
Panel 1: Building a Future-Resilient Workforce Moderator: Tiffani Conner, ORAU Speakers: James Brown, Executive Director, STEM Education Coalition Gabriela Cruz Thompson, Senior Director, University Research and Collaboration, Intel Labs Joyce Malyn-Smith, Co-PI, STEM Learning and Research Center, Education Development Center, Inc. Carol O’Donnell, Senior Executive and Director, Smithsonian Science Education Center  Alex Swartsel, Director, Center for Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work, JFFLabs, Jobs for the Future
Day 1 Wrap Up Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU

Tuesday, March 5, 2024
Opening Remarks and Charge to the Consortium Rebekah Hersch, Chair, Council of Sponsoring Institutions
Keynote Presentation Elizabeth Albro, Commissioner of Education Research, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education View presentation (.PDF, 1 MB)
Panel 2: Equitable Access for an Innovation Economy Moderator: Tracy DiGioia, MITRE Speakers: Lizanne DeStefano, Executive Director, Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics and Computing, Georgia Tech Diana Gehlhaus, Director for Economy at the Special Competitive Studies Project Gregory Goins, Associate Dean for Research, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, North Carolina A&T State University Todd Mann, Executive Director, National Consortium of Secondary STEM Schools
Panel 3: ORAU STEM Accelerator Moderator: Lt. Gen. (Ret.) John Regni, ORAU Board of Directors Speakers: Olivia Blackmon, Director, ORAU STEM Accelerator, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU John Dyer, Associate Vice President, Workforce and Economic Development, American Association of Community Colleges J. Wesley Hines, Nuclear Engineering Department Head, Chancellor’s Professor; and Co-Chair, Education/Workforce Committee Chair, Tennessee Nuclear Energy Advisory Council, University of Tennessee Nakeisha Ricks-Pettyjohn, Senior Fellow, Workforce Development, National Skills Coalition
Panel 4: Strategic Alliances to Advance the K-16 Education Ecosystem Moderator: Sam Visner, ORAU Board of Directors Speakers: Courtney Brafford, Director, UofM Global, University of Memphis Dennis Foutz, Lead, University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics, Joint Hypersonics Transition Office, U.S. Department of Defense Ashley Greeley, NCAE-C K-12 Mission Lead, Center for Education, Innovation and Outreach, National Cryptologic University, National Security Agency Scott Lucas, President, National Coalition of Advanced Technology Centers
Keynote Address Hassan Khan, Senior Advisor for Economic Security, CHIPS for America, U.S. Department of Commerce View presentation (.PDF, 2 MB)
Closing Remarks Andy Page, President and CEO, ORAU

Monday, March 6

Opening Remarks

• Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU

Special Welcome Address

• Bruce Gnade, Chair, ORAU Board of Directors (Virtual)
• Joseph Heppert, Chair, Council of Sponsoring Institutions

Opening Keynote Address

• Sanah Baig, Deputy Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics, USDA

Session: Technology Innovation and Transformation

The goal of the session is to identify best practices, lessons learned, and research gaps and barriers related to how technology can enable us to achieve the 2050 carbon net-zero goal. This will be a true panel discussion moderated by the ORAU facilitator, rather than separate presentations.

• Katherine Smith, Director, Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey
• Eric Svendsen, Director, Office of the Deputy Director for Non-Infectious Diseases, CDC
• Kimber Bogard, Deputy Executive Officer for Programs, National Academy of Medicine
• Allen Walker, Senior Advisor, Technology, Innovation and Partnerships Directorate, NSF

Second Keynote Address

• Christopher Frey, Science Advisor and Assistant Administrator, Office of Research and Development, EPA

Session: Science-Based Models for an Environmentally Equitable Society

The goal of the session is to identify best practices, lessons learned, and research gaps and barriers related science-based models. This will be a true panel discussion moderated by the ORAU facilitator, rather than separate presentations.

• Jeanne Herb, Executive Director, Environmental Analysis and Communications Group, Rutgers University
• Ann Marie Chischilly, Executive Director, Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals, Northern Arizona University
• Hunter Jones, Program Manager, National Integrated Health Information System, NOAA
• LaToya Miles, Deputy Director, Air Resources Laboratory, NOAA

Tuesday, March 7

Opening Remarks and Introduction of Keynote Speaker

• Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU

Third Keynote Address

• Gavin Schmidt, Director, Goddard Institute for Space Studies, NASA (Virtual)

Session: Growing Future Thought Leaders through Strategic Alliances

The goal of the session is to identify best practices, lessons learned, and research gaps and barriers related to strategic alliances. This will be a true panel discussion moderated by the ORAU facilitator, rather than separate presentations.

• Shalanda Baker, Director, Office of Economic Impact and Diversity, DOE
• Edward Maibach, Director, Center for Climate Change Communication, George Mason University
• Simon Malcomber, Acting Assistant Director for Biological Sciences, NSF
• Lisa Greenwood, Assistant Professor, Rochester Institute of Technology

Closing Remarks

• Ken Tobin, Chief Research and University Partnerships Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU

Monday, March 7

Opening Remarks

• Ken Tobin, Vice President and Senior Research Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU
• Andy Page, President and CEO, ORAU Special Welcome Address

Special Welcome Address

• Debra Reinhart, Outgoing Council Chair
• Bruce Gnade, ORAU Board of Directors

Opening Keynote Address

• Georges Benjamin, Executive Director, American Public Health Association

Panel: Preparedness: Detection, Prevention, Response and Control

• Charles C. Branas, Gelman Endowed Professor of Epidemiology and Chair, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University; and Member, Committee on Applied Research Topics for Hazard Mitigation and Resilience, National Academy of Sciences Report, “Enhancing Community Resilience through Social Capital and Social Connectedness: Stronger Together!”
• John Drake, Director, Center for the Ecology of Infectious Diseases, and Director, Global Infectious Disease Intelligence Consortium, Coronavirus Working Group, University of Georgia
• James Hodge, Director, Center for Public Health Law and Policy, Arizona State University

Panel: Bio-Economy: Supply Chain Resiliency and Workforce Needs

• Diane DiEuliis, Assistant Director and Senior Fellow, National Defense University; Member, National Academy of Sciences Report, “Safeguarding the Bio-Economy;” and Former Deputy Director for Policy, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, DHHS
• Rachel Lipson, Director, Project on Workforce, Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy, Harvard University; and Committee Member, National Academy of Sciences Meeting Regional STEMM Workforce Needs in the Wake of COVID-19
• Eleftherior “Lefteris” Iakovou, Professor, Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution, Texas A&M University

Tuesday, March 8

Council of Sponsoring Institutions Engagement

This time will be set aside for council business and announcements.

Panel: Modeling and Forecasting: Predictive Analytics

• Mitra Basu, Program Director, Predictive intelligence for Pandemic Prevention, National Science Foundation
• Katelyn Jetelina, Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
• Jade Mitchell, Associate Professor, Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, Michigan State University

Closing Keynote Address

• Hon. Keith Martin, Executive Director, Consortium of Universities for Global Health

Special Closing Panel: Global Action Summit – Adaptive Solutions for Abundant Food, Health and Prosperity in a COVID-Disrupted World

• Rob Dongoski, Partner, Food and Agribusiness Lead, Ernst & Young
• Luis Gabriel Cuervo, Senior Advisor, Research for Health, Pan American Health Organization
• Scott Miller, President and CEO, Circles USA

Closing Remarks

• Ken Tobin, Vice President and Senior Research Officer, Research and University Partnerships Office, ORAU
• Andy Page, President and CEO, ORAU