Jeffrey A. Isaacson Appointed Vice President and Director of RAND Arroyo Center

Former RAND Corporation Vice President Jeffrey A. Isaacson has returned to RAND as vice president and director of the RAND Arroyo Center, RAND President and CEO James A. Thomson announced today.

The RAND Arroyo Center is the U.S. Army's federally funded research and development center for studies and analysis. Its mission is to conduct objective analytic research on major policy concerns, help the Army improve effectiveness and efficiency, provide short-term assistance on urgent problems, and serve as a catalyst for needed change.

A physicist and expert on national security issues, Isaacson returns to RAND from Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company in Sunnyvale, Calif., where he directed systems engineering and integration of the Space Based Infrared System High. The multibillion-dollar satellite program provides the United States a next-generation capability for missile warning.

Isaacson served as a RAND vice president and director of the RAND National Security Research Division from 2000 to 2004. He was director of the RAND International Security and Defense Policy Center from 1998 to 2000.

Prior to joining RAND in 1991 as an associate physical scientist, Isaacson earned a doctorate in theoretical physics from M.I.T. He also holds degrees from Columbia and Princeton universities.

Isaacson is a Navy reservist affiliated with U.S. Strategic Command. He serves as commanding officer of a reserve unit supporting the Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.

Isaacson succeeds Thomas L. McNaugher, who has served as a RAND vice president and director of the RAND Arroyo Center for five years. McNaugher decided to return to research following the Arroyo Center's successful contract renewal with the U.S. Army.

“Jeff Isaacson's experience in national security research and in management makes him the ideal person to lead the RAND Arroyo Center,” Thomson said. “We welcome him back to RAND, and thank Tom McNaugher for his outstanding service heading the RAND Arroyo Center.”