From the White House to GW

Former national security staffer Darrell Darnell joins GW as senior associate vice president for safety and security.

May 14, 2010

Darrel Darnell on roof of 1957 E Street with Washington Monument in background

For nearly a century, The George Washington University has been a neighbor to the White House. Now, GW is about to get presidential-grade security.

Darrell Darnell, GW’s newly appointed senior associate vice president for safety and security, comes to the university from the White House, where he served as director of critical infrastructure protection and resilience policy for its national security staff.

In his new position, which he will assume on June 7, Mr. Darnell will oversee security and safety at the Foggy Bottom, Mount Vernon and Virginia campuses, including the GW Police Department, the Office of Public Safety and Emergency Management and the Office of Environmental Health and Safety, which includes laboratory and residential housing.

He will also develop partnerships with federal and non-governmental agencies, and he will coordinate security on GW’s study abroad programs with the Office of International Programs.

“Mr. Darnell has the experience we need and a reputation for a collaborative leadership style that will help him lead the safety and security program at the university,” says Louis Katz, executive vice president and treasurer.

“I look forward to joining the GW family and working with students, faculty, staff and our neighbors to keep our campus community safe,” says Mr. Darnell, who served as a senior fellow at GW’s Homeland Security Policy Institute in 2006.

“It was a great honor to be selected as a fellow at the institute, and the association with HSPI and GW has allowed me to learn from experienced and accomplished homeland security professionals and enhanced my professional capability and competence,” he says.

A retired master sergeant with the U.S. Air Force, Mr. Darnell has nearly a decade of experience at the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security and Justice. Before moving to the White House, he served as director of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency and worked with the university to coordinate special events which impacted GW’s campus.

Mr. Darnell grew up in Akron, Ohio has lived in the D.C. area for more than 25 years. “I suppose that makes me a native,” he says. A University of Maryland alumnus, he was an adjunct professor at Prince George’s Community College in Largo, Md., and at his alma mater. He also holds a certificate from the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.