Arkansas Research Alliance Inducts Six New Members

By the Arkansas Delta Informer Staff

LITTLE ROCK – April 17, 2026 – Six new scholars and fellows were inducted into the Arkansas Research Alliance’s academy, bringing the total membership to a public-private research partnership founded nearly two decades ago to attract and retain world-class researchers and scientists in Arkansas.

The ARA Academy induction ceremony was held on Thursday (April 16) at the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts in Little Rock, where the new members were strategically selected by their respective Chancellors and committed to Arkansas to carry out their vision for applied and fundamental research.

They included Mohammadreza Daroonparvar (ARA Innovation Scholar, Arkansas State University), Kaicong Wu (ARA Innovation Scholar, University of Arkansas), Anindya Ghosh (ARA Fellow, University of Arkansas Little Rock), Phillip Huff (ARA Fellow, University of Arkansas Little Rock), Qinglong Jiang (ARA Fellow, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff) and Yathish Ramena (ARA Fellow, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff).

Clint O’Neal, executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC), offered opening remarks at the ceremony, noting that scholars’ and fellows’ industry-facing, job-creating research helps drive the state’s economic growth. 

“What happens in this room today matters for the future of Arkansas,” said O’Neal. “Not just for the universities represented here. Not just for the research community. But for the businesses, the local communities, and the people across this state who are counting on us to build something extraordinary together.”

The ARA Academy is a community of established and emerging research investigators who have benefited from recognition, support, and financial awards through one of ARA’s talent programs. Those programs include ARA Scholars, ARA Fellows, and ARA Innovation Scholars. 

In 2015, the ARA Academy of Scholars and Fellows was established to recognize exceptional researchers statewide. The ARA Scholars program recruits talent to the state’s research universities, while the ARA Fellows program recognizes researchers already working at one of those colleges, including Arkansas State University, University of Arkansas, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.

Founded in 2008, the research alliance now has 37 members and is supported by a board of trustees that includes the five chancellors of the state’s research universities and 16 business leaders from the state’s top corporations.

ARA officials said the current cohort’s research work enables advancements in economic sectors such as engineered materials with timber and steel, advanced manufacturing, lithium and energy production, cybersecurity, sustainable architecture and design, and food production.

 “ARA’s partnership with AEDC helps assemble world-class scientific minds, like these six new inductees, in Arkansas, connect them to our high-growth industries, and gives them the tools to convert discovery into economic opportunity,” said ARA President and CEO Bryan Barnhouse.

“The state’s support, when paired with investments from the ARA Board of Trustees, raises the bar for scientific and engineering research excellence that builds our capacity for research-industry collaborations that produce economic results. 

Each ARA Scholar recruited to Arkansas receives a three-year, $500,000 grant. Under the ARA Fellows program, research talent already working on campuses at one of the five research universities or at the federal Food and Drug Administration’s National Center for Toxicological Research in Jefferson receives a 3-year, $75,000 grant.

The ARA Innovation Scholars Program is an incentive added to a university’s offer to recruit emerging research stars in key job-growth markets, enabling universities to strengthen connections with Arkansas companies and advanced industry clusters. Those selected as an ARA Innovation Scholar receive a $200,000 award over a three-year period and membership to the ARA Academy.

Click here to view brief biographies of the new ARA Academy inductees.