Mr. Michael McAndrew is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Construction within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Sustainment). He provides executive leadership on all matters pertaining to DoD’s physical infrastructure, to include development and execution of policies, guidance, and procedures for construction, operations, maintenance and repair of DoD’s worldwide facilities to enhance and preserve warfighting capabilities and to provide safe working and living conditions for our military personnel and families. His responsibilities include all matters related to real property maintenance; facility operations; and host-nation programs related to facility construction and management. 

Prior to assuming his current duties Mr. McAndrew served, as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Facilities Management. In this capacity, his facilitates portfolio also included policy development and oversight of DoD’s housing portfolio, which included government-owned and privatized inventories. Prior to 2008, Mr. McAndrew served as the Deputy Director, Base Realignment and Closure Directorate, responsible for policy development and oversight of analysis supporting the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) round. He also previously served within the Office of the Secretary of Defense as the Deputy Director for Housing and Energy and the Assistant Director of Housing, responsible for DoD-wide policy development and issues related to the operation and ownership of government and private-sector housing for military use; and as the Assistant Director for Base Closure and Utilization, responsible for developing policy and procedures for the Department’s 1993 and 1995 BRAC rounds. Mr. McAndrew began his Department of Defense civilian employment in 1991 as a Presidential Management Intern within the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

 Mr. McAndrew served on active duty as an officer in the United States Air Force from 1984 to 1991. After leaving active duty, he resumed his military career in 1995 when he entered the Air Force Reserves, serving as an Individual Mobilization Augmentee within the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition. He retired from the Air Force Reserves as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2009. Mr. McAndrew is a 1984 graduate of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management. In 1991, he attained a Master of Science degree in Contract and Acquisition Management from the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida. Mr. McAndrew completed the Federal Executive Institute Leadership for a Democratic Society program in 1999, and the National Security Study’s National Security Leadership Course at Maxwell School of Syracuse University in 2001. He was appointed to the Senior Executive Service in 2008.

Craig Unger is Principal and CEO of Unger Security Solutions, LLC, providing consulting services for acquisition management; project delivery; and advisory services for the security and detention environment.  Mr. Unger founded the business upon his retirement from the federal government in 2003.

Mr. Unger was appointed by the Attorney General of the United States in August 2001, to serve as the Justice Department's Federal Detention Trustee.  As a career civil servant with over 26 years of service, Mr. Unger achieved the highest leadership role (Senior Executive Service) before retiring as a Federal Law Enforcement Officer with the Justice Department.

Additionally, Mr. Unger served as President of the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA 2003 – 2004) and is regarded as a leader of the integrated project delivery design-build movement in the public sector.

Mr. Unger has an extensive background in various alternative disputes resolution (ADR) techniques to include Facilitating numerous Partnering Workshops, Mediation Services, and a former member of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority Disputes Resolution Board.

Mr. Unger is a nationally recognized lecturer throughout the industry and has authored numerous articles and publications, including US Congressional reports and testimony.  He received a BA in Accounting from Bloomsburg University; a MBA from West Virginia University; and attended Harvard University for post graduate work.  He is also a Veteran of the US Marine Corps.

Craig is also the winner of DBIA’s Brunelleschi Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor DBIA bestows.

Richard J. Formella is the President of Design-Build Strategic Solutions, LLC, a design & construction contracting process consulting firm. He recently retired from federal service as Chief of the Bio-Containment Procurement Branch for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). He has over 32 years of federal acquisition/contracting experience and joined DHS in 2006 serving as a Head of the Contracting Activity through 2014. Prior to joining DHS, Mr. Formella was employed by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) for over 20 years and concluded his service at BOP as the Chief of Construction Contracting where he led and administered the $3.0 billion dollar new federal prison construction contracting program. At the DHS he led the team providing design and construction contracting support for the DHS Science and Technology Directorate for major laboratory renovations and new construction an overall $1.5 billion program, including the $1.3 billion National Bio & Agro Defense Facility.

 Mr. Formella is a 1986 graduate of the FLETC, and holds a BS in Forest Management from the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point; a Masters Certificate in Project Management from Regis University, and a MS in Management – Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness from Troy University. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP), a designated Design-Build Professional (DBIA) and a Certified Public Procurement Officer (CPPO).

Harlen has over 20 years of combined government and private sector commercial construction experience. She started out in the private sector where she worked for multiple leading General Contractors and held positions in preconstruction and project management. In 2012, she transitioned to the government as a Senior Project Manager spearheading real estate and construction portfolio management projects. In 2016, she joined the FBI as a Program Manager and has continued to lead and execute multiple large-scale projects and initiatives across the organization. She holds an MBA from Mount St. Mary’s University and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from University of Maryland Global Campus. 

Arun has led many of Stantec’s marquee Alternate Delivery Buildings projects in California, that have garnered numerous regional, national and global industry awards. He synthesizes his experience in various alternate project delivery types including Design-Build, Lean Integrated Project Delivery, and Public Private Partnerships in the design and delivery of complex and highly sustainable building projects.

Brian has 15+ years of proven construction experience spanning multiple market sectors and contract delivery methods.  Brian has successfully completed four Design-Build projects, the most current being the San Ysidro Land Port of Entry Phase 2 project where he led the team to complete on time and under budget.  Brian is passionate about construction and particularly the Design-Build model which brings the Owner, Architect and Contractor together with a single focus to deliver world class projects.  

Dave is a 20+ year construction veteran who started in Chicago before coming to Washington DC in 2002. Early in his career, he was a carpenter, surveyor, and estimator, before transitioning to operations. Dave has helped in the successful delivery of many local high-profile projects including 1700 K Street, 505 9th Street, Nationals Park, and 111 K Street. Since 2010, Dave has helped lead the pursuit and execution of $2.5B of federal projects in the Mid-Atlantic region, including the design-build delivery of the U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters and FBI Central Records Complex, along with Building 3250 at Fort Belvoir, ECPS1 and ECB2 at Fort Meade, Hangar 21 at Joint Base Andrews, in addition to several other secure mission-critical facilities. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Construction Engineering and Management from Purdue University, is a DBIA Design-Build Professional, ACE Mentor, and serves on the board of directors for Bread for the City in Washington, DC.

Jared Price is a capital project manager at the General Services Administration (GSA) for their Mid-Atlantic region.  He began his career with GSA in 2008 and has successfully delivered many federal design and construction projects.    

Sonja Shields brings over 25 years of experience in architectural design with a focus on large scale, complex design-build projects for government clients. At HGA she provides project management services and is the architect of record working directly with owners, contractors and other design-build team members. Sonja holds an M. Arch from the University of Maryland and a B.A. from St. Olaf College. She is a registered architect, a member of AIA, and a LEED accreditation.

Stella is an architect experienced in planning, designing and building complex medical and research facilities. In the Federal Government she led facilities programs at four agencies, delivering buildings for biomedical research, climate monitoring, measurement & standards, and healthcare services to our nation's veterans. Since retiring from Federal service, she provides her expertise and leadership to construction and healthcare organizations and advises on facility initiatives for the VA. Stella is a registered architect and DBIA-certified professional. 

Prior to assuming this position, Ms. Fiotes was the Chief Facilities Management Officer at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) from 2007, where she oversaw the construction, operation and management of the NIST sites until arriving at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Prior to her work at NIST, she managed facilities, construction and property for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration at their sites across the country and led the facilities planning programs at the National Institutes of Health.

Ms. Fiotes holds a Masters in Architecture and Urban Design from the Technical University of Berlin, Germany. She is a Registered Architect in Washington, D.C., and is affiliated with the American Institute of Architects (AIA), AIA Regional and Urban Design Committee, Society for College and University Planners and Society of American Military Engineers.

Thom is president of TDK Consulting, LLC, A VA Certified Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business, specializing in health systems design, organizational performance, business and operational planning, and infrastructure strategies for both the public and private sector.  

While on Active Duty, Thom served from May 2004 to June of 2009 as the Senior Military Advisor and Chief of Staff to the Assistant Secretary for Health Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon.  From May 2002 he led planning, budgeting, and acquisition of all DoD medical facilities as Director, Facility Life Cycle Management Operations, in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. 

Daria Van Liew has over 30 years of experience with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District and is currently the Chief, East Campus Integrated Program Office at the Baltimore District.  In her current position, Mrs. Van Liew is responsible for execution of a $4B+ design and construction program.  Mrs. Van Liew served as the leader for the District’s Alternate Care Facility Task Force in response to COVID-19.  In addition, she currently serves as an instructor for PROSPECT 182, Contracting Officer’s Workshop.  Mrs. Van Liew has served as the Interim Chief, Construction Division and Deputy Chief, Construction Division and an Administrative Contracting Officer (ACO) responsible for providing senior management oversight for the Construction Division Branches and Bay Area Office, Capital Area Office and East Campus Area Office construction staffs as the District executed a $1.5+ billion construction program.  Previous assignments include Area Engineer and ACO for Bay Area Office, Resident Engineer and Contracting Officers Representative for Ft. Meade Resident Office, civil works Project Manager for Programs and Project Management Division, and Project Engineer for Bay Area Office.

Brent Willson, as the Director of Federal Health and Principal for HKS, leads the Federal Health practice utilizing his 35 years of experience in design and planning for the Veterans Administration (VA), Air Force, Army, and Navy. Brent has been involved in numerous design build projects since 2010. Some of Brent’s notable projects include Brooke Army Medical Center, Bassett Army Community Hospital, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Camp Pendleton Replacement Hospital, Ambulatory Care Facility- VA El Paso, and the Carl R Darnall Replacement Hospital.  Brent is an Architect and is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and a Fellow in the Health Facility Institute (FHFI). Brent contributes his passion through quality health facility design, and to the quality of healthcare provided to the men and women in our military, their families, and our veterans. 

Deputy District Engineer for Programs and Project Management; Baltimore District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Baltimore District is one of six Districts in the North Atlantic Division. Baltimore District employs over 1100 people executing hundreds of projects annually including military design & construction, civil planning, design & construction, and environmental restoration.

Previous assignments include Chief, Environmental & Munitions Design Center, program manager for Washington, D.C. area, Baltimore District program manager for Environmental Protection Agency, Base Operations Engineer for a U.S. Army Reserve command, and industrial engineer at the Directorate of Public Works, Fort Meade, MD.

Mr. Whitaker is an architect and lifelong design-build advocate, influencer, and educator. He is nationwide speaker and published author. Mr. Whitaker has served in executive leadership roles in both design and construction firms. Based in Dallas, Texas, he currently leads the government practice and all things alternative project delivery at one of the nation’s largest architectural firms, HKS, Inc. Extraordinarily rare, he was elected a Fellow of both AIA and DBIA in 2018. For DBIA, he currently serves as the Chancellor of the College of Fellows, serves as the Chair of the Federal Markets Committee, serves as member of the National Development Board, and serves as liaison to the P3 Committee. Previously, he served on DBIA’s national Board of Directors and was its Chairman in 2014. For AIA, he has served in national roles in its Federal Architects Task Group (FATG) and Project Delivery Knowledge Community (PDKC). Today, he also serves on the board of directors of the Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT). Mr. Whitaker lives in North Carolina.

Laura Stagner is the former Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Project Delivery for the Public Buildings Service (PBS) of the US General Services Administration.  In this role, Laura led the successful consolidation of project management functions within the into the Office of Project Delivery, evolving an organization that was responsible for capital projects into an organization that is now responsible for all projects delivered by PBS, including capital, small, and reimbursable projects.  Under her leadership, the Office of Project Delivery developed processes designed to better manage project risk: a national project resource board to ensure that the best available talent is matched to the risk profile of the project, and a project delivery method selection tool.  Laura has been an advocate for the adoption of alternative delivery methods within PBS, particularly design/build and Construction Manager at Risk.  She has served on the national board of the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA), and is currently on the national board of the Design Build Institute of America (DBIA).  Additionally, she has been an appointed member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Project Delivery Knowledge Committee since 2016.

Laura is currently the principal at Stagner Consulting, LLC, a practice devoted to providing federal project delivery advisory services.

Tom Foley currently manages the overall direction of New York City’s Department of Design & Construction (DDC) Public Buildings Division, supported by almost 450 executives, managerial, professional and administrative staff with over 711 active projects, serving 26 client agencies with portfolios valued at over $10 billion dollars. He is responsible for the management of the design & construction of the Public Buildings Capital Program including Civic, Uniform Structures and Project Controls such as Cultural Institutions, Libraries, Public Safety, Health & Human Services within the City’s five (5) Boroughs. Tom has guided DDC towards an integrated design-build project delivery approach with an emphasis on Design-Build Done Right® for New York City’s DB projects.

As a consultant for the Leadership and Organizational Development practice at FMI, Tracey is passionate about helping leaders and organizations become the best and most effective version of themselves. Her primary work focuses on collaborating with clients to build exceptional leadership and project teams, create executive succession plans and drive individual leadership development through training and organizational consulting.

Prior to joining FMI, Tracey served in the Air Force for 20-years as an Aircraft Maintenance officer. Her hands-on experience of leading teams ranging from seven to 1,000 people provided her excellent insight into the opportunities and challenges faced by leaders at multiple levels. She created leadership development programs for multiple organizations throughout her career and leverages that experience in her current role. In addition, she led the development and communication of the Air Force Logistics strategic plan that impacted over 204,000 personnel. That plan included a human capital strategy, which was a first for the logistics community.

Tracey holds a Bachelor of Science in psychology from the United States Air Force Academy and master’s degrees in human resource development and counseling and leadership development. She loves the outdoors and spends as much time possible hiking and fly fishing with friends and family. She shares her passions with others as a volunteer with Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing and Team Rubicon

Stacey Barton leads the Federal Division and is responsible for profit and loss, operations, development of opportunities, engineering partnerships, and project execution. She oversees all ongoing projects, forecasts revenue, and develops the business plan. Prior to her current position, Stacey held several key positions at Haskell, such as assistant project manager, project manager, director of Construction, vice president of Construction, vice president of Operations, and chief of staff to the COO. She has worked in multiple delivery groups and markets executing a broad spectrum of project types, including federal, schools, hospitals, commercial office buildings, water/wastewater facilities, student housing, ports & harbors, and food & beverage facilities (EPC).

John Keith is a Vice President with The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company working out of the Baltimore, MD, office. Keith has worked his entire 28-year career with WT since graduating from Virginia Tech in 1993. Most of Keith’s career has been on federal projects for clients that include the Navy (NAVFAC), GSA, NASA and the Coast Guard. Keith has also worked for non-federal clients such as Lockheed Martin, MGM, University of Maryland and Weller Development.  Keith lives in Severna Park, MD, with his two teenage sons.

Mr. Whitaker is an architect and lifelong design-build advocate, influencer, and educator. He is nationwide speaker and published author. Mr. Whitaker has served in executive leadership roles in both design and construction firms. Based in Dallas, Texas, he currently leads the government practice and all things alternative project delivery at one of the nation’s largest architectural firms, HKS, Inc. Extraordinarily rare, he was elected a Fellow of both AIA and DBIA in 2018. For DBIA, he currently serves as the Chancellor of the College of Fellows, serves as the Chair of the Federal Markets Committee, serves as member of the National Development Board, and serves as liaison to the P3 Committee. Previously, he served on DBIA’s national Board of Directors and was its Chairman in 2014. For AIA, he has served in national roles in its Federal Architects Task Group (FATG) and Project Delivery Knowledge Community (PDKC). Today, he also serves on the board of directors of the Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT). Mr. Whitaker lives in North Carolina.

As a Vice President and Owner Advisor National Practice Leader for CDM Smith, Scott is responsible for growing CDM Smith’s business line of owner advisor services for collaborative delivery projects with a focus on the water market.  Scott works with CDM Smith colleagues across North America in developing and identifying owner advisor service opportunities and supporting project teams in the execution of owner advisor scopes of work. 

Prior to joining CDM Smith, Scott was a Director of Project Development for The Haskell Company where he was responsible for all aspects of water and wastewater project performance including client and business development, proposal coordination, execution oversight, contracts and project administration.   

Previously, Scott was with HDR, Inc. for 14 years working with all HDR operating companies and business groups on integrated delivery (including design-build, EPC and construction management) projects and pursuits. Prior to joining HDR in April of 2005, Scott worked for Kiewit Corporation for more than seven years. Before working with Kiewit, Scott was general counsel to a mid-Atlantic heavy construction and coal mining and reclamation company for three years.

Scott has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from Alfred University, Alfred, New York (1984) and he attained his Juris Doctorate from West Virginia University College of Law, Morgantown (1988).

Ms. Streeter-Schaefer is an attorney at Burns & McDonnell. She has background as a construction engineer that preceded her experience as a practicing  attorney specializing in construction law for almost 20 years. Prior to joining Burns & McDonnell, she was a shareholder at a national law firm where she concentrated on design and construction related contracts, risk management, insurance issues, and litigation. 

Ms. Streeter-Schaefer has extensive knowledge in preparing, analyzing, and negotiating design and construction contracts, teaming/joint venture agreements, subcontracts, and supplier agreements and in litigating claims involving construction defects,  payment disputes, mechanic’s liens, and insurance issues. 

She is past President of NAWIC Greater Kansas City, Missouri and the Central Exchange and is currently a commissioner for the Overland Park, Kansas Planning Commission. In addition, she has spoken multiple times on issues relating to the construction industry and has been published in various trade organizations’ print media.