Donna J. Dean

Donna J. Dean is Senior Science Advisor with Lewis-Burke Associates LLC. Dr. Dean is responsible for developing strategies and providing advice and counsel to clients that enhance their successful participation in federal research programs.

Dr. Dean, with over 27 years experience as a senior Federal government executive, brings extensive knowledge, understanding, and experience in research and science policy. Prior to joining Lewis-Burke, Dr. Dean was Senior Scholar in Residence at the National Academy of Engineering of the National Academies and Senior Advisor for Engineering to the Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH), focusing on policies and projects at the interface of engineering and the health and life sciences.

Dr. Dean's comprehensive background derives from her diverse positions as researcher, as a regulatory scientist at the FDA, as administrator and manager of peer review processes, and as a senior scientific and policy advisor to the NIH Director during a critical time of transition. Designated the founding/acting Director of the new National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) at NIH in 2001, she brought to the task well-honed organizational development and problem-solving capacities, and an ability to develop collegial and cooperative interactions among diverse groups of individuals.

Dr. Dean has also been a pivotal leader on scientific and technical workforce issues (such as the Federal Interagency Commission on the Advancement of Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science, Engineering and Technology) and in women's health (co-chair of the Committee to establish the 21st century women's health research agenda.) Among her current professional activities are the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Executive Board of the Washington Academy of Sciences.  She recently completed a two-year term as national President of the Association for Women in Science.

After receiving the Ph.D. in biochemistry from Duke University in 1974, Dr. Dean conducted research in developmental and cell biology at Princeton University and in biochemical endocrinology at the NIH. She earned the Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry from Berea College (Kentucky) in 1969. In 2000, she completed a senior management program in the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.