Stephen Nash’s term as Program Director for Operations Research at the National Science Foundation is coming to an end. The position is announced here, with a target date of looking at applications of April 1. The “Engineering Design” position is also open. I think this position is a very interesting one. The responsibilities (from the position announcement):
[Program Directors] solicit, receive and review research and education proposals, make funding recommendations and administer awards. They are also responsible for interaction with other Federal agencies, forming and guiding interagency collaborations, and for service to Foundation-wide activities.
I spent a number of years running Tepper’s Carnegie Bosch Institute, where we provided support for research on international issues in business. Even though the area was not my core interest, I found it a very rewarding period. So, in the interest of disclosure, I may throw my name in the hat for this NSF position (the main drawback is too much time away from my four-year-old son). I definitely encourage those interested to consider the position: we need as strong a voice for OR as we can get in this role.
Robert Sloan in computer science has a nice article on the joys of being an NSF Program Director.
That sounds like a great opportunity! I hope you apply!