ILA Named Executive Director of Alabama EPSCoR

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Dr. Daryush ILA, adjunct professor at The University of Alabama and a long-time faculty member and administrator at Alabama A&M University, has been named executive director of the Alabama Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research program, known as EPSCoR.

ILA has worked with the Alabama EPSCoR program for nearly 20 years in various capacities, including assisting with the steering committee, coordinating the Alabama National Science Foundation Small Business Innovation Research program and serving more than six years as the state’s Department of Defense EPSCoR director.

“I have been impressed with Dr. ILA’s initiative, his targeted energy, and his enthusiasm for cooperative research opportunities,” said Dr. Keith Harrison, Alabama EPSCoR steering committee chair and associate vice president of academic affairs at the University of South Alabama.

ILA, a graduate of MIT and the University of Massachusetts-Lowell, with management training from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard, Georgia Tech Research Institute and Science Application International Corporation, co-founded the Alabama A&M University Research Institute.

Gregory G. Fitch, executive director of the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, applauded ILA’s appointment, noting the tremendous opportunity that Alabama has to become a leader through EPSCoR research programs.

“Dr. ILA’s background and the network of professional contacts that he has amassed will contribute greatly to his leadership and the continued success of EPSCoR,” said Fitch.

ILA also founded the Center for Irradiation of Materials at Alabama A&M University, which is funded by external grants and contracts. The center’s building was funded by a National Science Foundation grant, as well as the Department of Defense, Department of Energy, NASA and other government agencies.

ILA, has authored and co-authored more than 250 peer reviewed publications, eight books, one book chapter and has been the principal investigator, manager, and co-investigator of more than $50 million in grants and contracts. ILA serves as a member of the Emerging Research Institutions’ committee of National Academies, chair of the Graduate Student Award of the Materials Research Society, and a University Space Research Association Board member.

ILA replaces Dr. Keith McDowell, who recently accepted a position in the University of Texas System.

The mission of Alabama EPSCoR, headquartered at The University of Alabama, is to foster the growth of research capacity and capability in the state of Alabama in order to make the institutions of higher education more competitive for federal funding.

Research is a substantial industry in Alabama, and the Alabama EPSCoR program is dedicated to the devel­opment of scientific and engineering capabilities through a collaborative effort among the state’s research universities.

The state’s research institutions participating in EPSCoR include The University of Alabama, Alabama A&M University, Auburn University, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the University of Alabama in Huntsville, the University of South Alabama and Tuskegee University.

The focus of activities is designed to attract and retain distinguished scientists and researchers for Alabama, to foster economic development through investment resulting in cutting-edge technologies, and to stimulate competitiveness in medicine, biotechnology, engineering, mathematics and other applied sci­ences.