Beaver’s Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes an alumna/us who has achieved distinction in a particular field of endeavor, whether it be in a chosen profession, through formal or volunteer activities or through personal commitment to an issue, project or cause.

We are honored to present Dr. Louis Reginald Brothers ’77 with the 2015 Distinguished Alumni Award.

Nominated by President Barack Obama, Dr. Reginald Brothers ’77 was confirmed by the Senate on April 7, 2014 as the Under Secretary of Science and Technology of the Department of Homeland Security where he leads and oversees all research and development efforts.

Dr. Brothers attended Tufts University, earning a B.S. in electrical engineering. He then started work for Texas Instruments in Dallas. After four years there, during which time he earned his MSEE at Southern Methodist University, Dr. Brothers left for MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory,where he worked in the areas of radio frequency and optical communications (the science of using light waves to carry information). He worked at the Lincoln Laboratory until 1999, earning his Ph.D. in optical communications at MIT in 1997.

Dr. Brothers then worked for a startup electronics company, Envoy Networks, as their chief architect, followed by the Charles Draper Laboratory in 2001 to build a group focused on wireless communications, sensors systems and later at the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, a research organization established to maintain the U.S. military’s technological preeminence. Dr. Brothers’ work centered on wireless communications and precision navigation and targeting, including a program that helps pilots land helicopters in sandy conditions.

In 2007, he returned to the private sector, joining defense contractor BAE Systems, working on advanced programs and technology. Dr. Brothers first joined the Obama administration in 2011 as Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Department of Defense for Research. In that role, he was responsible for policy and oversight of Department of Defense Science and Technology programs from basic research through advanced technology development.

The Alumni Award presentation and reception will be held during Reunion 2015, Friday, May 8 at 5 p.m. in the Black Box Theater. 

Click here to see all the 2015 Alumni Award recipients.