Kettering University President Dr. Robert K. McMahan was appointed by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) Executive Committee on April 26.
The committee is charged with management and guidance of MEDC development projects and policy initiatives.
“I am honored to be appointed by Governor Snyder to the MEDC Executive Committee,” McMahan said. “I look forward to working to advance the economy of Michigan in this important role.” 
The Kettering University GM Mobility Research Center (MRC), an autonomous vehicle proving ground that, ties in directly with Michigan’s mobility and autonomous vehicle research and development initiatives. When completed in 2018, the MRC will be the only facility of its kind on a college campus in the country. Other unique facilities at Kettering include a Crash Safety Center where researchers have done testing that has resulted in new National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) standards being adopted, and the nation’s only FIRST Robotics Community Center located on a college campus in the country. During a visit to campus in 2017, Snyder called the FIRST Center, “the best place in the world for students interested in robotics.”
Prior to serving as Kettering’s president, among other roles McMahan was the Founding Dean of the College of Engineering at Western Carolina University and was the Senior Advisor to the Governor of North Carolina, and the Executive Director of the North Carolina Office of Science and Technology. In this latter role he also acted as a Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Commerce, the General Assembly and the Economic Development Board and was responsible for developing and implementing the state’s technology and university-based economic development programs.
Other appointments and reappointments to the MEDC Executive Committee are Michael McLauchlan, Doug Rothwell and Greg Northrup. The 20-member committee is charged with overall management and guidance of MEDC development projects and policy initiatives.
“I am confident these individuals will continue to reinvent Michigan and I want to thank them for their commitment to our state’s economic development,” Snyder said.