Defense Sector Vet Jennifer Santos Joins Draper's National Security & Space Business

Jennifer Santos, a former Department of Defense official with more than 23 years of professional experience, has been named principal director of strategic initiatives within Charles Stark Draper Laboratory’s national security and space business.

She will manage teams that aim to support national security missions through the development of technology with aerospace and defense applications, the nonprofit engineering company said Monday.

“Jen’s mission is to work in collaboration with the defense and aerospace industrial base and the commercial sector to solve problems on behalf of, and in concert with, the U.S. government,” said Neil Adams, vice president of Draper’s NS&S unit.

Santos most recently worked at the Department of the Navy as a naval research and development investment executive and previously served as deputy assistant secretary for industrial policy at the Department of Defense, where she supported initiatives to protect the business sector amid the pandemic.

Her government career also included roles as a professional staff member on the Senate Appropriations Committee’s defense subcommittee and an executive secretary at the U.S. Air Force.

She also spent nearly two years as VP for Air Force and DOD innovation at Alexandria, Virginia-based consulting firm Cypress International.

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