Mr. Edward J. Lee is the Program Coordinator for Historically Black Colleges and Minority Institutions (HBCU/MI’s) for the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) in Arlington, VA, one of the 9 directorates that comprise the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL). He is responsible for coordinating activities that provide funding support to minority institutions across the nation. Mr. Lee provides leadership, strategic direction, and oversight to universities to help make them aware of opportunities and facilitates introductions and guidance to ensure institutions of higher education are well represented within the minority community. He has a unique way of communicating and can talk to everyone to make them feel special, from students to university Presidents. Mr. Lee has taken on the task of coordinating activities with the small business programs of SBIR and STTR geared towards fostering the commercialization of products to the warfighter for the Department of Defense.

Mr. Lee has worked for the AFOSR since 1997, initially overseeing the University Research Initiative program. He is now working to enhance communications between HBCU’s and MI’s to be able to compete for contracts/grants at a larger scale. Working in private industry prior to coming to AFOSR and owning his own business since 1987, EJL Associates, Ed has helped to establish and support black-owned businesses in the Washington Metropolitan area. Ed is also a graduate from an HBCU, Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland and in 2013 authored his first book, The Soul of Man.