E&I Adds a Director

Azzara, the former senior vice president of research and development at the Hershey Company, knows what it takes to bring a great idea to market.

Now, he's using his experience and scientific background to help professors.

Azzara earned a doctorate in food science at Penn State in 1986 and serves as the Alan R. Warehime Professor of Food and Agribusiness, teaching agribusiness classes in innovation management and strategic decision-making that are part of the E&I Minor.

Dean Richard Roush's appointment of Azzara in spring 2015 added executive leadership to E&I's organizational structure.

"Action like the RAIN grants and the ENTI minor, communication and establishing an organizational structure are all shifting the culture," says Azzara. "If we do these well, we'll start to reenergize the culture and the thinking around E&I."