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Featured speakers:
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dr. stacey a. dixon
deputy director, national geospatial intelligence agency (NGA)
Dr. Stacey A. Dixon became the eighth Deputy Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) on July 1, 2019. In this role, she assists the director both in leading the agency and in managing the National System for Geospatial Intelligence.
From 2018 to 2019, she served as the fourth director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), after serving as its deputy director from 2016 to 2018. Before joining IARPA, Dr. Dixon served as the deputy director of NGA’s research directorate, where she oversaw geospatial intelligence research and development. Prior to that, she served as NGA’s chief of congressional and intergovernmental affairs, and then deputy director of NGA’s corporate communications office.
From 2007 to 2010, she was a staff member for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and from 2003 to 2007, she worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, where she was assigned to the National Reconnaissance Office’s advanced systems and technology directorate.
Dr. Dixon holds both a doctorate and master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University. She was also a chemical engineer postdoctoral fellow at the University of Minnesota. She additionally serves as a presidentially nominated member of the Board of Visitors to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. Dr. Dixon is a native of the District of Columbia, where she currently resides.
general david h. petraeus
4th Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2011-2012)
Commander of the International Security Assistance Force (2010-2011)
Commander of US Central Command (2008-2010) US Army (1974-2011)
General David H. Petraeus (US Army, Ret.) is a Partner with the global investment firm KKR and Chairman of the KKR Global Institute, which he established in May 2013. He is also a member of the boards of directors of Optiv and FirstStream, a venture investor in more than 15 startups, and engaged in a variety of academic endeavors.
Prior to joining KKR, General Petraeus served over 37 years in the U.S. military, culminating his career with six consecutive commands, five of which were in combat, including command of the 101st Airborne Division during the fight to Baghdad and the first year in Iraq, command of the Multinational Security Transition Command in Iraq, command of coalition forces in Iraq during the Surge, command of U.S. Central Command, and command of coalition forces in Afghanistan.
Following retirement from the military and after Senate confirmation by a vote of 94-0, he served as Director of the CIA during a period of significant achievements in the global war on terror, the establishment of important Agency digital initiatives, and significant investments in the Agency’s most important asset, its human capital.
General Petraeus graduated with distinction from the U.S. Military Academy, and he is the only person in Army history to be the top graduate of both the demanding U.S. Army Ranger School and the U.S. Army’s Command and General Staff College. He also earned a Ph.D. from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs. General Petraeus taught international relations and economics at the U.S. Military Academy in the mid-1980s, he was a Visiting Professor of Public Policy at the Honors College of the City University of New York from 2013 through 2016, and he was for 6 years a Judge Widney Professor at the University of Southern California and a Senior Fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center.
He is currently a Visiting Fellow at Yale University’s Jackson Institute, Co-Chairman of the Global Advisory Council of the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, Senior Vice President of the Royal United Services Institute, and a Member of the Trilateral Commission, as well as a member of the boards of the Atlantic Council, the Institute for the Study of War, and over a dozen veterans service organizations.
Over the past 15 years, General Petraeus was named one of America’s 25 Best Leaders by U.S. News and World Report, a runner-up for Time magazine’s Person of the Year, the Daily Telegraph man of the year, a Time 100 selectee, Princeton University’s Madison Medalist, and one of Foreign Policy magazine’s top 100 public intellectuals in three different years.
General Petraeus has earned numerous honors, awards, and decorations, including four Defense Distinguished Service Medals, the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, two NATO Meritorious Service Medals, the Combat Action Badge, the Ranger Tab, and Master Parachutist and Air Assault Badges. He has also been decorated by 13 foreign countries, and he is believed to be the only person who, while in uniform, threw out the first pitch of a World Series game and did the coin toss at a Super Bowl.
michael dubin
Founder & ceo, dollar shave club (DSC)
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Michael Dubin is a creative entrepreneur, executive and trailblazing brand-builder with a unique style and an engaging voice that clearly resonates with male consumers. Under his leadership, Dollar Shave Club has grown into a multicategory grooming brand with millions of active members. The company was acquired by Unilever in July of 2016, making it the top exit in Los Angeles and one of the largest deals in ecommerce history.
lieutenant GENERAL James (jim) c. slife
Commander, air force special operations command
Lt. Gen. James C. “Jim” Slife is the Commander, Air Force Special Operations Command, Hurlburt Field, Florida. The command is the Air Force component of U.S. Special Operations Command. AFSOC provides Air Force special operations forces for worldwide deployment and assignment to unified combatant commanders. The command has approximately 20,800 active-duty, Reserve, Air National Guard and civilian professionals.
Lt. Gen. Slife was born outside of Detroit and grew up in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was commissioned through the ROTC program at Auburn University and has spent the majority of his career in special operations aviation assignments, deploying extensively.
lieutenant general dorothy hogg
surgeon general of the united states air force
Lt Gen Dorothy A. Hogg is the Surgeon General, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Pentagon and also serves as the first Surgeon General of the United States Space Force. In this role, she advises the Secretary of the Air Force, the Air Force Chief of Staff, the Space Force Chief of Space Operations, and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs on matters pertaining to the medical aspects of the air expeditionary force and the health of Airmen and Guardians. Lt Gen Hogg has authority to commit resources worldwide for the Air Force Medical Service, to make decisions affecting the delivery of medical services, and to develop plans, programs and procedures to support worldwide medical service missions. She exercises direction, guidance and technical management of a $6.1 billion, 44,000-person integrated healthcare delivery and readiness system serving 2.6 million beneficiaries at 76 military treatment facilities worldwide.
Prior to her current assignment, Lt Gen Hogg served as Deputy Surgeon General and Chief, Air Force Nurse Corps, Office of the Surgeon General, Falls Church, Virginia. Lt Gen Hogg entered the Air Force in 1984 and has commanded at the squadron and group level, and served as the Deputy Command Surgeon for two major commands. She has deployed in support of operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.
Rear Admiral Melissa Bert
Judge Advocate General, U.S. Coast Guard
Rear Admiral Melissa Bert assumed duties as the Judge Advocate General and Chief Counsel of the Coast Guard in April 2020. She has the privilege to lead a dedicated group of legal professionals who are responsible for the delivery of all legal services in support of the Coast Guard's missions, its units and its people.
Her preceding flag assignment was as Director of Governmental and Public Affairs, where she synchronized the service’s external engagement with Congress, the media, and strategic partners and stakeholders. Prior to that, she was Deputy Director of Operations for the U.S. Northern Command overseeing homeland defense and defense support for civil authorities for North America, as well as theater security cooperation with Mexico and The Bahamas.
Before promotion to flag-rank in 2016, she distinguished herself in service in both legal and operational capacities. As a lawyer, she was Chief of the Coast Guard’s Maritime and International Law Office, supporting U.S. engagement with the International Maritime Organization and providing legal advice on a variety of policies – including the Law of the Sea, drug and migrant interdiction, homeland security, search and rescue, pollution response, port and vessel safety/security, counter-terrorism, Arctic policy, and environmental protection. She was also Deputy Staff Judge Advocate for the Seventh District in Miami, FL and a Military Judge. For her legal expertise she was awarded the Young Military Lawyer of the Year for the Coast Guard by the American Bar Association in 1997 and the Judge Advocates Association Outstanding Career Armed Services Attorney Award in 2006.
Operationally, she was Chief of Staff for the Seventh Coast Guard District, responsible for oversight of Coast Guard operations in the Southeastern United States and Caribbean and was also privileged to Command Sector Juneau and direct mission execution in the unique environment of Southeastern Alaska. During the attacks of 9/11, she was the Operations Officer for Coast Guard Sector Los Angeles/Long Beach protecting one of the nation’s most valuable ports. She previously served aboard two cutters, including as Executive Officer of the Cutter Red Birch in Baltimore, Maryland.
Rear Admiral Bert is a graduate of the Coast Guard Academy and George Washington University Law School. She has been a national security fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School and a military fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) in New York. She has taught as an adjunct professor at George Washington University and University of Miami Law School.
Her honors include the United Way American Values Award, the Joint Superior Service Medal, two Legions of Merit, and three Meritorious Service Medals. She is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a Proctor in Admiralty in the United States Maritime Law Association and a Proctor in Admiralty in the United States Maritime Law Association. She is also the founder of the Women’s Leadership Initiative supporting mentoring and professional development for Coast Guard women in uniform and civilians.
Dr. suzanne kearns
international civil aviation organization (ICAO) member, Royal air society fellow, professor of aviation, and award winning author
Dr. Suzanne Kearns is an Associate Professor of Aviation at the University of Waterloo. She is an internationally recognized leader in aviation education research, earned airplane and helicopter pilot licenses at the age of 17, advanced aeronautical degrees from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and began working as an aviation professor upon graduation at the age of 24. In the years since, she has taught and mentored thousands of aviation students, written/co-authored six books (including ‘Competency-Based Education in Aviation’, which was the first detailed investigation into this training theory applied to aviation; and, ‘Fundamentals of International Aviation’, which is a textbook with multiple translations used around the world to introduce youth to the field of aviation). She has received several awards for research and educational works, frequently delivers invited keynote addresses at international conferences, and holds leadership positions with several international aviation organizations including supporting the Next Generation of Aviation Professionals program with the International Civil Aviation Organization, as a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, and as Past-President of the University Aviation Association.
brigadier general shan k. bagby
commanding general, brooke army medical center
chief, us army dental corps
Brigadier General Bagby was born in Newark, New Jersey and earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Physics from Rutgers University, a Doctor of Dental Medicine Degree from the University of Pittsburgh, a Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration from Baylor University, and a Master’s Degree in Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College. He completed Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMS) residency training at Martin Luther King, Jr./Drew Medical Center, Los Angeles, California and Fellowship training in OMS trauma surgery at the University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas.
BG Bagby received his ROTC commission in 1989 and transferred to the Active Component in 1997. His previous career assignments include: Deputy Commanding General (Support), U.S. Army Medical Command; 28th Chief, Army Dental Corps, Deputy Chief of Sta for Support, G-1/4/6; Deputy Chief of Sta/Troop Commander, U.S. Army Medical Command; Commander, U.S. Army Dental Health Activity, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington; Chief, Dental Corps Branch, U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Fort Knox, Kentucky; Chairman and Program Director, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMS) Residency Program at Joint Base San Antonio, Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Commander, 561st Medical Company (Dental Services), Grafenwoehr, Germany; Assistant Residency Director, U.S. Army Dental Health Activity, Fort Sam Houston, Texas; and Instructor, Oral Surgery at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, District of Columbia.
He is a graduate of the Army Medical Department Ocer Basic and Advanced Courses, Airborne Course, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and U.S. Army War College.
His awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with three Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Commendation Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Achievement Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Meritorious Unit Citation, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal with two bronze service stars, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon (2 awards) and the Army Parachutist Badge. He holds the Army Surgeon General’s “A” Prociency Designator and is a member of the Order of Military Medical Merit. He is a Fellow of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons and is board certied by the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.
In his leisure time, BG Bagby enjoys reading, shooting skeet and trap, and exploring new places with his family.
chief kimberly spears-mcnatt
chief of police, ohio state university police department
Kimberly Spears-McNatt has more than two decades of law enforcement experience and has served as a patrol officer, Lieutenant, and Deputy Chief. In 2019, she was named the 11th Chief of Police in the history of The Ohio State University Police Division and the first female to ever hold the position.
She is a member of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police, International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, Ohio Women’s Law Enforcement Network, FBI National Academy Associates, Inc. and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Columbus (OH) Alumnae Chapter.
Spears-McNatt has completed extensive training in areas ranging from criminal investigation to homeland security. She is also a graduate of the Police Executive Leadership College, Certified Law Enforcement Executive Program, FBI National Academy (#279 Session). In her time with Ohio State, she has received several honors, including a Commendation Award and a Medal of Valor.
Her personal and professional philosophy is to whom much is given much is required. Spears-McNatt received her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from The Ohio State University and went on to earn a master’s degree from Franklin University.
MELISSA CUMMINGS
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT of DIGITAL & INNOVATION, WESTINGHOUSE
Melissa Cummings was named executive vice president, Digital and Innovation, in June 2020, bringing more than 20 years of industrial software experience in product, service and technology innovation across various industrial segments to Westinghouse. In this role, she drives the digitalization and innovation agendas for Westinghouse.
Prior to joining Westinghouse, Ms. Cummings served as the Senior Vice President of Digital Solutions and Services at Baker Hughes, one of the world’s largest energy technology companies. In that role, she led a global solutions business providing technology and transformation efforts for energy customers across the world.
Cummings has more than 20 years of industrial software experience in product, service and technology innovation across the power generation, health care, mining and oil and gas sectors. She began her career in program and product management, progressing through a series of increasingly responsible positions at companies including Sun Microsystems and McKesson Provider Technologies. Cummings has also served in leadership positions within GE and ABB, where she advanced to globally responsible roles supporting digital solutions for customers around the world.
Cummings earned a bachelor’s degree in international economics from The George Washington University and attended the University of Colorado for business administration and information systems.
captain timothy quast, usn
commanding officer, usns mercy
Captain Tim Quast is a third generation Naval Officer who graduated from Tulane University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering. He began his career as a Surface Warfare officer serving aboard USS COWPENS (CG-63) in San Diego and USS MOBILE BAY (CG-53) in Yokosuka, Japan. He attended the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) School of Medicine from 1998-2002. At USUHS he served as the Academic Representative and was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society.
Captain Quast completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Bethesda Naval Hospital, serving as the class president and earning "Intern of the Year" distinction. He was subsequently selected to serve as the Chief of Residents for his first staff tour and completed a Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship at Walter Reed-Bethesda's National Capital Consortium (2006-09) where he was a finalist for the Bailey K. Ashford award for research in 2009.
Quast has been devoted to mentorship and career development. He initiated a formal mentorship program at Walter Reed and created a Career Development Board program at US Naval Hospital Guam that is used at numerous Navy MTFs. Captain Quast served at Walter Reed from 2009-12, from which he deployed to Kandahar in 2010. In Kandahar he served as the ICU director, overseeing the care of hundreds of coalition warriors during the kinetic operations known as the “Kandahar Surge.”
In 2012 he reported to U.S. Naval Hospital Guam where he served as Director of Primary Care. As one of two intensivists on Guam, he served both the local community and the Navy's highest acuity ICU. In 2015 he reported to Naval Medical Center San Diego (NMCSD) and was selected as the Navy’s Internal Medicine Specialty Leader for 440 internists and subspecialists worldwide. As Specialty Leader, he provided maximum support to the Fleet from his community by more than doubling downrange deployments from previous years and developing internist metrics for “knowledge, skills, and abilities.” He served as the Pulmonary-Critical Care and Sleep Department Chair and was an inaugural graduate for NMCSD’s Healthcare Quality and Leadership Academy.
In 2018 Quast reported as Executive Officer to U.S. Naval Hospital Rota, Spain, where he developed over two dozen Director-level quality initiatives, including the implementation of a vibrant and growing telehealth capability. His leadership was integral in ensuring Force Health Protection at Rota during a time when Spain had the highest worldwide mortality rate, and he authored a COVID Reconstitution Plan that has been used as a template for other regional MTFs.
Captain Quast's personal awards include the Meritorious Service Medal (3), the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (5), and the Navy Achievement Medal (5). In 2014 he received the American College of Physicians’ Sparks award for the top U.S. Navy Internist in teaching and academic acumen and was honored as a Master Clinician in 2017 at NMCSD.
Special agent in charge steven hooper
federal bureau of investigations (FBI), retired
Steven R. Hooper is a Professor of Security and Intelligence at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, College of Security and Intelligence in Prescott, AZ. He teaches Counterintelligence, Security Management and National Security and Intelligence Integration at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Professor Hooper is retired from the FBI where he served for 30 years. His FBI career included Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Phoenix Field Office; Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the National Security Branch of the FBI Phoenix Field Office where he led operations for Counterintelligence, Intelligence, Counterterrorism and Critical Incident Response Programs. He was Chief of the Threat Monitoring Unit in the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division and led a Russian Organized Crime Task Force in Budapest, Hungary. As an investigator, Professor Hooper conducted Criminal and Counterintelligence investigations into Russian Organized Crime, Soviet GRU, Espionage Operations during the Cold War and investigated Violent Crimes in the Baltimore/Washington, DC area.
Professor Hooper’s law enforcement experience also includes tactical and SWAT operations, Executive Protection and Intelligence Operations. Additionally, Professor Hooper was a Special Agent with the United States Secret Service working Counterfeiting, Fraud and Executive Protection.
Professor Hooper is also a Certified Protection Professional (CPP) and together he and his wife Linda, also a retired FBI Special Agent, run Tripwire Security Solutions, a full service consulting company on Risk Analysis, Preparedness, Detection and Incident Response.
Professor Hooper is a native of Malden, MA. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from St. Anselm College, Manchester, NH and a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice/Homeland Security from St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, PA. He also attended the George C. Marshal School for European Security Studies in Garmisch, Germany and The Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University. He is a member of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers, The Marine Corps/Law Enforcement Foundation, The Espionage Research Institute International and ASIS.
Lt Col (dr.) mary big mountain, usaf
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS, DET. 028, AFROTC
Lieutenant Colonel Big Mountain serves as the Director of Operations, Detachment 028, Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) and as an Associate Professor of Aerospace Studies, at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Arizona where she uses her doctorate in Applied Leadership to instruct and mentor our next generation of military leaders. She leads staff actions for a team of 10 overseeing actions of a cadet wing consisting of over 330 cadets; the 4th largest det in our nation.
After commissioning from the Officer Training School in 1999, Lt Col Big Mountain earned her pilot wings from Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi in 2000 where she earned the “Top Academic” Award. She served as a C-130 pilot both at the 36th Airlift Squadron at Yokota Air Base, Japan and the 2nd Airlift Squadron at Pope AFB, North Carolina gaining operational experience in Southeast Asia and in the Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom AORs. In 2005, Lt Col Big Mountain transitioned to the Air Force Reserves where she served as a Foreign Clearance Overflight Specialist and an Airlift Director of Operations at the Tanker Airlift Control Center Air Operations Center, Scott AFB, Illinois. During this time, she deployed using her foreign language skill of Russian to serve as the Chief of Military Cooperation in Tashkent, Uzbekistan earning the “Air Force CGO of the Year Award” for her success in revitalizing regional diplomatic ties while establishing the Northern Distribution Network for CENTCOM.
Prior to her current position with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, she was activated as the Deputy Division Chief of Analysis and Assessments and a founding member of the Profession of Arms Center of Excellence (PACE) where she was recognized as the 14th Intelligence Squadron’s “FGO of the Year” for 2015. In her current position, Lt Col Big Mountain was recognized as the AFROTC Region’s “Instructor of the Quarter” and the University’s “SGA Faculty of the Semester” in 2017 during her first year as an instructor. Additionally in the spring of 2018, Lt Col Big Mountain was recognized as the “Volunteer of the Quarter” for her region and the top “Field Grade Officer of the Quarter” (three years in a row!) outperforming 228 of her FGO peers assigned to Air University, the leadership center of the US Air Force.
Ali Shahbaz
Forbes magazine, contributor & professional writer
Ali Shahbaz is a young writer based in Washington DC. A polyglot living between four countries across three continents, he is excited by intersectional conversations on equity and growth, with a spotlight on young people. After boarding school in Switzerland, Ali attended Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, where he focused on the convergence of business and policy, and graduated with Honors. He worked for an investment bank on Wall Street and an International Financial Institute (IFI) in Washington DC. Ali has written on inclusion and representation in publications like the Washington Post, Forbes, Newsday, the Boston Globe. He is a contributor at Forbes, where he writes on issues affecting young people across sectors. Ali is currently completing the manuscript of his first book and when not in meetings to find the right literary agent, he loves to mentor aspiring writers. He can be reached via Twitter @thealishahbaz
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Featured entertainment:
Mobility is the high-energy pop and rock band of the United States Air Force Band of the Golden West stationed at Travis Air Force Base, California. The talented members of Mobility are honored to represent the more than 325,000 Air Force professionals serving all around the world, performing a wide variety of chart topping hits. Mobility is best known for its captivating and high energy rock shows and represents the face of Air Mobility Command and Air Force recruiting.
This high-powered group tours extensively throughout the western United States, reaching audiences of over 600,000 per year and performing for diverse audiences at military events, town festivals, school assemblies, professional sporting events and to our deployed troops overseas. Mobility has had the honor to perform for U.S. Presidents, International dignitaries, and have shared the stage with notable acts such as Kid Rock, Daughtry, and Brad Paisley. Mobility represents the best of Air Mobility Command and the United States Air Force and is guaranteed to deliver.
USAF Band of the Golden West "Mobility" Studio Performance
DJ SPARX
DJ Sparx, originally from Holland, is a young professional female DJ who has performed at festivals, for big-name corporations, at private parties for celebrities and at some of the biggest events in the UK. DJ Sparx frequently travels the world and performs in exotic destinations such as Miami, Sri Lanka, Mallorca, La Palma, Italy, Croatia, France and more. She also holds a residency at London's premier events boat on the Thames, the Yacht London.
Her prominence in the DJ world is shown in the fact that she has amassed over 100,000 followers across different social media platforms. DJ Sparx has also performed live on BBC and has been interviewed live on BBC on several occasions about her career as a full time female DJ. Her remixes have also been played on radio.
DJ Sparx is known for her great ability to read the crowd and provide a stunning, energetic performance wherever she plays.