Biography

As Senior Director of Research Development & Strategic Partnerships at Howard University, Pamela plays a critical role in advancing the University’s mission of academic excellence, research innovation, and strategic partnerships. She oversees the design, implementation, and stewardship of research development programs that enhance faculty competitiveness, expand interdisciplinary collaborations, and strengthen the University’s research enterprise. Pamela leads initiatives to increase proposal success rates, elevate Howard’s research profile, and forge sustainable external partnerships.

Pamela plays a key leadership role in developing strategic research partnerships that position Howard University at the forefront of innovation. She works closely with federal agencies, national laboratories, and industry leaders—including Argonne, Brookhaven, Oak Ridge, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratories, as well as IBM, Google, Microsoft, NIH, NSF, and NASA—to advance collaborative research in AI, quantum information science, precision health, microelectronics, and climate science. These partnerships provide access to world-class facilities, expand training opportunities, and enhance faculty research capacity.

Pamela has been instrumental in advancing interdisciplinary research initiatives and major center development at Howard University. Notably, she led the proposal development team that secured the first HBCU University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) from the U.S. Air Force—the Research Institute for Tactical Autonomy (RITA UARC)—positioning Howard as a national leader in defense and autonomous systems research. Her strategic leadership has also supported major initiatives in AI/ML, precision health, microelectronics, and other emerging research domains.

Her expertise lies in building and managing robust research networks that connect educational institutions, federal agencies, industry partners, national laboratories, philanthropic organizations, and community stakeholders. As Strategy and Operations Lead for research development, Pamela develops and manages programs that: Strengthen faculty engagement in research; Provide strategic guidance for competitive proposal development; Support large, complex, and interdisciplinary grant submissions; Identify funding opportunities; and Expand partnerships that bring program officers and decision-makers to campus.

In addition to her leadership in research development, Pamela has conducted scientific research investigating the molecular mechanisms of endocrine resistance in breast cancer, focusing on how cancer cells adapt to systemic endocrine and cytotoxic therapies and the roles of hormones and growth factors in tumor progression. Pamela is the PI of the Chan Zuckerberg Initative, Accelerating Precision Health grant to further support the cutting-edge scientific research at Howard University to address significant gaps in genomics research, create new tools and methods to prevent and treat disease, and accelerate precision health for everyone.

Pamela holds a Master’s degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Georgetown University and a Bachelor’s degree in Biology (Cellular and Molecular) from Howard University. Her strategic vision, commitment to research excellence, and passion for empowering faculty and students make her a driving force behind the continued growth of Howard University’s research enterprise and its national impact.