MURIEL BOWSER
MAYOR
October 20, 2023
The Honorable Phil Mendelson
Chairman
Council of the District of Columbia
John A. Wilson Building
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 504
Washington, DC 20004
Dear Chairman Mendelson:
In accordance with section 2 of the Confirmation Act of 1978, effective March 3, 1979 (D.C. Law
2-142; D.C. Official Code § 1-523.01) and pursuant to section 1812 of the Office of the Chief
Technology Officer Establishment Act of 1998, effective March 26, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-175; D.C.
Official Code § 1-1401), I am pleased to nominate the following person:
Dr. Christopher Rodriguez
Sedgwick Street NW
Washington, DC 20016
(Ward 3)
for appointment as the Chief Technology Officer of the District of Columbia, to serve at the
pleasure of the Mayor.
Enclosed you will find biographical information detailing Dr. Rodriquez’s experience,
together with a proposed resolution to assist the Council during the confirmation process.
I would appreciate the Council’s earliest consideration of this nomination for confirmation.
Please do not hesitate to contact me, or Steven Walker, Director, Mayor’s Office of Talent
and Appointments, should the Council require additional information.
Sincerely,
Muriel Bowser
Mayor 1
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at the request of the Mayor
A PROPOSED RESOLUTION
IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
14 To confirm the appointment of Dr. Christopher Rodriguez as the Chief Technology Officer of
15 the District of Columbia.
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17 RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
18 resolution may be cited as the "Chief Technology Officer Dr. Christopher Rodriguez
19 Confirmation Resolution of 2023 ".
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21 Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia confirms the appointment of:
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Dr. Christopher Rodriguez
Sedgwick Street
NW
Washington, DC 20016
(Ward 3)
28 as the Chief Technology Officer of the District of Columbia, established by section 1812 of the
29 Office of the Chief Technology Officer Establishment Act of 1998, effective March 26, 1999
30 (D.C. Law 12-175; D.C. Official Code§ 1-1401), to serve at the pleasure of the Mayor.
31 Sec. 3. The Council of the District of Columbia shall transmit a copy of this resolution, upon
32 its adoption, to the nominee and to the Office of the Mayor.
33 Sec. 4. This resolution shall take effect immediately. EXPERIENCE
Director,DCHomelandSecurityandEmergencyManagementAgency
Washington,DC,2017-Present
‘*ServeasWashingtonDC’stopexecutiveonhomelandsecurity,intelligenceanalysis,
emergencymanagementandpreparedness,andoperationalcoordination;
'*Guideanagencyof200personnelwithanannualbudgetof$200M;
‘©Ledorganizationaltransformationofinternalplans,processes,andproceduresfor
administrationandemergencypreparedness,resilience,andresponse;
'*Resourceeffortstoenablecitywideemergencypreparednessandresilience;
'*ActedastopemergencymanagerforWashington,DCinthelead-upto,andduring,the
January6"attackattheUSCapitolandthe59”PresidentialInauguration;
‘©AssumedtheroleofIncidentCommanderforWashingtonDC’sCOVID-19response—
includingsettingobjectives;managingbudgets;conductingtrainingandexercises;and
developingpoliciesandplansforimplementation;
+Fostercollaborationandtransparencywitfederal,state,loca,international,andbusiness
partners—includinginthetechnologysectorandotherat-riskindustries
AdjunctProfessor,SchoolofContinuingStudies,GeorgetownUniversity
Washington,DC,2020-Present
‘*Teachgraduate-levelclassesinemergencymanagement,resilience,information-sharing,
homelandsecurity,crisiscommunications,andpublicadministration
Director,NewJerseyOfficeofHomelandSecurityandPreparedness
Trenton,NJ,2014~1;of “iy
‘©ServedasNewJersey'stopexecutiveoncybersecurity,emergencypreparedness,homeland
security,andcrisismanagement.Createdandsustainedopen-sourcecollectionand
disseminationonallthreatsandhazardsandcyberthreatstoinformlocal,state,federal,
andprivate-sectorpolicies,riskmitigation,andresilience;
'*Oversawallcrisispreventionandanalysis,aswellasthesharingofbestpracticesforpublic
institutionsandcriticalinfrastructure;
‘+Marshalledcollectivecapacitywithlocal,state,federal,international,andacademic
partners,includinginthetechnologyandcriticalinfrastructurespaces
BranchChief,CounterterrorismandEconomicSecurityCenters,CIA
Langley,VA,2003-14
‘+LedanalyticteamsthatproducedstrategicintelligenceandoperationalplansforseniorUS
policymakersandforeigncounterpartsonenergysecurity,counterterrorism,cybersecurity,
Endbroaderglobalandeconomicsecuritytrends;
‘©BriefeddozensofforeigndiplomatsandintelligenceofficialsacrossEurope,theMiddle
East,SoutheastAsia,andLatinAmerica;
'*ProvidedstrategicandtacticalanalysisforUSmilitaryoperationsinAfghanistan,Iraq,
Pakistan,Somalia,andYemen;
‘+LivedinBrussels,Belgium,servingtheBilateral,EU,andNATOMissions;
‘©ServedinIraqandotherMiddleEastcountries
EDUCATION
‘©UniversityofNotreDame,PhD/MA,DepartmentofPoliticalScience
SouthBend,IN,2006/2002
‘©WilliamsCollege,BA,PoliticalEconomy
Williamstown,MA,1999
Executive Office of the Mayor – Mayor's Office of Talent and Appointments
John A. Wilson Building | 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, Suite 600 | Washington, DC 20004
Dr. Christopher Rodriguez
Dr. Christopher Rodriguez is the Acting Chief Technology Officer. He
is the former Director of the Homeland Security and Emergency
Management Agency (“HSEMA”), where he served as the Homeland
Security Advisor and State Coordinating Officer for the District of
Columbia, as well as the State Administrative Agent for all homeland
security federal grants funding for the District and the National Capital
Region, which includes parts of Northern Virginia and Maryland. Dr.
Rodriguez was responsible for emergency planning, preparedness,
response, and recovery for the District, including operations for a 24-
hour emergency operations center and the Washington Regional
Threat Analysis Center, the District’s intelligence fusion center.
Prior to his service with District Government, Dr. Rodriguez served as
the Director of New Jersey’s Office of Homeland Security where he led statewide strategies,
policies, and operations on counterterrorism, resiliency, and cybersecurity. While serving in New
Jersey, his home state, Dr. Rodriguez led the office during a national rise in homegrown violent
extremism and established close relationships with the private sector and federal, state, and local
law enforcement. Recognizing the critical role the public plays in stopping attacks before they
happen, Dr. Rodriguez also increased the office’s engagement with the public—building and
maintaining key relationships with faith-based communities.
Dr. Rodriguez served for more than a decade in the Central Intelligence Agency (“CIA”) and the
U.S. Department of State, where he held a variety of analytical and management positions.
Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Dr. Rodriguez joined the CIA, where he
became a senior analyst in its Counterterrorism Center. In this position, he monitored terrorist
groups in the Middle East and South Asia, closely collaborating with U.S. Intelligence Community
partners at the federal, state, and local levels to identify and counter persistent threats to the United
States and its allies.
During his time at the CIA, Dr. Rodriguez also oversaw an analytic unit that handled global
economic and energy security, as well as related counterintelligence and cyber threats. From 2009
to 2011, while deployed at the U.S. Embassy in Brussels, Dr. Rodriguez was a key U.S.
interlocutor with the European Union during the height of the Euro currency crisis. He has been
recognized by the CIA and Director of National Intelligence for his leadership and professional
achievements.
Dr. Rodriguez earned his Bachelor of Arts from Williams College, and his Master of Arts and
Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science from the University of Notre Dame. GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Executive Office of Mayor Muriel Bowser
Office of the General Counsel to the Mayor
______________________________________________________________________________
The John A. Wilson Building • 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW • Suite 300 • Washington, D.C. 20004 • Office (202) 724 -7681
To: Tommy Wells, Steve Walker
From: Betsy Cavendish
Date: October 17, 2023
Subject: Legal sufficiency review of Resolution nominating Dr. Christopher Rodriguez as
Chief Technology Officer
This is to Certify that this office has reviewed the above- referenced resolution and
found it to be legally unobjectionable. If you have any questions in this regard, please do not
hesitate to call Erika Satterlee, Deputy General Counsel, Executive Office of the Mayor, at 202 -
724-1303, or me at 202- 724-7681.
______________________________ Elizabeth A. (Betsy) Cavendish