Vernon Dunn, PhD

Vernon is based in the Washington, DC office and is originally from New Orleans, LA. Vernon is a published scientist with a background in wide-ranging STEM and higher education policy and programming. While completing his doctorate at LSU, he worked for the Louisiana Board of Regents, managing the Louisiana STEM Advisory Council. As the only hired staff for the council, he led legislative research and analysis efforts, built strategic partnerships with external stakeholders, organized fundraising initiatives, and researched and wrote policy recommendations for the Louisiana legislature. He also helped to plan and execute the state’s first Louisiana STEM Summit in 2018. As a graduate student at LSU and awardee of both National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health Fellowships, he was elected as the university’s first Graduate Student Body President, where he worked with senior administrators to increase graduate student stipends and travel awards and sat on several committees involving campus strategic planning, policy and student affairs. The combination of his science, leadership, and policy experience makes him a unique member of the team.