PHILADELPHIA – (December 13, 2011) – Deborah L. Crawford, Ph.D., has been elected to the Board of Directors of the University City Science Center. Crawford is the Senior Vice Provost for Research at Drexel University.
Crawford is responsible for overseeing Drexel’s research enterprise and guiding the University’s continuing growth as a comprehensive research institution. Crawford provides senior leadership for the Office of Research, including offices of research administration, research compliance, and technology commercialization.
Prior to joining Drexel in September 2010, Crawford was the assistant director for Computer and Information Science and Engineering at the National Science Foundation (NSF). A 17-year veteran of NSF, she led the creation and execution of a number of federal-wide and NSF initiatives, including the K-12 Math and Science Partnerships program, initiatives in high performance computing and large scale data management, the Science and Technology Centers program, and NSF’s Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. In 2006 and then again in 2010, she was recognized by the President of the United States for her contributions to science and science policy when she received Presidential Rank Awards.
Crawford is an electrical engineer. Her research contributions, made while at AT&T Bell Labs, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the University of California at Santa Barbara, were in the areas of nanoelectronics and semiconductor photonics. A native of Glasgow, Scotland, Crawford earned her Ph.D. in Information Systems Engineering from the University of Bradford, and her B.Sc. (Hons) in Electronic and Electrical Engineering from the University of Glasgow.
“Dr. Crawford’s experience in science, technology and academia make her a valuable addition to the University City Science Center’s Board of Directors,” says Science Center President & CEO Stephen S. Tang, Ph.D., MBA. “We’ve already benefited from her participation on our Scientific Advisory Committee and look forward to her input and involvement in the Science Center’s Board as well.”
About The Science Center
The University City Science Center accelerates technology commercialization, regional economic development, and the market availability of life-enhancing scientific breakthroughs by bringing together innovations, scientists, entrepreneurs, funding, laboratory facilities, and business services. Established in 1963 and headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, the Science Center was the first, and remains the largest, urban research park in the United States. Graduate organizations and current residents of the University City Science Center’s Port business incubators have created more than 15,000 jobs that remain in the Greater Philadelphia region today and contribute more than $9 billion to the regional economy annually. For more information: www.sciencecenter.org.
