Tuesday 8:30 to 9:30 am
Open to all conference attendees and exhibition visitors
On choosing...
Dr. Regina E. Dugan, Director, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) will deliver the Symposium-wide Plenary Presentation at this year's meeting.
Appointed by Secretary of Defense, Robert M. Gates, and announced by the Director, Defense Researchand Engineering, Zachary Lemnios, Dr. Regina E. Dugan was sworn in as the 19th director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) on July 20, 2009.
Founded in 1958 as a response to the Soviet Union’s launch of Sputnik, DARPA’s mission is to prevent strategic surprise for the United States as well as create strategic surprise for our adversaries. From its founding more than 50 years ago to current day, this mission implies one imperative for the Agency: radical innovation for national security. Today DARPA is the principal agency within the Department of Defense for research, development and demonstration of high-risk, high-payoff projects for the current and future combat force.
Experienced in counterterrorism and defense against explosive threats, Dr. Dugan first served the Nation as a DARPA program manager from 1996 to 2000. During this first tour with the Agency, she directed a diverse $100 million portfolio of programs including the “Dog’s Nose” program, an effort focused on the development of an advanced, field-portable system for detecting the explosive content of land mines. In 1999, Dr.Dugan was named DARPA Program Manager of the Year for her efforts, and in 2000 she was awarded the prestigious Bronze deFleury medal by the Army Engineer Regiment. She is also the recipient of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Award for Exceptional Service and the Award for Outstanding Achievement.
Dr. Dugan’s contributions to the United States military are numerous. She led a counterterrorism task force for the Deputy Secretary of Defense in 1999 and, from 2001 to 2003, she served as a special advisor to the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, completing a Quick Reaction Study on Countermine for Enduring Freedom. The results of this study were subsequently briefed to joint senior military leadership and successfully implemented in the field.
Prior to her appointment as director of DARPA, Dr. Dugan co-founded Dugan Ventures, a niche investment firm, where she served as President and CEO. In 2005, Dugan Ventures founded RedXDefense, LLC, a privately held company devoted to innovating solutions for combating explosive threats, where she also served as President and CEO. From private industry, Dr. Dugan brings a wealth of management, finance, product development, and marketing experience to the Agency.
Widely recognized for her leadership in technology development and as an experienced public speaker, Dr. Dugan has appeared on the Discovery Channel, National Public Radio, and The AAAS Science Report. Her projects have been the subject of articles in The New York Times Science Times, The New York Times Circuits, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Chemical and Engineering News and Science News. Additionally, Dr. Dugan previously participated in wide-ranging studies for the Defense Science Board, Army Science Board, National Research Council, and the Science Foundation, and sat on the Naval Research Advisory Committee and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency and Technology Panel.
Dr. Dugan obtained her doctorate in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology and her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Virginia Tech. She is the sole inventor or co-inventor on multiple patents and patents pending. Dr. Dugan is the co-author of Engineering Thermodynamics, 1996. She is the first female director of DARPA.
