Ajay Menon was appointed Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences and the Director of the Colorado Agriculture Experiment Stations in July 2015. In this role, Dr. Menon is the chief administrative and academic officer with responsibility for leadership of the College’s strategic vision, academic programs, budgets, and related activities including resident instruction, research, outreach,…

Dr. Alan S. Rudolph, serves as the Vice President for Research at Colorado State University. Dr. Rudolph is a former member of the Senior Executive Service, having served as the Director for Chemical and Biological Technologies Directorate, Research and Development Enterprise, Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). Dr. Rudolph has had an active career in translating…

Alfred “Al” Almanza is the Global Head of Food Safety and Quality Assurance for JBS. Mr. Almanza leads the company’s global food safety and quality assurance efforts, ensuring that JBS facilities around the world adopt and implement food safety and quality control standards that exceed regulatory requirements and customer expectations. A globally recognized expert in…

Dave specializes in strategy and product development, using advanced technologies to reinvent products and services from design and engineering, to manufacturing and support. His areas of expertise include Internet of Things (IoT) and blockchain technologies. He has hands-on experience bridging the gap from concept to reality, helping businesses launch and scale new products. He has…

Dr. Blake Bextine joined the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in March 2016. He is interested in a diversity of approaches that address issues facing Agricultural Biotechnology and Biosecurity, including nucleic acid-based anti-pathogen/anti-pest strategies, insect and plant transformation strategies for rapid trait selection, and innovative approaches for altering insect behaviors. Dr. Bextine came to DARPA…

Dr. Keith Belk is a Professor and Holder of the Ken & Myra Monfort Endowed Chair in Meat Science with the Center for Meat Safety & Quality, Department of Animal Sciences, Colorado State University.  He also serves as Director of the Center for Meat Safety & Quality at CSU, and as an Adjunct Professor in…

Michael Lochhead is Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at MBio Diagnostics, Inc., a life sciences technology development company.  Mike is a company co-founder and he has led the growth of the company’s technical program from lab concept to research programs on five continents.  He has overall responsibility for a multidisciplinary, integrated team of…

Dr. Sally Rockey became the inaugural Executive Director of the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research in September 2015. Prior to this role, Dr. Rockey was an award-winning leader in Federal research. She spent 19 years with the U.S. Department of Agriculture where she held a number of positions within the Cooperative State Research, Education,…

Jocelyn Hittle directs program development for the National Western Center project, including managing CSU’s facility design and acting as a liaison between CSU’s faculty and staff and the project partners.

Kevin Shea was appointed Administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) on June 18, 2013, after serving as Acting Administrator since June 2012. In his role as the APHIS Administrator, Mr. Shea carries out the agency’s multiple missions of protecting the health and value of American Agriculture; mitigating…

In 07/2018, Lawrence E. Koleff was named Section Chief (SC) of the Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate (WMDD) Countermeasures Operations Section. Prior to his selection as SC, in 03/2016, Mr. Koleff was selected as an Inspector at FBIHQ Inspection Division (INSD) before being promoted to Chief Inspector of INSD in 05/2017. Mr. Koleff entered on…

Mark N. Sirangelo is currently the founder and CEO of QuanStar, LLC.  He was most recently was the head of Sierra Nevada Corporation’s Space Systems.  SNC’s Space Systems is one of the country’s top space builders having lead or participated in over 400 space missions, including over 50 planetary missions, and is the owner and…

Nathan Dorn is CEO and Co-Founder of Food Origins an early stage Precision Data company focused on Hand Harvested Crops.   A serial innovator for companies including Pepsi Bottling, Gallo Wineries and Vineyards, and Reiter Affiliated Companies, his focus has been in energy and labor savings through system redesign and simple invention.  He also serves as…

Steve is known for helping retail and consumer product clients worldwide to transform their business models and consumer-facing activities.  He is a leader in implementing complex business and technology solutions that drive improved performance.  In January 2017, Women’s Wear Daily (WWD) listed him among the “Top Industry Transformers”. Steve leads IBM’s Consumer Industry across the…