Oct. 6, 2023

Andrea Thompson, a South Dakota native with an extensive government and military background, has been named CEO of Dakota State University Applied Research Corporation.

Thompson spent more than 25 years in the Army as an intelligence officer, including tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

After retiring from the Army, she continued building senior executive experience in government and the private sector. She served as national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence before being appointed as undersecretary of state for arms control and international security. She most recently worked as vice president of international programs at Northrop Grumman, a multinational aerospace and defense technology company.

“Andrea is the perfect individual to lead DSU-ARC,” DSU president José-Marie Griffiths said in a statement.

DSU-ARC recently was established as a nonprofit corporation that is affiliated with but separate from DSU. Its mission is to serve as a management company, working to develop, operate and expand the DSU Applied Research Lab. The lab is on the Dakota State campus in Madison and will expand to Sioux Falls in a building that currently is in the design stage. The corporation will be responsible for operating the lab that will support national security research with government, military, business and industry partners.

“Andrea has experience with all these potential partners. That experience, along with her expertise in international negotiations and relationships and her highly effective leadership skills, will allow her to develop this organization to deliver strategic outcomes in national security and business fields,” Griffiths said.

Gov. Kristi Noem also praised Thompson’s hiring.

“We are fortunate enough that she is bringing her skills and experience back here to her home state,” Noem said.

“This is a perfect example of the advantage that DSU’s Applied Research Corporation is bringing the state of South Dakota,” the governor said. “Andrea’s work to develop cybersecurity workforce opportunities right here in our state promises a bright future for our kids and grandkids. DSU’s cyber industry is not only keeping South Dakota students in-state for college, it’s bringing our out-of-state students back home for professional opportunities.”

Sen. Mike Rounds called the hiring “an excellent step in the continued development of additional job opportunities for young people to stay in South Dakota.”

Thompson is a graduate of the University of South Dakota and has master’s degrees from Long Island University and National Defense University. She co-authored “Achieving Victory in Iraq: Countering an Insurgency” and serves on advisory boards for international, national and state boards.

She will begin her new role Nov. 1 and is “excited to be coming home to lead this amazing team,” she said. “DSU-ARC, the Dakota State University Applied Research Corporation, will create opportunities for our cyber professionals, students and businesses. Our tech expertise will contribute not only to the safety and security of our businesses, cities and state, but also to our regional and national security.”

DSU is leading the nation in so many innovative academic sectors, Thompson said, and corporate growth is a natural next step,

“With over 700,000 unfilled cyber positions across our nation, I want every tech grad in South Dakota to have the opportunity to fuel their passion and do what they love, and to be able to do it in the great state of South Dakota,” she said.

Thompson will lead a team that includes former Sioux Falls city attorney Stacy Kooistra, the chief operating officer and general counsel for DSU-ARC, who started his role earlier this year.