Alabama Transportation Institute, Executive Director

Allen S. Parrish is Executive Director of the Alabama Transportation Institute and Professor of Computer Science at The University of Alabama. Previously he served as Associate Vice President for Research and Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at Mississippi State University and Chair of the Department of Cyber Science at the US Naval Academy.

Prior to his work at the Naval Academy, Dr. Parrish served for 26 years on the faculty at The University of Alabama in a variety of roles, including Professor of Computer Science, Associate Vice President for Research, and Founding Director of the Center for Advanced Public Safety.

Throughout his career, Dr. Parrish has obtained approximately well over 200 funded projects totaling over $100M from a variety of state and federal sponsors. Dr. Parrish has published in refereed journals and conferences in areas as diverse as data science, software engineering, transportation safety and technology education.

Auburn University, Center for Bioenergy and Bioproducts, Director

Dr. Steven E. Taylor, P.E., is a Professor, Associate Dean of Research, Head of the Department of Biosystems Engineering and Director of the Center for Bioenergy and Bioproducts at Auburn University. As Center Director, he leads multidisciplinary research and outreach programs dedicated to deploying a viable biorefining industry in the region. As academic Department Head, he leads education, research, and extension/outreach efforts that solve engineering challenges in biological systems, natural resources, and the environment. Dr. Taylor’s research focuses on development of advanced logistics systems for harvesting, transporting, and processing forest biomass as well as thermochemical systems that convert forest and herbaceous biomass to renewable electrical power, liquid fuels, and high-value chemicals. He currently serves as on the leadership team of the Southeast Partnership for Integrated Biomass Supply Systems, which is a multimillion dollar university-industry consortium funded by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture focused on a biofuel and biobased products industry in the southeast U.S. Dr. Taylor is a Fellow in the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers and he is a Registered Professional Engineer in Alabama.

Associate Dean for Special Projects, Auburn University College of Engineering

Oliver Kingsley is a retired utility executive. Mr. Kingsley is currently the Associate Dean for Special Projects in the Office of the Dean for the Auburn University College of Engineering.

From February 2002 through November 2004, Mr. Kingsley was President and Chief Operating Officer of the Exelon Corporation, and President of Exelon Generation. He directed the operations of Exelon Nuclear, Exelon Power, Exelon Power Team, Exelon Energy Delivery, and Exelon’s interests in other generation operations.

Exelon Generation operates a generation fleet of nuclear, fossil, and hydro stations in six states, with a capacity of 28,000 MW. Exelon Generation’s nuclear fleet is the largest in the United States and the third largest in the world. Exelon Energy Delivery has the largest electricity customer base in the U.S., serving more than 3.4 million electricity customers in Northern Illinois through Commonweath Edison, and about 1.5 million electricity and 430,000 natural gas customers in Southeastern Pennsylvania through PECO Energy.

From October 2000 through February 2002, Mr. Kingsley was President and Chief Nuclear Officer of Exelon Nuclear, which operates ten stations (17 reactors) with a capacity of 17,000 MW – nearly 20% of the U.S. nuclear generation capacity. Mr. Kingsley was also Chairman of the Management Committee of AmerGen Energy Company, a partnership between Exelon and British Energy, which owns and operates nuclear plants.

Exelon Nuclear was created on October 20, 2000, the effective date of the merger of Unicom and PECO. Exelon Nuclear established itself as an industry leader. It set U.S. industry records for refueling outage duration, overall production costs, and set new generation records for the combined fleet and nuclear industry.

Mr. Kingsley joined Unicom the parent company of Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) in November 1997 as President and Chief Nuclear Officer of its Nuclear Generation Group, then the largest nuclear program in the United States. Under Mr. Kingsley’s leadership, the ComEd Nuclear Generation Group (NGG) made rapid progress in turning around a troubled nuclear power program. Quad Cities and LaSalle units were returned to service, and in 1999, for the first time in 9 years, all ComEd units were under normal NRC oversight. In 1999, the NGG set a record for electrical generation, with a capacity factor 20% higher than the previous best. As a result of high capacity and increased efficiency, production costs were reduced more than 40%.

From 1988 to 1997, Mr. Kingsley served as Chief Nuclear Officer for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and as Executive Vice President responsible for all power generation. Mr. Kingsley was responsible for the turnaround in the operation of the TVA nuclear power plants which resulted in normal NRC oversight and for the licensing of Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, Unit 1. While at TVA Kingsley led several initiatives partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). These initiatives were directed to solve strategic issues important to the DOE. Most notable of these were the generation of tritium at the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant and the use of enriched uranium from various DOE facilities in TVA nuclear power plants. From 1985 to 1988 Mr. Kingsley served as Vice President of Nuclear Operations for Middle South Utilities. From 1971 to 1984 he held various positions in nuclear management of the Southern Company including Plant Manager of the Farley Nuclear Plant, Assistant Manager of Nuclear Generation, Manager of Nuclear Engineering & Technical Support and Director of Nuclear Support. From 1966 to 1971 he served as an officer in the United States Navy Nuclear Submarine Force.

Upon his retirement in November 2004 from Exelon Corporation, Mr. Kingsley served on the Board of Directors for McDermott International, Babcock & Wilcox, and NextEra Energy. He is currently retired from these organizations.

Mr. Kingsley is a 1966 graduate of Auburn University, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering physics with honors. Kingsley was recognized formally by Auburn University with receipt of the College of Engineering Distinguished Achievement Award, the National Alumni Association Award for Lifetime Achievement and was presented an honorary doctorate from the University in December, 2009. He held several industry leadership positions, including membership on the Board of Directors of the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations, the Executive Committee of the Nuclear Energy Institute, and the Board of Governors of the World Association of Nuclear Operators. Mr. Kingsley served as President of the World Association of Nuclear Operators from October 2005 until September 2007. In June 2000, he was awarded the Walter Zinn Award of the American Nuclear Society, recognizing his leadership in nuclear power. In February 2003, he was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering. Mr. Kingsley is credited with having revolutionized the U.S. Nuclear industry. In October 2003, he received the World Association of Nuclear Operators’ Nuclear Excellence Award, in which he was cited for his leadership that has transformed troubled nuclear power organizations into top performers that sustain excellence. In 2004, Mr. Kingsley was inducted into the Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame. In May 2007, Mr. Kingsley received the William S. Lee award given by the Nuclear Energy Institute, the highest award given for the civilian nuclear power industry. Mr. Kingsley was recognized for his lifetime achievement and contribution to the nuclear industry success. On August 11, 2015, Holtec International conferred the “Energy Statesman” Award on Mr. Kingsley, the Legendary Nuclear Industry Leader.

Mr. Kingsley is a native on Ozark, Alabama. He was married almost 47 years to Sally Yeaman Kingsley; Mrs. Kingsley passed away in June 2014. He has four children, Amy Hayworth, Betsey Johns, Abby Kingsley, and Benjamin Kingsley and five grandchildren, Luke Hayworth, Sam Hayworth, Will Hayworth, Jacob Johns, and Kingsley Anne Johns. Mr. Kingsley resides in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida and Birmingham, Alabama.

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