Amber V. Dillard

Amber V. Dillard has more than 20 years of experience in strategic communications, public health, and project management, bringing expertise in leading complex initiatives and advising federal, state, and local government clients. Her work focuses on transportation safety, project leadership, research‑to‑practice translation, and strategic dissemination, supporting initiatives addressing health promotion, injury prevention, youth development, education, and community engagement.

An accomplished project director, principal investigator, and task lead, Dr. Dillard manages multi‑year initiatives involving interagency coordination and multidisciplinary teams. In addition to leading client work, she helps shape AIR’s transportation growth strategy through opportunity development, strategic positioning, and cross‑initiative collaboration. She currently serves as project director for the federal Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs.

Dr. Dillard has also served as principal investigator for the City of Birmingham’s Comprehensive Climate Action Community Outreach and Engagement project and as dissemination lead for the Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center, where she has led award-winning efforts to translate research into practice. 

Dr. Dillard's doctoral research examined the application of artificial intelligence, immersive and augmented reality, and mobile health to public health and injury prevention, with a particular emphasis on innovative digital approaches to child passenger safety education and training.