Leadership
Major General Bruce M. Lawlor (Ret.), Chairman of the Board
Major General Lawlor was a distinguished service professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology; the former Chief of Staff of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); former Senior Director for Protection and Prevention, White House Homeland Security Council; and the first Commanding General, Department of Defense Joint Task Force Civil Support (JTF-CS). Gen. Lawlor presently serves as a member of the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) to DHS. He has extensive experience in homeland security policy formulation and operational planning, as well as homeland security operations execution.
Gen. Lawlor is experienced in U.S. Government homeland security policy making at the most senior levels. As DHS Chief of Staff, he managed the department’s policy decision-making process, coordinated department operations, and provided oversight for implementation of the DHS Secretary’s decisions. While a member of the Homeland Security Council staff, he directed the development of U.S. Government strategic plans and policies, provided oversight of interagency coordination of inter- and intra-governmental programs, and provided policy input to senior U.S. Government officials concerning a broad range of homeland security related issues. Gen. Lawlor was one of five senior White House staff members who wrote the plan to create the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Gen. Lawlor also has experience in the design, stand-up, organization, and operation of large, complex organizations. He stood up and became the first commanding general of JTF-CS, which is now a part of the United States Northern Command. The mission of JTF-CS is to plan and integrate Department of Defense consequence management support to civil authorities following a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or high-yield explosives (CBRNE) event within the United States, its possessions, or its territories. Before commanding JTF-CS, Gen. Lawlor was the Deputy Director of Operations, Readiness, and Mobilization and Deputy Director for Military Support at Headquarters, Department of the Army, where he provided oversight for the organization and stand-up of Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Teams (WMD CSTs).
Gen. Lawlor has a doctor of science degree in engineering management, a juris doctor degree in law, and a master’s degree in national security studies. He is a Harvard National Security Fellow and has served as an instructor at the U.S. Army War College. He is a member of the Vermont, Massachusetts, and Florida Bar Associations.