Hon. Stephen T. Ayers
National Institute of Building Sciences Interim CEO, 11th Architect of the Capitol

The Honorable Stephen T. Ayers, FAIA, NAC, CCM, LEED AP, the 11th Architect of the Capitol and President of The Ayers Group, LLC, is the Interim CEO of the National Institute of Building Sciences.

Ayers previously served as Chair of the NIBS Board from 2017 to 2018. He also served as Chair of the Construction Management Association of America and the Construction Users Roundtable.

On February 24, 2010, President Barack Obama nominated Ayers to serve as the 11th Architect of the Capitol. By May of that year, the United States Senate confirmed Ayers, and the President officially appointed him to a 10-year term as Architect of the Capitol.

Ayers was responsible for facilities maintenance and operation of the U.S. Capitol building and the operation and maintenance of 18.6 million square feet of buildings, including the House and Senate Congressional office buildings, Capitol Visitor Center, Library of Congress, U.S. Supreme Court Building, and Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building.

John Hooper, SE, PE
Director of Earthquake Engineering, Magnusson Klemencic Associates

John is a Senior Principal at MKA and leader of the Laboratory Specialist Group, focused on the unique design aspects of high-tech lab, research, and vivarium facilities. His portfolio includes laboratory-driven buildings reaching 11 stories, research campuses totaling up to 900,000 square feet, and change-of-use renovations to accommodate wet labs and genetic research equipment. John has designed state-of-the-art facilities to house research for infectious diseases, veterinary medicine, and life sciences, often meeting strict Bioscience and Animal Bioscience safety levels such as BSL-2, BSL-3, and ABSL-3. He has designed several facilities that have been tested to confirm vibration performances as low as 2,000 micro-in per second. John is also MKA's Director of Earthquake Engineering, recognized nationally for his advanced seismic design expertise and active in code development and research.

Dr. Dan Kaniewski
Managing Director, Public Sector, Marsh McLennan, Former FEMA Deputy Administrator

Daniel Kaniewski is Managing Director, Public Sector, Marsh McLennan Advantage. In this role he leads enterprise-wide initiatives that deliver breakthrough perspectives and innovative solutions for public sector challenges.

Prior to joining Marsh McLennan in February 2020, Dr. Kaniewski was Deputy Administrator for Resilience at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In this role he was FEMA’s second ranking official and led the agency's pre-disaster programs. He was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate on September 14, 2017.

He was also Chair of the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) High Level Risk Forum, comprised of risk managers from the 36 OECD member nations.

Before FEMA he led the Global Resilience practice at AIR Worldwide, a catastrophe risk modeling firm. He was also a Senior Fellow at the Center for Cyber & Homeland Security.

Dr. Kaniewski was Special Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Senior Director for Response Policy in the George W. Bush Administration, where he managed over 200 Presidential disaster declarations.

He holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration from George Washington University, an M.A. in National Security Studies from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and a B.S. magna cum laude in Emergency Medical Services from George Washington University.

Dr. Lucy Arendt
Professor at St. Norbert College

Lucy A. Arendt, Ph.D. is a Professor of Management in the Donald J. Schneider School of Business & Economics at St. Norbert College. She also serves as the Co-Director of the Center for Exceptional Leadership, along with her colleague, Dr. Jamie O'Brien. Dr. Lucy received her B.S. in Business Administration and Spanish from UW-Green Bay (UWGB) in 1987, and her M.S. in Administrative Science from UWGB in 1990. She earned her Ph.D. in Management Science (Strategic Management, Organizational Behavior) from UW-Milwaukee in 2006.

Dr. Lucy is an active member of the college community, serving in a leadership capacity on a variety of committees and projects. Her service also extends to the professional community at the local, state and national levels. She serves as the chair of the federal Advisory Committee on Earthquake Hazards Reduction and is an elected member of the board of directors and secretary/treasurer of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), an international professional association of individuals dedicated to research on earthquakes. Before joining St. Norbert College in 2016, Dr. Lucy served as an Associate Dean at UW-Green Bay and was the 2008-09 recipient of its Founders Association Award for Excellence in Teaching and the May 2010 recipient of the student-nominated Teaching Award for Experienced Teacher.