I would like to experience the unique educational opportunity afforded by the IEEE-USA’s Congressional Fellowship program, so that I can become more involved in the policy process and help others to learn how they can contribute to the policy process. I would like to use my industry experience, technical knowledge and deep understanding of innovation to help our Legislative Branch in crafting policy and regulations, particularly as they involve innovation, economic development and job growth. Innovation provides countries with a competitive advantage and opportunities for economic growth.
An area that is of keen interest to me is engineering education. For the past ten years I have been teaching seasoned engineers and scientists, providing them with skills they need to be effective in their jobs. The economic decline that began in 2008 prompted me to investigate problems associated with technological change and societal decline, and I developed and proposed a program for retraining engineers to become skilled in emerging technologies so that our country does not lose their valuable skills. Catherine Polito and I published a paper, “Retaining and Retraining: An Innovative Approach to Educating Engineers in a Changing Economy,” which describes the problem and a potential solution, adaptable by any community.
My background includes over 20 years in software and computer networking. My graduate research in parallel and distributed systems prepared me to lead the effort to build Novell’s Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Technology in collaboration with Sun Microsystems. BYTE magazine, describing Novell’s crown jewels, said Novell has “a valuable …asset in the form of TI-RPC (transport independent remote procedure call)” (John Udell, “Novell’s Campaign,” BYTE, February 1995, pp. 42-64).
My interest in innovation and the competitive advantage it confers derives from my opportunity to experience successful innovation first-hand. My experiences at Novell taught me about the relationship between innovation and the growth of an industry. Our work in developing and commercializing computer networking helped to spawn an entire new industry. I continued my work in networking, participating in the IEEE 802.3 standards committee, defining gigabit Ethernet standards, as a member of Compaq’s Network Interface Controller team.
For the last ten years, I have been working in the area of innovation management, helping teams understand how to commercialize innovations, how to grow entrepreneurial ventures, and how to deal with innovations which disrupt their industries. Because innovation touches many industries, I have explored a broad spectrum of science and technology. I have researched aspects of enzyme-based pharmaceuticals and gene-based therapies to help a European pharmaceutical company develop a plan to foster innovation. I immersed myself in the topic of distance learning and taught courses for an online university to help clients understand the impact of distance learning on their businesses, and to help them differentiate between effective and ineffective practices. I investigated NASA’s decision-making processes to create a course designed to help their teams be more innovative as funding for space exploration changes. My research interests are broad, but always focused on the intersection of science, technology and economic growth.
I remain intensely curious about the interactions between policy and economic growth, and I would relish the opportunity to apply my deep understanding of technology and how innovations can lead to an entire new industry, job growth and prosperity for our country. Policies have a significant impact on innovation and entrepreneurial ventures, and I would like to help craft policy and regulation that will lead to a better future for our country. Similarly, I would like to learn more about the policy process so that I can help others become better informed.
I can imagine applying my research and technology skills to energy rule, looking at innovative technologies and exploring the programs that will help to make them viable industries. I can envision utilizing my deep understanding of software and networking for evaluating proposals for policy in the area of cybersecurity. I can see applying my knowledge of science, technology and engineering education to evaluating or even crafting STEM education policies. And I can imagine employing my skills to help with policy regarding earth and space sciences, which I have followed since my early career working at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
I am willing to abide by the terms and conditions indicated in the program policies and procedures.
I have no actual or apparent conflicts of interest.
Leslie's cover letter to the Congressional Fellows program
Leslie's cover letter to the Engineering & Diplomacy Fellows program
Leslie's resume