Siebel School and Cancer Center at Illinois announce the Ira R. Cohen Endowed Chair

Thanks to an endowment by Debra Cohen on behalf of her late husband and Illinois alumnus, Ira, the Ira R. Cohen Endowed Chair will advance efforts in cancer research and computer science.

The Ira R. Cohen Chair in Computer Science and Cancer Research has been created by a generous gift from Debra Cohen in memory of her late husband, Ira (CS ’80). This endowed chair will be held by a prominent faculty member in the Siebel School of Computing and Data Science in The Grainger College of Engineering who is also a Cancer Center at Illinois (CCIL) member.

“We are grateful to Debra Cohen for this visionary gift. It will help attract a leading scholar to Illinois, boost our collaborative research activities, create unique opportunities for students, and lead to impactful solutions to complex cancer problems,” said Rohit Bhargava, Grainger Distinguished Chair in Engineering and Phillip and Ann Sharp Director of the CCIL.

For Debra, the gift was another way to honor her husband’s legacy and his affection for Illinois. 

“Ira truly loved the university,” Debra said.  

In 1982, two years after completing his degree in computer science, Ira co-founded Advanced Systems Concepts with partner Ken Kelley.

“He was a very hard worker. He was so efficient at accomplishing what needed to be done,” Kelley said.

After selling the company in 2006, Ira and Debra remained active in charitable pursuits, including the American Cancer Society, where Debra served as chairperson of the Illinois division and as a member of ACS's national board of directors. The couple continued to support Illinois through several gifts, including the Ira & Debra Cohen Graduate Fellowship in Computer Science, the Sarah and Louis Cohen Undergraduate Scholarship and the William and Ruth Witt Scholarship. Most recently, Debra established a scholarship in memory of Ira's parents, the Anita and Allan Cohen Scholarship by the Cohen Family. They were also the lead donors and a driving force behind the formation of the CCIL’s researcHStart program for high school students.

“We are delighted to be able to memorialize our great friend and cherished alumnus, Ira Cohen. Debra and Ira have been among the strongest supporters of The Grainger College of Engineering and the Cancer Center at Illinois,” Bhargava added. “This prestigious Chair will ensure that his legacy continues to resonate strongly with our shared goal of easing the burden of cancer through engineering.”

“Ira would hope with this funding that the professor would have the impact on future students that his professors had on him during his time at the university,” Debra said.  

Debra added that for her and Ira, philanthropy is not just about money but also giving of your time and talent. "The investing of yourself in something that truly matters to you," she said.

Nancy Amato, Abel Bliss Professor of Engineering and Siebel School director, praised the Cohens for their continued involvement.

 “Ira and Debra are models of what ‘giving back’ looks like,” Amato said. “This gift will enable collaborative research and have a lasting, profound impact on cancer research and computer science for decades. It is a particularly strategic gift for the Siebel School as we grow our expertise and impact in computational biology and bioinformatics, generally, and computational cancer research, in particular.”

Of course, when one speaks of Ira Cohen’s strong work ethic and dedication to giving back, they also speak of his kindness. 

“He cultivated very strong friendships. His friends were loyal to him, and he was loyal to them,” Kelley said. “He’s greatly missed.” 

Debra regularly visits campus and maintains contact with Ira’s college friends.

“He really met an amazing group of friends at the university that continue to stay in touch with each other,” she said. “Ira enjoyed his time at Illinois immensely. He was very proud of graduating from there.” 

Grainger Engineering Affiliations

Rohit Bhargava is an Illinois Grainger professor in bioengineering, the Grainger Distinguished Chair in Engineering and Professor in the Department of Bionengineering, and the Philip and Ann Sharp Director of the Cancer Center at Illinois. He was a founder professor in engineering for the Grainger Engineering Breakthroughs Initiative and held the Brunner Fellow for Educational Innovation. Bhargava is also affiliated with the Tissue Microevnironment (TiME) Training Program. 

Nancy M. Amato is an Illinois Grainger professor of computer science and the Abel Bliss Professor of Engineering at Siebel School of Computing and Data Science as well as director of the Siebel School. Amato is affiliated with the Computing Research Association (CRA) as past board chair and is president elect of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Robotics and Automation Society (RAS). She holds fellows with the Association for the Advancement of Artificial intelligence (AAAI), the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers IEEE, and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.