Senator Todd Young, Sean O’Keefe and Adm. John Richardson Join NTI Board of Directors

Carmen MacDougall Elected COO

WASHINGTON–This week, the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) welcomed three experienced and respected leaders to its Board of Directors: Senator Todd Young, as an honorary member, and Sean O’Keefe and Admiral John Richardson. In addition, Carmen MacDougall, a long-time dedicated and effective leader at NTI, was named Chief Operating Officer.

“We are delighted to welcome these outstanding leaders to our Board, each of whom will bring valuable expertise to NTI,” said Christine Wormuth, NTI’s President and CEO. “Senator Young is a leading voice in the Senate on complex national security issues. Secretary O’Keefe has strong government and private sector credentials, with his wide-ranging involvement over many years in national security and financial management. Admiral Richardson joined NTI’s Science and Technology Advisory Group last year and will bring deep operational understanding to NTI’s nuclear mission. We are also delighted that Carmen will continue her outstanding work here at NTI as COO. We at NTI greatly value her wisdom and good judgment.”

“Senator Young has been deeply engaged in critical security issues over many years, and I am delighted that he is joining the NTI Board,” said former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn, founding co-chair of NTI. “Indiana has a proud tradition of senators, including my long-time partner and colleague Richard Lugar, who worked across the aisle on important national security challenges. I look forward to working with Senator Young on reducing nuclear and biological dangers.”

Senator Todd Young (R-IN) serves on the U.S. Senate Committees on Finance; Commerce, Science & Transportation; Small Business and Entrepreneurship; and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Previously, in the House, he served on the House Armed Services Committee, the House Budget Committee, and the House Ways and Means Committee. A United States Naval Academy graduate and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Senator Young serves as the Chair of the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology, charged by Congress with conducting a thorough review of how advancements in emerging biotechnology and related technologies will shape current and future activities of the Department of Defense.

Sean O’Keefe is former Chairman and CEO of Airbus, Inc., the U.S. subsidiary company of the global aerospace, space, and defense corporation, and former administrator of NASA, who served previously as deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget as well as Comptroller and CFO of the Defense Department and Secretary of the Navy. At various intervals between public leadership roles, he was the chancellor of the Louisiana State University, and a member of the academic faculty at LSU, Syracuse University, and Pennsylvania State University. He concluded his tenure as endowed chair in Leadership at the Syracuse Maxwell School, and retired as a University Professor in 2025, the most senior faculty appointment bestowed by the University.

Admiral John Richardson served 37 years in the U.S. Navy, completing his service as the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), the top officer in the Navy. While in the Navy, Richardson also served as the Director of Naval Reactors from 2012 until 2015. In this capacity, he was responsible for the design, safety, certification, operating standards, material control, maintenance, disposal, and regulatory oversight of more than 100 nuclear power plants operating on nuclear-powered warships deployed worldwide. Since his retirement from the Navy, he has joined the boards of several major companies and works in leader development.

Carmen MacDougall has served in leadership positions at NTI over the last 16 years, most recently as Senior Vice President. Previously, she directed communications for the bipartisan Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism. She was vice president for communications at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, after serving in a number of public affairs roles at the U.S. Department of Energy, including deputy assistant secretary for communications.

About NTI

The Nuclear Threat Initiative is a nonprofit, non-partisan international security organization focused on reducing worldwide nuclear, biological and emerging technology threats imperiling humanity.