Directors & Advisors

Term Expires Fall 2025

Mr. Dunn is the Division Head for the Power and Energy Division comprised of over 80 engineers, scientists, and technicians conducting research and development on a wide variety of energy-related projects including alternative energy solutions, microgrids, aircraft power systems, intelligent power solutions, thermal generation systems, combustion, hypersonic combustion, bio fuels, fuel solutions and energetic materials. He has over 25 years of experience leading military research, development, testing and transition. His first 21 years were as an active duty Air Force Officer where he worked assignments in Intel, Flight test, the National Reconnaissance office, rapid capability office and the Holloman High Speed Test Track.

Since his retirement from the US Air Force, Mr. Dunn has supported a wide range of projects transitioning technology for UDRI. These projects included transitioning new technology in support of advanced, energy efficient industrial process projects, energy portfolio support, war gaming and simulations, and sustainment technologies.

Term Expires Fall 2026

Sean has served as a NAMC Director since 2022 and is currently the Technical Director for Applied Technology and Advance Programs (ATAP) at Textron Systems. He is responsible for driving technology development at Textron Systems across air, land, sea, and weapon system domains. Since 2006, Sean has been leading advanced multi-domain uncrewed product development initiatives, transitioning key technologies into existing and new product lines, executing key program captures, and working with business area leadership teams to develop technology-oriented strategies.

Formerly, Sean was a Graduate Research Assistant within the Mechanical Engineering Department at Virginia Tech focused on applied research related to autonomous systems, intelligent perception technologies, and advanced instrumentation. Work included the development and demonstration of multiple autonomous fixed and rotor wing aircraft, intelligent mobility platforms, and human-machine interfaces. Work also includes field robotic applications including the 2004, 2005, and 2007 DARPA Grand and Urban Challenges. Sean has been recognized with the prestigious Textron Chairman's Award for Innovation, appeared on the Discovery Channel, and holds multiple U.S. patents.

Term Expires Fall 2025

Bill is an Army Veteran who has been Senior Mobility Engineer at Nevada Automotive Test Center for the last decade. Prior to this, he spent 39 years as Department of the Army Civilian at TACOM. He has contributed to several innovative projects including XM860 PATRIOT semitrailer, M551 Product Improvement Program, A ACAT I Amphibious Combat Vehicle, the HMMWV Sustainment Modification Initiative, Stryker NBCRS and MGS survivability, FMTV A1P2 upgrade, the USMC Marine Personnel Carrier program, and much more. 

Bill's areas of expertise include military ground vehicle mobility and performance metrics, DoD program management, and several other specialties.

Term Expires Fall 2026

Traci has dedicated her career to DoD vehicle engineering in multiple capacities, both as a contractor and, proudly, a former Army Civilian. Her strategic vision, collaborative approach to program management, and extensive working knowledge of Army procurement has resulted in significant growth for GS Engineering.

In her former role at GVSC’s Product Integration Facility (PIF), Traci led integration efforts for many PM offices at the Detroit Arsenal, developed a wide network of contacts that she engages with regularly, and won multiple commander’s coins for her efforts. In her current role as Engineering Manager at GS Engineering, Traci is responsible for oversight of project management and workforce management, including the execution of all the company’s projects to budget and schedule. As part of GS Engineering’s management team, she contributes to strategy development in the areas of Government business execution and development of new markets.

Term Expires Fall 2026

Trish began her career with GD as the Business Development Manager for tracked combat vehicles, robotics and autonomous systems.  Her contributions were integral for the capture of two significant Army programs of record - Mobile Protected Firepower and Small Multi-purpose Equipment Transport.

Trish is a native of Aynor, SC and is a graduate of Newberry College where she was commissioned into the U.S. Army as an Ordnance officer. Over her 28-year Army career, she served in a variety of operational units in the United States, Germany, Korea, and Iraq.

While serving as the Brigade Special Troops Battalion Commander in 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division, she also served as the Contingency Operating Site Warrior Installation Commander for 7,000 personnel from various Department of Defense and Department of State entities, along with host nation and multi-national governmental and non-governmental agencies based in Kirkuk, Iraq. While serving as the 101st Sustainment Brigade Support Operations Officer, she led a 150 Soldier team/staff providing logistics support to two division size commands in northern Iraq spanning an area the size of Louisiana. Other assignments include service at the Department of the Army Staff, G-3 Force Management and G4 Logistics. She retired from the Army in 2015 at the rank of Colonel and as the Chief of Staff, U.S. Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command. 

She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Newberry College, a Master of Science degree in Logistics Management from Florida Institute of Technology and a Master of Business Administration from Indiana University. She is also a graduate of the US Army’s Command and General Staff College and Force Management School.

Her military awards/decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medals, Meritorious Service Medals, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, Iraqi Campaign Medals, Global War on Terror Expeditionary and Service Medals, Korean Defense Service Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Army Staff Identification Badge, Meritorious Unit Commendations and a Presidential Unit Citation. She has also received the Ordnance Order of Samuel Sharpe honorary award.

Other notable honors include being the recipient of Daughters of the American Revolution Distinguished Citizen Award and Women in Defense-Michigan Chapter Excellence in Leadership Award.

Term Expires Fall 2025

Michael D. Bolon established MD&B Enterprises in 2013 after serving in leadership positions in Fortune 500 companies for more than 40 years. Michael’s professional experience includes engineering management for Chrysler Corporation and General Dynamics Land Systems.

Mr. Bolon joined Chrysler Corporation in 1968 as a power train engineer. Within five years he advanced to a management position where he led the design and development of the propulsion system for the M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank which included the integration of a turbine engine.

After General Dynamics acquired Chrysler Defense in 1982, Mr. Bolon was named Deputy Program Manager for Tank Programs, with progression in 1986 to General Manager of Armored Vehicle Technologies Associated, a joint venture between GD and FMC Corporation. In 1992, he was appointed Director of Advanced Programs for General Dynamics, and was named Vice President for Amphibious Systems in 1996. Just three years later, Mr. Bolon became the Vice President of Production and Delivery, responsible for all manufacturing.

In 2000, Mr. Bolon was appointed Senior Vice President of Engineering Design and Development, leading General Dynamics Land Systems’ team for technology, product design and development, logistics engineering and technical support. His leadership role continued to evolve after being named Senior Vice President of Enterprise Strategy and Chief Technical Officer. In that role, Mr. Bolon had enterprise-wide responsibility for Advanced Programs, Business Development, Business Planning and Alliances, Planning Control and Analysis, and Innovation and Technology Planning. Mr. Bolon’s most recent role was the Senior Vice President and Business Sector Executive for United States Marine Corps and United States Navy programs.

Mr. Bolon’s professional experience includes responsibility as Chairman of the General Dynamics Corporate Engineering and Technology Council from 2005 to 2013. He also serves on Oakland University’s School of Engineering and Computer Science (SECS) Advisory Board, the Engineering Society of Detroit Board of Directors and the National Advanced Mobility Consortium Board of Directors.

Term Expires Fall 2027

Jason Toepfer serves as the Director for Business Development & Marketing for Caterpillar Defense within Caterpillar’s Industrial Power Systems Division. In this role, Jason leads a team of Business Development, Marketing, and Capture professionals. He uses his government and defense industry experience to bring Caterpillar’s commercial excellence to ground vehicle, power generation, and engineering & construction machine programs within the US Army, US Marine Corp, and US Special Operations Command.

Prior to this current role, Jason served as the Ground Applications Lead for Caterpillar Defense. Before Caterpillar, he was a program manager and business development director for Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace (KDA). As the first US-based program manager, he led the XM914 Remote Weapon Station program to be used on the US Marine Corps’ Ground-Based Air Defense (GBAD) platform. He was also the business development director responsible for all remote weapon station products to the US Army. Before KDA, he was the business development manager for sensors and tactical missiles, as well as the Detroit Office Site Manager, for Raytheon Missile Systems.

Jason served as an active duty officer in the United States Army for 21 years prior to his defense industry career. He was commissioned through ROTC as an Infantry Officer for the first 10 years, where he served in a variety of leadership and staff roles including Platoon Leader, Battalion Maintenance Officer, Rifle Company Commander, and Brigade Chief of Training. Jason transition to the Army Acquisition Corps, serving in multiple roles including AMPV & Bradley Department of the Army Systems Coordinator (DASC), Acquisition Director for the 401st AFSBde (Bagram), and Product Manager for Stryker Future Operations under PM SBCT.

Jason graduated from the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics. He also holds a Master of Business Administration from the Raymond J. Harbert College of Business at Auburn University. Jason is an NDIA Tactical Wheeled Vehicle Conference Board member, as well as a member of the inaugural NAMC Advisory Board. He is a member of the AUSA Arsenal of Democracy Chapter, the NDIA Michigan Chapter, and the Michigan Chapter for Women In Defense.

Term Expires Fall 2027

Jim Schirmer was hired into American Rheinmetall Vehicles as the Senior Vice President and Deputy Managing Director in July of 2023.  He is focused on growing and maturing the organization and associated processes to deliver on promises to our customers.

Prior to joining Rheinmetall Jim served in the Army for 32 years, 28 in uniform and 4 as a civilian member of the Senior Executive Service.  As an Army civilian, he served as Deputy Program Executive Officer for Ground Combat Systems from 2019-2023.  In that role, he oversaw an organization of 1,500 personnel managing 13 major combat vehicle programs.  Before retiring from active duty as a Colonel in the Army, Jim served in a variety of combat vehicle programs, notably as Project Manager Next Generation Combat Vehicle where he helped to launch the OMFV (now XM30) program.   As Project Manager for Armored Fighting Vehicles from 2014-2018, he led the program offices for the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, the Self Propelled Howitzer, the Future Fighting Vehicle, and launched the Mobile Protected Firepower (now XM10 Booker) program for which he won the Army Program Manager of the Year award in 2017.  From 2010-2013, he was the PM for the Stryker Double-V Hull and later the DVHA1. From 2007-2010, Jim served as a capability manager for Abrams and Bradley. From 2004-2007 he worked in the Stryker program, and before that as an operational test officer.  Before entering the Army Acquisition Corps in 1999, Jim served as an armor officer in 3rd Infantry Division and later the 1st Cavalry Division.  His operational deployments include Kuwait, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Iraq.

Jim holds a BS in History from the United States Military Academy, an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, and a Masters in Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College. 

Term Expires Fall 2027

Mark Gordon is the President and CEO of Stratom, Inc., a Colorado-based company that provides robotic and autonomous solutions in challenging environments and RAPID robotic refueling to the Department of Defense and global commercial customers.

Mr. Gordon’s activities have included executive leadership, research and development, product development, and strategy development with Fortune 500 companies, the Federal Government and the Department of Defense (DoD).  He has experience in the management of engineering organizations, manufacturing, and operations, and has international experience in sourcing, business management, and product introduction.

Prior to Stratom, Mr. Gordon held management positions at high technology companies and was an Artillery Officer in the US Marine Corps.  He has a Master in Engineering Management from the University of Colorado and a Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering from Bradley University.  Mr. Gordon has been involved in the autonomous systems community for decades and is on the Board of Directors for the National Advanced Mobility Consortium (NAMC) and is a prior Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Association of Uncrewed Systems Vehicles International (AUVSI). 

Term Expires Fall 2027

Rich Wronski is Vice President of the Sensing, Perception, and Applied Robotics Division at Charles River Analytics Inc. In this role, he is responsible for managing a portfolio of AI/ML-based technologies, products, and services for autonomy applications across the land, sea, air, and space domains.

Rich has over 35 years of leadership experience working with a wide range of both commercial and government customers, including various agencies within both the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security, as well as numerous international clients. Before joining Charles River, Rich served as Director of Custom Products at American Science and Engineering, where he led development of x-ray based detection systems geared to combating terrorism and trade fraud. Earlier, he served as Director of Asia Pacific R&D for Comverse Network Systems, a global provider of enhanced telecommunications service platforms, after having served in various technical and program management roles at GE Aerospace.

Rich received his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering for Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and an MBA in Entrepreneurship from Babson College. He is also a graduate of GE's Edison Engineering Leadership Development Program.

Term Expires Fall 2026

Jay Miseli is a retired Army officer and proven executive leader, founder, and innovator with 30 years of experience delivering results in military organizations and industry.  Jay is Co-Founder and CEO of Red Thread X and has led Sales and Business Development for a $50M technology firm as a Senior Vice President.

 His military career spanned a broad range of responsibilities including large unit command, executive-level plans and operations, multinational and cross-agency coordination, US Army combat vehicle modernization, human resource and program management, and budget programming and execution.  Jay continues to support strategic wargaming and analysis as a highly qualified expert for Army Futures Command.

 Jay attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, where he completed a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. Jay holds a master’s degree in operations research from the Georgia Institute of Technology, and he earned the academic title of Assistant Professor of Mathematics as course director for the advanced mathematics program at West Point.

 Jay lives and works in the greater Austin area where he can enjoy the many opportunities to mountain bike, hike, and be outdoors and working in the burgeoning tech and defense innovation sectors.

Term Expires Fall 2025

Kurt is a seasoned robotics expert with over 29 years of experience developing and deploying advanced robotic platforms across a wide range of industries, from military to commercial sectors. He is currently the Vice President of Neya Systems, where he is focused on achieving his goal of being the first company to field autonomous off-road vehicles.

Before joining Neya, Kurt held leadership positions at QinetiQ, where he played a pivotal role in transitioning the “Talon” EOD robot from a DARPA R&D program to the deployment of over 10,000 units. He later led the Marine Corps Tactical Robotic Controller program, successfully integrating control systems for more than 22 robotic platforms. Kurt’s career also includes Director of Robotics at Nextroid, where he designed end-to-end autonomous vehicle software architectures for a top-tier automotive company.

Kurt holds an M.B.A. from Babson College, degrees from Wentworth, and multiple certifications from MIT. He is also a board member of the National Advanced Mobility Consortium (NAMC), where he represents robotics.
 

Arlissa Vaughn is CEO of Aegis Power Systems, Inc., a company in North Carolina serving the defense industry with the design and manufacturing of power electronics. Her role as CEO involves the oversight and management of many aspects of the business using skillsets in strategy, ethics, financial analysis, marketing, and team development. The syndication and application of these skills also supports the important objectives of the Advisory Board of the NAMC. She believes that OTAs are a strong mechanism to achieve new systems and advanced capabilities for the Warfighter. Arlissa welcomes the opportunity to share her insights as a small business leader with the NAMC community.

Jeffrey loves helping others with their problems and helping those in need to be encouraged to continue the everyday challenges everyone faces on a personal and business level. Relationships are a key to making things happen in the world. Customer service is still the heartbeat of business.

Michael Robbins is Chief Advocacy Officer at AUVSI where he leads all advocacy, strategic communication, and cybersecurity initiatives. He joined AUVSI in 2020.  

In 2015, he co-founded a business consulting firm, Intrepid, and serves as its Chief Operating Officer. Prior to starting Intrepid, Michael served as Managing Director of Government and Public Affairs at the Air Line Pilot Association, International (ALPA). Before ALPA, Michael spent a decade in the office of the late Congressman John Dingell (Michigan), where he served as the Chief of Staff.  

Michael serves on the board of the Greater Washington Aviation Open and the National Advanced Mobility Consortium. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree from Georgetown University and is an officer in the United States Navy (Reserve). 

Dr. Hitchcock is an independent consultant who specializes in the Defense sector. Prior to her retirement in Dec 2022, Dr. Hitchcock worked more than 33 years for the Department of Defense and the United States Army. She served as a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) with the U.S. Army and led many efforts including the development of ground combat concepts for the OSD’s Third Offset Strategy and the realignment of $2.2B of ground vehicle technology programs to Army modernization priorities. Her organizational and leadership experience includes organizational change and transformation, military ground vehicle technologies, system engineering, acquisition, and program management. She has led organizations with more than 1000 associates, fiscal responsibility of more than $500 M, and the development and implementation of strategic efforts to meet U.S. Army and DoD needs. She also served as a Professor of Program Management at Defense Acquisition University (DAU) where she provided classroom instruction on Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition processes and policies and conducted mission assistance (consulting) with DoD agencies to aid in the development and implementation of key acquisition and leadership activities. She also taught an MBA semester long leadership class at Lawrence Technology University as part of a faculty exchange with DAU.

Dr. Hitchcock earned a Doctor of Management from Lawrence Technological University in An Exploration of Organizational Collective Motivation and the Influence of the SOAR Framework to Build Organizational Collective Motivation as applied to organizational transformation. She earned a Master of Science in Global Leadership and Management Lawrence Technological University, a Master of Science Mechanical Engineering from Oakland University, and a Bachelor of Science Mechanical Engineering from Lawrence Technological University. She is a licensed professional engineer, a certified executive coach, and is a member of the board for NDIA Michigan. Additionally, she serves on several advisory committees for profit and non-profit companies and on boards at Wayne State University and University of Michigan

Dr. Hitchcock is the honored recipient of the Meritorious Presidential Rank Award, Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology & Logistics) Award for Excellence, NDIA Silver Medal Award, Excellence in Leadership Award from the Women in Defense Michigan Chapter, Meritorious and Superior Civilian Service Award, Commander’s Award for Civilian Service, and is an inductee of the Military Order of Saint Christopher. She was an inaugural inductee into Lawrence Technological University Engineering Hall of Fame and received the Leaders and Innovators Award and Alumni Achievement Award from Lawrence Technological University

Ryan Edwards is the Director of Strategy & Requirements for the Integrated Survivability Solutions (ISS) product line within the Countermeasure & Electromagnetic Attack (CEMA) business area within the Electronic Systems (ES) sector of BAE Systems, Inc. He helps his product line understand customer requirements & shape strategy for electro-optical & infrared (EO/IR) sensing & survivability capabilities for ground combat vehicles, fixed & rotary wing aircraft, and maritime markets in US and allied defense markets.

Starting with BAE in October 2016, Ryan brings 20 years of experience as an officer in the Army, Army Reserve, and Army National Guard with 6 years of experience in defense consulting & project management, and 5 years of experience in technology sales in the private sector.

Ryan spent seven years in the 19th Special Forces Group including 4 years as a Special Forces Team Leader conducting missions in North Africa, and 1 year as an Operations Officer for Special Operations Command Africa in Stuttgart, Germany and Nouakchott, Mauritania. While serving in the National Guard, Ryan also spent three years SETA contractor managing RDT&E projects for the Combatting Terrorism Technical Support Office (CTTSO) under the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations & Low Intensity Conflict (ASD-SO/LIC). His projects at CTTSO included new capabilities in analytics software, small arms development, weapons optics, and tactical communications.

Ryan was born & raised near Columbus, Ohio where he currently resides. He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, graduating in 1996 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Strategic History and commissioned into the Infantry branch of the US Army. While on active duty Ryan served as a Bradley platoon leader for the 4th Infantry Division at Ft. Hood, Texas. He deployed as an infantry officer to Baghdad in 2005 and as an advisor in Samarra, Iraq in early 2006

Mr. Langhout brings more than 37 years of experience in Army aviation and national intelligence communities, serving the last 10 years as an officer in the Senior Executive Service. He recently retired from his career in civil service as Director for the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center (DEVCOM AvMC) where he led a workforce of more than 11,000 engineers, scientists, researchers, and support staff in delivering life cycle engineering and advanced technologies as required by the Army's strategic priorities and support to its cross-functional teams and the Aviation and Missile materiel development enterprise.