W-09069
      
October 29, 2009
    
MEMORANDUM FOR:	Write Your Own Company Principal Coordinators and the
		National Flood Insurance Program Servicing Agent


FROM:	        Edward L. Connor
                Acting Federal Insurance Administrator

SUBJECT:        Appointment of Deputy Assistant Administrator for Mitigation
	
 
I am pleased to announce that FEMA leadership has named Dr. Sandra K. Knight as Deputy Assistant Administrator for Mitigation, replacing Mike Buckley who retired in the spring. 
 
There were a number of very highly qualified candidates who applied for this position and the review panel had the opportunity to meet and interview each candidate. Dr. Knight’s experience in strategic leadership of federal programs at several of our partner agencies as well as her vast experience in civil engineering will be a tremendous asset to the entire Directorate. 
 
Dr. Knight is a member of the Senior Executive Service and comes to FEMA from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration where she currently serves as the Director of the Office of Policy, Planning and Evaluation. There she is responsible for the development of corporate policies and planning strategies, to ensure scientific excellence, transparent operations, and improved performance of NOAA's research portfolio.
 
Dr. Knight came to NOAA from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Engineer Research and Development Center in Vicksburg, Miss., where she was the Technical Director for navigation research and responsible for directing and planning strategic, multidisciplinary research which supported the sustainable development and management of the nation's waterways infrastructure.
During her last year with the Corps, she was on special assignment to the Corps Headquarters as the team lead for asset management, establishing accountability and life-cycle guidance for over $200 billion of the nation's real property assets. Following the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf Coast, she stepped in to provide leadership support to the Mississippi Valley Division Corps of Engineers as Chief, Business Technical Division, serving as lead engineer for the Valley. 
 
She received her doctorate in Civil Engineering from the University of Memphis in 1996. 
 
Dr. Knight has authored or co-authored over 35 technical papers and reports on various aspects of hydraulic engineering. 
 
She is a registered professional engineer in the state of Tennessee and has been certified by the American Academy of Water Resource Engineers as a Diplomate, Water Resource Engineer. 
 
She is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Society of Women Engineers, the Women's Aquatic Network, the International Navigation Association, and Sigma Xi. 
 
Dr. Knight’s start date has not been determined as she still has some work left to do at NOAA, but we anticipate that she’ll be on board in January. Please join me in welcoming her to FEMA. 
 
 

cc: Vendors, IBHS, FIPNC, Government Technical Representative

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