Curtis Pearson joins the Potomac Institute following 30 years with Northrop Grumman where he served in a variety of roles in program and system development spanning a wide range of DOD and IC technology, missions, and systems.

His background includes strategic planning, mission and concept development, operational planning, technology planning and development, and mergers and acquisitions.  He retired from the Naval Reserves as a CDR (O-5) after 27 years of both Active and Reserve Service with expertise in Mine and Amphibious warfare, ship systems engineering and construction, and Military Sealift Command port operations.

He is a Life Member of the National Defense Industrial Association, a member of the Naval War College Foundation, and The Tailhook Association, as well as an active member in the Association of Old Crows, The Intelligence and National Security Alliance, and The Navy League. He previously served as the Chairman of the Board for the Southern Coalition for Advanced Transportation.

Curtis received his bachelor’s degree in Engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval War College and completed the Darden Business School Executive Management Program.

Dr. Robert Hummel Chief Scientist of the Potomac Institute in the CEO’s Office and is a member of the Center for Revolutionary Scientific Thought.  He is the author of the recent Potomac Institute book on “Alternative Futures for Corrosion and Degradation Research,” and is also serving customers in DARPA and OSD.  He is the principle author of the Institute’s forthcoming book on machine intelligence.  He is currently researching material sustainment of materiel that is subject to atomic degradation.

Prior to joining the Potomac Institute, he served as a program manager at DARPA for nearly nine years, managing and initiating projects in information exploitation, computer science, and sensor design.  Prior to joining DARPA, he was a tenured faculty member at NYU’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences in the Computer Science Department, where he did research in computer vision and artificial intelligence.  

Dr. Hummel’s PhD is from the University of Minnesota in mathematics, and he holds a B.A. from the University of Chicago, also in mathematics.

The Potomac Institute for Policy Studies is pleased to announce that Miriam Jackson has been promoted to the position of Assistant VP for Financial Management.  Ms. Jackson joined the Institute in October of 2007, as a Staff Accountant. She then acquired additional duties and responsibilities as a Contracts Administrator, in 2008.  In 2010, Ms. Jackson was honored as a recipient of a Potomac Institute Corporate Officers' Award for her outstanding service.  Prior to joining the Potomac Institute, Ms. Jackson was employed as a Staff Accountant in the Finance Departments of the National Heritage Foundation (NHF) and the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC).  She previously interned at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) in the office of the Chief of Budget.

Commenting on Ms. Jackson's promotion, Vice President for Financial Management and CFO Gail Clifford said,  "She is one of our greatest assets and an essential member of the Finance & Contracts division. Her professionalism and thirst for knowledge make it a pleasure to work with Miriam."

Regarding her new role at the Institute, Ms. Jackson said, "I am so appreciative and so very grateful for this opportunity. When I joined the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, I knew I made a great career choice. I would like to thank our CFO, Gail Clifford, for her support and continuous guidance. I love working with everyone here, and I am very excited about many more years working together."

Ms. Jackson graduated from Bowie State University with a Bachelor of  Science degree in Business Administration – Information Systems. She is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Financial Management and Information Systems.