Developed in collaboration between UT and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Joint Directed Research and Development program nurtures collaborative research from the two institutions. The program recently announced the selection of twelve UT faculty researchers to benefit from its current cycle of funding.

The program funds projects that might otherwise be mired at a particular point of the development process, providing resources to help the research progress. For the past ten years Science Alliance, through the JDRD program, has helped numerous faculty and staff of both institutions pursue their goals.