AFCEA Bethesda Announces New Board of Directors

Bethesda, MD, July 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Bethesda Chapter of AFCEA today announced its newly elected Board of Directors who will help lead the chapter over the next two years.  Katie Keegan, Senior Vice President of Sales and Strategic Partnerships at American AI Logistics will serve as the new President while Jessica Smith, Portfolio Execution and Operations Director at Leidos, transitions into the role of President-Elect.

The new AFCEA Bethesda Board of Directors will continue furthering the chapter’s mission of encouraging partnership between government and industry to solve today’s most critical IT challenges, while also providing premier networking opportunities and educational experiences to its members. They will also continue the chapter’s longstanding legacy of donating its proceeds to academic scholarships promoting science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) education in the local community, as well as charitable organizations benefiting veterans and children’s health and welfare. So far this year, AFCEA Bethesda has hosted 13 events, engaged over 2,500 attendees, connected attendees with more than 150 speakers across government, industry, and academia, and donated more than $200,000 in support of its core scholarship and charitable programs.

Keegan, a government contracting industry veteran of more than two decades, has deep experience in the federal civilian landscape which will undoubtedly color her tenure as President. This experience, along with her passion for connecting government leaders to technology and helping them achieve their missions, makes her a considerable asset to the chapter.

“It is an honor to step into this role as President, continuing the traditions of service to community, government-industry collaboration, and innovation that sets AFCEA Bethesda apart from other associations,” said Keegan. “Through our annual pillar events, professional development opportunities, and community service initiatives, our chapter has established itself as a leading facilitator of engagement in the government contracting space. I look forward to driving that momentum forward alongside this hardworking and talented Board of Directors.”

The new Board of Directors, who began their two-year term on July 1, include:

Katie Keegan, President
American AI Logistics

Jessica Smith, President-Elect, VP of Education
Leidos

Nick Murray, Treasurer
Cribl

T.S. Mallick, VP of Energy, Infrastructure, and Environment
ServiceNow

Ramon Thomas, VP of Energy, Infrastructure, and Environment
WWT

Ratima Kataria, VP of Health IT
ICF

Justin Fessler, VP of Health IT
Logic Monitor

Kristyn Shapiro, VP of Law Enforcement and Public Safety
Guidehouse

Roy Ruiz, VP of Law Enforcement and Public Safety
SAIC

Cody Mruk, VP of Special Events
ECS Tech

Jessica Price, VP of Special Events
NuAxis Innovations

Sam Ziman, Emerging Leaders President
Global CI

Brian Baker, Former President, Government Advisory Council
ServiceNow

With more than 140 chapters worldwide, AFCEA International is a membership organization dedicated to increasing knowledge in information technology, communications, and electronics for the defense, homeland security, and intelligence communities. If you are interested in getting involved or volunteering to support the AFCEA Bethesda chapter, please contact [email protected].

ABOUT AFCEA BETHESDA
AFCEA Bethesda is a non-profit organization encouraging dialogue and partnership between the Federal Government and industry to solve today’s most critical IT challenges. Through our widely attended events, we strive to foster better inter-agency communication, share best practices, identify mission-critical issues and management approaches, and increase engagement with industry IT solutions and service providers. AFCEA Bethesda has enjoyed great success over the years in engaging the Federal civilian space, making us the premier civilian chapter for AFCEA International. On average each year, we engage more than 250, primarily civilian, senior government executives who participate as speakers and moderators for our widely attended annual events (e.g., IT Days and Technology Symposia). Our Chapter proceeds are entirely donated to academic scholarships and non-profit community organizations. For additional information, please visit afceabethesda.org.

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