Jay Davis Named Livermore Lab's First National Security Fellow

LIVERMORE, Calif. — Jay Davis, the director of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) – a Department of Defense related organization – will return to Lawrence Livermore Laboratory to become the first National Security Fellow at the Lab’s Center for Global Security Research, effective July 1.

The Center for Global Security Research brings scientists and technologists together with analysts and others from the policy community to study ways in which technology can enhance national and international security.

As the Center’s first fellow, Davis will conduct research emphasizing homeland defense and threats to U.S. forces from unconventional weapons technology.

Lab Director Bruce Tarter created the fellowship as a way for "outstanding individuals" to pursue various national and international security interests. The fellowship will be open to internal and external candidates.

"I am pleased that Jay will be rejoining our Laboratory as our first National Security Fellow," said Tarter. "Jay has extraordinary knowledge of the Lab. Coupled with his experiences in Washington, DC, he will make a superb first fellow."

"I’m very excited to be coming back and working with center Director Ron Lehman," said Jay Davis. "Having had a chance to look at policy and defense issues in Washington, the center can play an important role in coupling the Lab’s technical capability to a broad range of national security problems. I look forward to working with and mentoring some of the people whose exciting ideas I’ve seen during my frequent visits to the Lab."

"Jay is the perfect individual to take on a number of vital international security issues," said Ron Lehman. "Those of us who have worked with him in the past are very pleased that he is coming here."

Prior to joining DTRA, Davis had a wide-ranging career at the Laboratory, including major contributions as an experimental physicist and, most recently, as the associate director for the Earth and Environmental Sciences Directorate (now Energy and Environment).

In 1997, Davis was named the first director of DTRA, an agency created to integrate and focus Department of Defense capabilities addressing the weapons of mass destruction threat.

While at DTRA, Davis was twice awarded the Distinguished Public Service Medal by the Secretary of Defense for his contributions to national security. It is the DOD’s highest civilian award.

Founded in 1952, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is a national security laboratory, with a mission to ensure national security and apply science and technology to the important issues of our time. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is managed by the University of California for the National Nuclear Security Administration.