Sep

President of Purdue University joins Regents

France A. Córdova, president of Purdue University in Indiana, has been appointed a member of the Smithsonian’s Board of Regents. President Barack Obama signed the resolution appointing her as a citizen regent, effective Sept. 21. Córdova’s six-year term began immediately.

Córdova, 62, joins the 17-member Board of Regents, which includes nine citizen members, three members of the House of Representatives and three members of the Senate, as well as the Chief Justice of the United States and the Vice President, both ex officio voting members.

As president of Purdue University, Córdova oversees a university system with five campuses, more than 70,000 students, 18,000 faculty and staff members and an operating budget of more than $2.1 billion.

An internationally recognized astrophysicist, Córdova’s contributions to science have been in the areas of observational and experimental astrophysics, multi-spectral research on X-ray and gamma ray sources and space-borne instrumentation. She has published more than 150 scientific papers and is a co-principal investigator for an experiment flying on the European Space Agency’s X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission. She is the winner of NASA’s highest honor, the Distinguished Service Medal, and was recognized as a 2000 Kilby Laureate for “contributions to society through science, technology, innovation, invention and education.”

She was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and is a National Associate of the National Academies. She is a member of the National Science Board, the 24-member governing body of the National Science Foundation, and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Association for Women in Science.

She succeeds Eli Broad, who retired from the board April 6.