Hastings is Second Consecutive Woman Elected FLC Chair

Whitney Hastings, a Senior Technology Transfer Manager at the National Cancer Institute, has been elected to succeed Linda Burger of the National Security Agency as Chair of the FLC Executive Board. It is the first time in the organization's history that female Chairs have been chosen in consecutive elections. 

Election results for the Chair position and seven others were announced in late March at the FLC National Meeting. The winners will begin their terms on October 1. In addition, the Executive Board approved new individuals to fill Committee Chair vacancies within the Promote and Facilitate pillars.

One of those vacancies involves Hastings (pictured at right), who has been the FLC Promote Committee Chair since 2020. She will succeed John Eisemann of the USDA National Wildlife Research Center as FLC Vice Chair when Eisemann retires later this month.

As the Promote Committee Chair, she has led FLC’s efforts to recognize and communicate noteworthy federal technology transfer accomplishments through the activities of three subcommittees – Communications, Website, and Awards. She is also an active member of the FLC Program Subcommittee within the Educate pillar, helping to develop content for the National Meeting. 

As an Executive Board member, Hastings has played an integral role in developing the FLC's next five-year Strategic Plan and has been part of a working group aimed at increasing outreach to the organization's small and underrepresented labs.

As Chair, she hopes to draw on her FLC leadership experience to energize the federal tech transfer community and increase engagement.

“The FLC is a phenomenal organization, and it has been key to my growth as a technology transfer professional. As Chair, I will work to make sure all our members are engaged and able to benefit from the opportunities, programs and resources available through the FLC the way I have,” Hastings said. “I’d also like us to work to enhance and expand our current offerings to our members and partners. The FLC provides great benefits in these areas, but I believe we can do more to fully achieve our vision.”

Learn more about the individuals elected to other FLC positions:

Vice Chair:
David Kistin, Sandia National Laboratories

Kistin is the Manager of Technology & Economic Development at Sandia National Laboratories and the Regional Coordinator for the FLC's Mid-Continent region. 
 

Member at Large (reelected):
Jeff DiTullio, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC)

DiTullio is a Technology Transfer Officer for ERDC, an FLC Member at Large and Chair of the FLC Program Subcommittee within the Educate pillar.
 

Mid-Continent Regional Coordinator:
Andy Myers, Kansas City National Security Campus (KCNSC)

Myers is the Technology Transfer Lead for KCNSC and has been the Deputy Regional Coordinator for the FLC Mid-Continent region since 2021.
 

Mid-Continent Deputy Regional Coordinator:
Amanda Jelsema, Sandia National Laboratories

Jelsema is a Technical Business Development Specialist at Sandia National Laboratories and currently serves on the FLC Professional Development Subcommittee within the Educate pillar.

Northeast Regional Co-Coordinators (reelected):
David Lee, U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Armaments Center
Laurie Bagley, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL)

Lee and Bagley have been the FLC Regional Co-Coordinators for the Northeast region since 2019. Lee is a Technology Transfer Associate for the Army DEVCOM Armaments Center, and Bagley is the Head of Technology Transfer at PPPL.

Northeast Deputy Regional Coordinator (reelected):
Joseph DiRenzo, U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center (USCG RDC)

DiRenzo is Director of Research Partnerships for the USCG RDC and has been the FLC Deputy Regional Coordinator for the Northeast region since 2020.

Southeast Regional Coordinator
Sharon Soucek, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)

Soucek directs the Office of Technology Transfer for NIEHS, within the National Institutes of Health. She has been involved in events planning for the Southeast region and was a 2016 FLC Award winner for commercialization of a Candida infection diagnostic.

Promote Committee Chair:
Derek Parks, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

Parks is Deputy Director of the NOAA Technology Partnerships Office and Chair of the FLC Website Subcommittee within the Promote pillar.

Facilitate Subcommittee Chair:
Paige George, Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC), Panama City Division

George is a Technology Transfer Manager for NSWC Panama City and the FLC Regional Coordinator for the Southeast Region.