Regina E. Dugan has been appointed as the 19th director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Department of Defense (DoD) announced. DARPA is the principal agency within the DoD for high-risk, high-payoff projects in research, development, and demonstration of concepts, devices, and systems that provide highly advanced military capabilities for current and future combat forces. Dugan has held several key positions in industry, most recently as president and CEO of RedXDefense LLC, which she co-founded in 2005, a company that develops defense against explosive threats. She has also served in senior executive positions in several additional companies in roles ranging from global sales and marketing to research and product development. During her first tour at DARPA from January 1996 to May 2000, Dugan received the program manager of the year award for her leadership of the “Dog’s Nose Program,” which was focused on the development of an advanced, field-portable system for detecting the explosive content of land mines. She is also the recipient of the deFleury Medal, the office of the secretary of defense award for exceptional service, and the award for outstanding achievement. She has participated in wide-ranging studies for the Defense Science Board, the Army Science Board, the National Research Council and Science Foundation, and currently sits on the Naval Research Advisory Committee and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency Science and Technology Panel. Dugan earned her doctorate in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology and her master's and bachelor's degrees from Virginia Tech. She is the co-author of “Engineering Thermodynamics” (1996), sole inventor on one issued patent and inventor or co-inventor on nine additional patents pending.