Prior to joining the Institute, Dr. Claire Costenoble-Caherty received her doctorate in Emerging Infectious Diseases from the Uniformed Services University in 2020, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology from The University of Maryland College Park in 2013. She conducted her doctoral research in the laboratory of Dr. Ann Jerse, where she developed murine models of gonorrhea/chlamydia coinfection and upper reproductive tract infection, and studied the immune response in the context of such infections.

Dr. Alyssa Adcock is a S&T Policy Research Fellow. At the Institute, she has been involved with several efforts focused on providing strategic S&T recommendations and technical forecasting to government customers including ongoing work with NASA. Dr. Adcock obtained her Ph.D. from Georgetown University in Inorganic Chemistry. Her graduate research focused on bismuth and rare earth element materials to address energy, lighting, and security needs as well as uranium chemistry relevant to nuclear waste and environmental management. Prior, she received her B.S. in Chemistry at Jacobs University in Germany and served as an intern at the Carnegie Institute of Washington’s Geophysical Laboratory focusing on origin of life and geochemistry research. Dr. Adcock is a member of the Graduate Education Advisory Board of the American Chemical Society.

Sharon Layani is a Research Fellow in the S&T Division. She provides assessments of emerging science and technology trends, government acquisition strategies, strategic planning, and policy recommendations.  Prior to this she served as Research Associate and Research Coordinator at the International Center for Terrorism Studies. Her work focused on counterterrorism, international security, and rule of law issues. She provided research support and analysis for books, such as NATO: From Regional to Global Security Provider (2015) and The Islamic State: Combating a Caliphate Without Borders (2015), and assisted on a number of counterterrorism reports and projects. Ms. Layani served on the senior staff for Terrorism: An Electronic Journal and Knowledge Base and coordinated foreign policy and national security-related seminars. Ms. Layani graduated from the University of Michigan with a double major in Political Science and Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience, and a minor in International Studies focusing on the Middle East.

Mr. Farro is a Level III Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Certified Acquisition Professional with over 40 years’ experience.

From his initial assignment as a Procurement Intern for the Defense Logistics Agency’s Defense Personnel Support Center (DLA DPSC), Philadelphia, PA, he has worked various and ever more challenging assignments across both the Interagency and International spectrum.

Management positions supervising the activities of Contract Specialists took him to Washington, DC, where he was on special assignment to the Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (DoT FHWA).

After a successful tenure at DoT FHWA, Mr. Farro received his TS/SCI clearance and worked as a Major Systems Program Integrator for the Tri-Service Standoff Attack and Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (TSSAM and JASSM) programs. For his work on the JASSM program, he received awards from the U.S. Air Force’s Senior Acquisition Executive and the Director, Defense Contract Management Command (DCMC).

For his excellent work on the JASSM program, Mr. Farro was selected as the Program Manager for the Defense Logistics Agency’s (DLA) Corporate Workforce Management Reports (CRMR) program. He was able to turn the program around from a chronic underperformer into an example of efficient acquisition providing DLA a workforce management capability that came in ahead of schedule and under budget.

His following assignments in support of the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), earned him two Combat Commanders Medals for Acquisition Excellence. At the conclusion of his support to USSOCOM and subsequent tours on the staffs at the Naval Sea Systems Command and Defense Contract Management Agency, Mr. Farro assumed responsibility for the Missile Defense Agency’s (MDA) Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) evaluation. He worked closely with the President’s Office of Management & Budget assuring that MDA’s performance supported allocated resources. His efforts on the PART evaluation permitted him to earn entry into the National Defense University’s Industrial College of the Armed Forces (ICAF) where he earned his Master’s Degree in National Security Strategy.

At ICAF, Mr. Farro completed his Senior Acquisition studies and was certified as a Senior Acquisition Professional. After ICAF, he completed another special assignment, this time with the Joint Chief of Staff’s Logistics Directorate (J4). His duties were that of Study Director for the Mobility Capability Study (MCS). During that time, Mr. Farro was promoted to Director, Research & Development Division of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Inspector General (NASA IG).

His leadership on the NASA IG’s audit of their Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts and his interaction with the President’s Council on Integrity and Efficiency ensured that acquisition funds were spent wisely and effectively. From the NASA IG, he rejoined the Department of the Navy (DON), currently supporting DON and Department of Defense initiatives to enhance U.S. international engagements with longtime allies Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden and maturing relationships with other allies, e.g., Chile and Iceland.

Mr. Farro is retired from Civil Service. After retirement, he joined E3R, Inc., (a Service Disabled Small Business) as Senior International Cooperative Analyst/Engineer. His primary duties supported the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Code N94 (Senior Naval Representative)/Office of Naval Research – Global and Naval Information Warfare Systems Command – Pacific.

He has joined the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies as a Research Fellow.