Committee Staff

Full Committee

• Louis Finkel, Chief of Staff

  Louis serves as the Chief of Staff for the Committee.  As such he acts as staff director, administrator, and senior policy adviser to Committee Chairman Bart Gordon.  He is responsible for managing a team of Committee scientists, engineers, attorneys, and other professional support staff as well as the Committee budget and all administrative operations.   Prior to joining the Committee, Louis spent six years in the private sector representing the interests of educational institutions, non-profits, technology companies and energy interests. Previously, Louis served in several legislative capacities with two different Members of Congress. His most recent congressional service was as Legislative Director to Committee Chairman, Rep. Gordon. In that capacity he served as a Senior Policy Advisor and managed Rep. Gordon’s legislative operations. In addition, he worked on a diverse policy portfolio that included energy, transportation, education, agriculture, the environment, and consumer protection.

• Leigh Ann Brown, Administrative Assistant

  Leigh Ann joined the staff in the fall of 2004. As Administrative Assistant, she handles all administrative duties for the Chairman. She is a Tennessee native and previously spent eight years in Chairman Gordon's personal office as his Executive Assistant and Office Manager. A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Leigh Ann has a degree in Economics and Political Science.

• John Piazza, Chief Counsel

  John Piazza joined the professional staff of the Committee in March 2006. His responsibilities include legislative, legal, and parliamentary process issues. In addition, he works on oversight for the Committee. John graduated with a B.A. from Columbia University in 1999, where he studied environmental science. He received a J.D. from Washington and Lee University in 2002. John is a member of the Arizona and District of Columbia Bars. Prior to joining the Committee, John was a prosecutor in Tucson, Arizona.

• Robert Etter, Counsel
  
  Robert serves as Counsel to the Committee.  His responsibilities include strategic planning and handling legislative, procedural and jurisdictional matters.  Robert received a J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School in 2005 and a B.A. in Political Science from Vanderbilt in 2000.  Prior to joining the Committee, Robert worked in the Atlanta and Washington D.C. offices of a large law firm, where he practiced commercial litigation primarily involving energy, environmental and antitrust issues.  Robert is a member of the Georgia and District of Columbia Bars.

• Elizabeth Tate, Counsel
  
  Elizabeth serves as Counsel to the Committee.  Her responsibilities include legal, legislative, and procedural matters.  Elizabeth graduated from the University of Virginia in 2004 with a B.A. in psychology and history.  She received her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2008.  Prior to joining the Committee on Science and Technology, Elizabeth worked in the New York City office of a large law firm, where her practice primarily involved environmental, land use, real estate and restructuring issues.  Elizabeth is a member of the New York bar. 

• Alex Dery Snider, Communications Director

  Alex handles all Committee media outreach for Chairman Gordon and serves as a communications resource for Committee Members. Prior to joining the Committee on Science and Technology, she served as Communications Director to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee and the National Research Center for Women & Families. She also worked in the Health and Social Marketing group of the communications firm Porter Novelli. Alex holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Writing and Speech & Theatre from St. Lawrence University.

• Karly Schledwitz, Deputy Communications Director

  Karly serves as the Deputy Communications Director for the Committee. In this capacity, she writes press releases, drafts speeches, reaches out to media, and assists with website development. Karly joined the Committee in July 2009 as the Staff Assistant and joined the press team in the spring of 2010. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Furman University with a Bachelor’s in both Political Science and Communication Studies. Karly is originally from Memphis, Tennessee.
  

• Kat Skiles, Press Assistant

  Kat serves as the Committee’s Press Assistant. In this role, she is tasked with preparing written materials as well as assisting with digital media and the development of website content. Prior to joining the Committee, Kat spent two and a half years working for Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-CA), initially as the Field Director to her special election campaign, where she coordinated voter outreach – both online and off. Kat first came to D.C. in 2006 by way of the Panetta Institute for Public Policy. This selection led to an internship with Congressman Lantos and the House International Relations Committee. She was selected as Dominican University’s 2007 Commencement Speaker and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Politics and a double minor in Pre-Law and Religious Studies. 

• Margaret Wetherald, Financial Administrator
  
  Margaret joined the Committee as the Financial Administrator in December 2009 with 20 years in the federal government.  Prior to joining the Committee, Margaret spent nine years in the U.S. Senate working as the Administrative Director/Office Manager for Senator Menendez and as Professional Staff/Office Manager for the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.  Margaret also spent eight years in the executive branch working as the Executive Assistant/Office Manager for the Under Secretary of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).  Prior to this, she worked as a Staff Assistant with the House Committee on Agriculture and Clerk Typist for the FBI.  Margaret received her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Maryland.
  
  
• Deborah Samantar, Legislative Clerk

  Deborah is the Committee’s Legislative Clerk. She is responsible for clerking Committee markups and maintaining documents and the official records of the Committee’s activities. Deborah has extensive knowledge of Committee administrative operations. Prior to joining the Committee in January 2007, Deborah spent 20 years working in a number of different staff positions with the Committee on Education and Labor, serving most recently as a hearing clerk and intern coordinator. She began her Capitol Hill career in 1983 as a Staff Assistant for Joe Kolter (D-PA). Deborah attended Slippery Rock State in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania and majored in Elementary-Secondary Education. In her spare time, she serves as a Girl Scout Troop Leader.

• Kristin Kopshever, Staff Assistant

  Kristin joined the Committee in April 2010 as the Staff Assistant. In this capacity, she coordinates room scheduling, deals with official mail correspondence, and serves as the intern coordinator. She also helps with various Subcommittee research projects where needed.  She studied Political Science and Philosophy at DePaul University in Chicago. Prior to joining the Committee, she was an intern for Congressman Costello (D-IL).  Kristin is originally from Pinckneyville, Illinois

   

Subcommittee on Energy and Environment

• Chris King, Staff Director

  Chris joined the Committee in 2002 as Professional Staff. In 2009 he was promoted to Staff Director for the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. Chris handles a wide range of legislative and oversight issues within the areas of the Department of Energy’s R&D management and general energy technology and innovation. He has been responsible for managing a number of the Committee’s legislative priorities in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Energy Independence and Security of Act of 2007, the America COMPETES Act, and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Prior to joining the Committee, Chris worked in the Texas State Legislature for the Legislative Study Group, where his responsibilities included energy, environment, worker's compensation, and consumer protection policy.  He holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Texas at Austin.

• Shimere Williams, Professional Staff

  Shimere holds a B.S. in Civil/Environmental Engineering as well as a Ph.D. in Pharmacology. Her doctoral research focused on the role of the dopaminergic signaling pathway underlying the maintenance phase of long-term potentiation (long-term memory). Shimere serves as Professional Staff for the Energy and Environment Subcommittee, where she works on ocean, weather, environmental, energy, and technology issues. Prior to joining the Committee, her path to a career in policy began with a dynamic experience at the National Academy of Sciences. There she completed a graduate science and technology policy fellowship with the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research in the Division on Earth and Life Studies, then succeeded with the Board on Children, Youth and Families in the Institute of Medicine and Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education.

• Adam Rosenberg, Professional Staff
  
  Adam joined the Committee in May 2007, and serves as Professional Staff on the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. He holds a B.S. in Applied and Engineering Physics from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in Plasma Physics from Princeton University, where he studied magnetohydrodynamic instabilities and interactions between radio frequency waves and energetic ions in a large magnetic fusion experiment at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. While an undergraduate, he also completed internships at Argonne National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. From mid-2003 through 2004, Adam was an American Physical Society Congressional Fellow on the Democratic staff of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Before joining the Committee, he was most recently a Program Manager in the Department of Energy Office of Science’s Fusion Energy Sciences Program, where he directly oversaw a major research facility at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as well as several other research activities across the nation.

• Jetta Wong, Professional Staff
  

  Jetta joined the Committee in March of 2009 to work on the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. She works on a wide range of energy policy issues related to civilian research, development and demonstration programs at the Department of Energy.  Before she joined the Committee, Jetta briefly worked for the Clean Energy Program of the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). Prior to her work at UCS she served as the Senior Policy Associate on Sustainable Biomass for the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI).  Jetta’s career in energy started in Uzbekistan where she was a natural resources consultant on an anaerobic digestion development project.  Jetta holds a B.S. in Natural Resources and the Environment from the University of Michigan. She received her MPS in Legislative Affairs from George Washington University in May 2009. Her studies have also taken her to Costa Rica and Brazil.

• Rob Walther, Professional Staff
  

  Rob joined the Committee in 2010, and serves as Professional Staff on the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. He is responsible for the Subcommittee’s work on nuclear, fossil fuel, and transmission issues. Rob holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Dartmouth College and his Juris Doctor from Brooklyn Law School, where he was a member of the law review and earned its Certificate of Meritorious Service. Rob has also co-authored the Practicing Law Institute’s Newsgathering Related Torts publication. Prior to joining the Committee, Rob was an associate at Wexler & Walker, PPA where he worked for three years in the areas of energy and environmental policy with a focus on issues involving nuclear and fossil fuel sources.  Rob also helped organize and manage the New York office of Senator Bill Bradley’s presidential campaign in 2000.

• Anne Cooper, Professional Staff

  Anne joined the Committee in January 2010 as a Professional Staff for the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. She has a diverse portfolio which includes environment, climate, and aquatic issues. Before joining Committee, Anne was a Knauss fellow with the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. She holds a Ph.D. in Conservation Biology and Development Studies and Social Change Theory and a M.Sc. in Fisheries Science from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Her dissertation research used ecological risk assessment as a framework to examine the effect(s) of non-native fishes on native fish communities. Anne’s applied scientific background includes expertise in forensic, molecular, and population genetics, ecological risk assessment, animal behavior, and non-parametric statistics. She also worked on science and policy for hatcheries, aquaculture, and genetically engineered fish from the tropics to the Arctic.

• Jane Wise, Research Assistant

  Jane joined the Committee as an intern in June 2008, became the Full Committee Staff Assistant in August 2008, and has since moved to the position of Research Assistant for the Energy and Environment.  She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.A. in Philosophy from Sewanee: The University of the South. Jane is originally from Knoxville, TN.
  
  
  
  

Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation

• Hilary Cain, Staff Director

  Hilary joined the Committee in November of 2008.  Before becoming Staff Director of the Subcommittee in May of 2010, she served as a Counsel to the Full Committee, where she handled parliamentary, procedural, and jurisdictional matters, as well as participating in the development and implementation of legislative strategy.  Previously, Hilary worked as Legislative Director to Rep. Brian Baird (D-WA), overseeing his legislative agenda, and as Ways and Means Counsel to Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX).  She holds a J.D. and a M.A. in Public Affairs from the University of Texas, and a B.A. in Political Science with honors from the University of Washington. 

• Meghan Housewright, Professional Staff

  Meghan joined the Committee at the beginning of 2007. She serves as Professional Staff for the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee, where she handles oversight of research related programs at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Transportation. Before becoming professional staff for the Committee, Meghan was the Research Assistant for the Subcommittee on Research and Science Education and the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation. Meghan was a Peace Corps volunteer in Mali. She holds an M.S. degree in Environmental Engineering from Michigan Technological University and a B.A. in Geology from Mount Holyoke College.

• Travis Hite, Professional Staff

  Travis joined the Committee in October 2008. Before joining the Committee, he served as a consultant to DARPA, the Department of Defense’s research and development arm. As a Science, Engineering, and Technical Assistant (SETA) at DARPA, he managed research efforts into high-powered lasers developed for military applications. Travis currently serves as Professional Staff on the Technology and Innovation Subcommittee, where he handles oversight of research programs at the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Transportation. He has a B.S. in Industrial Engineering and an M.B.A. in Global Business and Economy, both from Virginia Tech.

• Matt McMahon, Professional Staff

  Matt’s legislative portfolio includes innovation policy, commercialization and technology transfer, manufacturing, and bioscience.  He previously served as the OSA/SPIE’s AAAS Congressional Fellow in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation where he worked on cybersecurity, space, and science policy.  Prior to his time in Washington, Matt was the Senior Principal Scientist at Second Sight Medical Products, a developer of a retinal prosthesis to restore sight to people blinded by retinal degenerations.  Matt received a B.S. in Optics from the University of Rochester and a Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego.

• Victoria Johnston, Research Assistant

  Victoria joined the Committee in September 2008.  She holds a B.A. in astrophysics from Columbia University.  After receiving her undergraduate degree, she remained at Columbia for one year to continue to work on a NASA funded project, where she helped build a spectrometer for astrophysical observations.  She then spent a year volunteering for three different environmental conservation programs in Greece, Australia, and New Zealand.

Subcommittee on Research and Science Education

• Dahlia Sokolov, Staff Director

  Dahlia joined the Committee as an American Institute of Physics Congressional fellow in October 2004 and joined the professional staff in July 2005. For the two years prior to joining the Democratic staff of the Research and Science Education Subcommittee, she served on the Energy Subcommittee working on nuclear energy R&D under then-Chairman Sherwood Boehlert’s (R-NY) leadership. Before coming to the Hill, Dahlia completed a two-year postdoctoral research fellowship at the National Institutes of Health in the Radiation Oncology Sciences Program. Dahlia has a Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Washington and a B.S. in Engineering Physics from the University of California at Berkeley.

• Marcy Gallo, Professional Staff
  

  Marcy joined the Committee in December 2008, serving as Professional Staff for the Subcommittee on Research and Science Education, where she works on oversight of the education and research programs at the National Science Foundation. She holds a B.S. in Biology from Marietta College, a M.S. from the University of Toledo and received her Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of New Mexico. Her doctoral research examined microbial community structure and function in relation to leaf litter degradation and the role of photodecomposition in arid ecosystems. In 2007, Marcy was the American Society for Agronomy – Crop Science Society of America – Soil Science Society of America (ASA-CSSA-SSSA) Congressional Fellow in the office of Senator Joseph Lieberman where she handled environmental, agriculture and energy issues. Prior to joining the Committee, she worked at the American Geological Institute on science policy issues of interest to the geosciences community.

• Bess Caughran, Professional Staff

  Bess joined the Committee in January 2007.  Bess serves as Professional Staff for the Research and Science Education Subcommittee, where she handles science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education issues.  In addition, Bess manages international outreach activities for the Committee.  Before becoming Professional Staff, Bess was the Research Assistant for the Subcommittee, and also served as Staff Assistant for the Full Committee.  Bess holds a B.A. in Political Science and Spanish from the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee.

• Molly O'Rourke, Research Assistant

  Molly joined the Committee in June 2009. She started as an intern and then joined the Full Committee as a Research Assistant. In January 2010, she became the Research Assistant for the Subcommittee on Research and Science Education.  She graduated from the University of Virginia’s Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy with a Master of Public Policy in May 2009.  Molly completed her undergraduate studies at UVA as well, majoring in Political Philosophy, Policy and Law and Foreign Affairs.

Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics

• Dick Obermann, Staff Director

  Dick joined the Committee in 1990. Initially, he served as Science Advisor for the Subcommittee on Space, including oversight and budget authorization responsibilities for science, exploration, and the space station program. He currently is serving as Staff Director for the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, with primary authorization and oversight responsibility for civil space and aeronautics activities. Dick holds a B.S.E. and Ph.D. in Aerospace and Mechanical Sciences from Princeton University, and an M.S.E. in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University. He also completed the Senior Managers in Government Program at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. Dick started his career working on the technical staff at the MITRE Corporation and as a senior program officer on the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board of the National Research Council. He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and of the American Astronautical Society and a Member of the International Academy of Astronautics.

• Pamela Whitney, Professional Staff

  Pamela Whitney serves as Professional Staff on the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee. In her former position as Senior Program Officer at the Space Studies Board of the National Research Council, National Academies, she directed studies and workshops on international cooperation in space, Earth remote sensing, Mars planetary protection, space policy, astronomy science centers, among other space technology and research topics. Pamela also served as the Executive Secretary of the U.S. national committee to the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) of the International Council for Science (ICSU). She held previous positions as an analyst at the aerospace consulting firm CSP Associates, Inc., and as a researcher and writer for Time-Life Books, Inc. Pamela holds a B.A. in Economics from Smith College and an M.A. in International Communication from American University. She is a member of Women in Aerospace and a member of the International Academy of Astronautics.

• Allen Li, Professional Staff

  Allen serves as Professional Staff on the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee. He joined the Subcommittee in January 2008 after retiring from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in May 2007. As Director of GAO’s Acquisition and Sourcing Management Team, Allen led GAO’s work at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and reviewed numerous defense acquisition programs. He also served as the Team’s Director for Operations, managing day-to-day activities of a geographically dispersed group. During his career at GAO, Allen also served as Associate Director in GAO’s Energy, Resources, and Science Issue Area; and Associate Director of the Transportation Issue Area, where he specialized in aviation safety and air traffic control modernization. During his tenure at GAO, he testified numerous times before Senate and House Committee and Subcommittees on civil and military issues such as the International Space Station and the F-22. Allen was selected for GAO’s Senior Executive Service in 1993. He holds a B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Maryland and is a senior member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

• Devin Bryant, Research Assistant

  Devin Bryant joined the Committee originally as an intern for the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics in June 2004, and went on to serve as Staff Assistant for the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, the Subcommittee on Environment, Technology and Standards, and the Full Committee. In 2007, he joined the Democratic staff as Research Assistant for the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics. He currently handles commercial space and exploration issues. He graduated with a B.A. in Space Policy from the University of Redlands in 2004 and is originally from Los Angeles.

Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight

• Dan Pearson, Staff Director

  Dan has been with the Committee since 1991. He is in charge of the Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee staff. This is his second stint as Staff Director of that Subcommittee, last heading it from 1993 to 1995 during the 103rd Congress. In the interim, he has carried a variety of issues at different times including policy coordination, budget analysis, appropriations work, Member services work, press spokesman and oversight coordinator. Dan started on the Hill as a Legislative Assistant in the office of Rep. George E. Brown, Jr. (D-CA). Before coming to Washington, Dan earned a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Washington in Seattle and served on the faculty of Whitman College.

• Edith Holleman, Professional Staff

  Edith Holleman serves as Counsel for the Investigations and Oversight Subcommittee. Prior to that, she was an investigative staff counsel for the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Government Operations Committee of the House of Representatives.

• James Paul, Professional Staff

  James began his service on the Committee in May 1985. During his multi-decade tenure, he has dealt with a broad and eclectic set of issues. He served on the Committee's task force reviewing the findings of the Rogers Commission inquiry into the Challenger accident and then again as the Committee dealt with the loss of Columbia. On computer industry topics, James' current work involves oversight of agency management, Internet topics, and assuring proper handling of the data collected from scientific research funded by the Federal Government. James received a B.S. in Chemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology in June 1982, and started his Capitol Hill career in the office of Rep. Harold Volkmer (D-MO).

• Doug Pasternak, Professional Staff

  Doug is an award-winning investigative reporter who spent nearly two decades uncovering waste, fraud and mismanagement at various federal agencies, including the Department of Energy, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, U.S. Bureau of Prisons and National Reconnaissance Office, before joining the Oversight and Investigations staff of the Committee in September 2006. He came to the Committee from NBC Nightly News where he was a producer on the Investigative Unit. While there, he broke several major stories, including FEMA's mishandling of ice shipments to victims of Hurricane Katrina and the Pentagon's domestic intelligence collection efforts. Prior to NBC News, he worked as an investigative reporter at U.S. News & World Report magazine for 14 years. His cover stories at U.S. News included the exposure of multi-billion dollar cost overruns, mismanagement and bungled technical assessments of the U.S. government's spy satellite programs and the Defense Department's classified development of exotic electromagnetic weapons that stun and disable without killing. Doug has a B.A. degree in Political Science from American University in Washington, D.C. and has studied in Israel and Poland.

• Ken Jacobson, Professional Staff

  As a lifelong journalist before joining the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight in February 2007, Ken has reported on business and economic affairs from Europe and Latin America as well as New York and Washington. His principal focus since arriving in D.C. in 1992 has been advanced technology, and in particular the current state – and future – of U.S. manufacturing, research, and high-skilled employment. Previous jobs involved reporting on the metals and mining industries, nuclear energy, the automobile and steel industries, medicine, and civil engineering. An alumnus of both the University of California at Berkeley and the Associated Press, Ken began his reporting career as a sports writer and has published a book on the Holocaust.