Miriam Quintal
Miriam Quintal boasts fourteen years of advocacy and client success at Lewis-Burke, managing the federal relations portfolios for large academic institutions, scientific societies, and facility management organizations. As Managing Principal, she oversees the firm’s client engagement and issue practices to ensure success and advancement across the firm. Miriam fiercely protects client priorities, leveraging her unique combination of scientific training with political insight.
Miriam is a prominent leader in National Science Foundation advocacy, co-chairing the Coalition for National Science Funding (CNSF) and working closely with the higher education and research advocacy community to guide policy for and champion the Foundation. Her wealth of knowledge and federal research enterprise acumen provides value to all components of client interests: supporting executives and university leadership, shepherding research initiatives, and shaping policy across a range of issues. Major advocacy efforts have included successfully guiding large-scale science projects through the appropriations process, restoring funding for key programs proposed to be eliminated in the President’s budget request, establishing new agency funding for research infrastructure, and creating opportunities for clients to showcase research and leadership in Administration initiative areas.
Issue Expertise: Basic research (National Science Foundation, Department of Defense, Department of Energy Office of Science), STEM education, computing and computational science, math and physical sciences, engineering, and space and astronomy.
Additional Experience: Miriam has twice served as NSF lead for the Association of American Universities (AAU) Innovation Task Force. Before joining Lewis-Burke, Miriam gained policy experience as a Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Fellow with the Board on Science Education at the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. At the Academies, she contributed to several projects, including a review of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s education programs and a study of gaming and simulations for science education.
Vital Statistics: Miriam developed her passion for politics while growing up in the DC region, before venturing north to get an undergraduate degree in chemistry with highest honors from Smith College and a Masters Degree in Organic Chemistry from Harvard University. She has been a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow and a Fulbright Fellow. Miriam loves raising her son in DC alongside her wife. She is deeply engaged in her community, serving as a Founding Trustee and coordinator for Minyan Segulah, a local independent prayer community.
Reed Skaggs, Ph.D.
Dr. Reed Skaggs serves as Lewis-Burke’s Chief Strategy and Business Operations Officer providing clients and the firm strategic counsel. With a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry, decades of experience within the federal defense establishment, and working with Lewis-Burke clients for the last eight years, Reed provides Lewis-Burke clients with informed strategies and effective approaches to working with and collaborating with the National Security enterprise.
Reed has held various management and leadership positions such as serving as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Army Research and Technology and as the Acting Deputy Director for Ground Systems, Soldier Systems and Training, and Biometrics. Reed led the formulation of the Army Research Laboratory (ARL)’s long-term S&T portfolio strategy establishing new programs for materials, computational sciences, and neuroscience. His assignment to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) expanded his breadth of experiences to include developing national policies for high skilled immigration, the United States accession to the Ottawa Convention, as well as addressing the health and sufficiency of the national security S&T enterprise for the 21st century. As the senior expert for Lewis-Burke’s defense practice, Reed develops and implements multi-faceted initiatives to raise clients’ federal profile, ranging from organizing briefings on Capitol Hill to providing advanced intelligence to position them for unique DOD funding opportunities.
Issue Expertise: Defense/national security R&D, DOD laboratories, federal appropriations and budget process, physical and materials sciences, as well as engineering.
Additional Experience: As a scientist, Reed appreciates learning about emerging technical research areas and leverages personal curiosity for new federal efforts such as quantum information sciences, economic development and national security workforce development. Most recent examples include identifying emerging federal opportunities such as robotics/autonomy, quantum information science, and infectious diseases.
Vital Statistics: Reed grew up in Southern VA, attending Hampden-Sydney College followed by his pursuit of an advanced degree in physical chemistry at George Washington University. Reed was a postdoc at the Army Research Laboratory (ARL) where he was hired into civil service from 1999 to 2015 when he came to Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC. In his personal time, Reed loves to play golf and spend time with his two daughters and wife Jennifer. He is an avid Ravens and Nationals fan.
Amanda Bruno
Amanda is an expert in education, economic development, and workforce policy across the Departments of Commerce, Education, and Labor. Amanda is well versed in the legislative processes to authorize and fund federal programs related to education and scientific research funding, sustainable economic development, and access to education and workforce training. Amanda leverages her relationships at federal agencies and on the Hill to create federal strategies focused on education and economic development. In addition to her committed work on behalf of Lewis-Burke clients, Amanda drives research community initiatives through the firm’s Technology Based Economic Development and Workforce practice groups.
Issue areas: education, workforce, economic development, immigration, and advanced wireless policy.
Additional Experience: Prior to joining Lewis-Burke, Amanda served as a Government Affairs Associate in The Ohio State University’s Office of Federal Relations in Washington, D.C., where she handled a portfolio that included higher education issues and administrative functions.
Vital Statistics: A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Amanda graduated summa cum laude from Miami University with bachelor degrees in Political Science and International Studies and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Public Policy from George Mason University. She was recently named a 2022-2023 Bryce Harlow Foundation Fellow. As a lover of history, Amanda spends her days off taking in D.C.’s historical sights and museums. Amanda enjoys reading, watching college football, and cheering on Cleveland’s professional sports teams.
Andrew Herrin
Andrew is an expert in healthcare policy and research impacting higher education and academic medicine across the Department of Health and Human Services. He supports Lewis-Burke clients by providing in depth information about actions in Congress and at federal agencies advising on new opportunities and positioning for success. Andrew is a key member of the firm’s healthcare practice and is well versed in healthcare research, workforce, and regulatory policy within HRSA, SAMHSA, CDC, and CMS. Additionally, Andrew has extensive experience supporting clients with strategies to enhance transportation and computing research opportunities across federal agencies.
Issue Expertise: Healthcare workforce and delivery, biomedical research, transportation and infrastructure, advanced computing research
Additional Experience: Before joining Lewis-Burke, Andrew spent a year abroad as an intern for the U.S. Department of State in Berlin, Germany. During his internship, he learned the ins and outs of federal agency operations and the nuance of U.S. foreign policy. Andrew also gained valuable experience as an intern in the district office of Congressman Richard Hudson (NC-08), where he supported campaign outreach and assisted constituents with navigating federal agencies.
Vital Statistics: Originally from Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, Andrew earned his undergraduate degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he double majored in Political Science and Contemporary European Studies and minored in History. While studying abroad, he also earned a graduate degree in Political Science with a focus on Transatlantic relations from Humboldt Universitaet and Freie Universitaet.
Otto Katt
As a former educator, Otto Katt brings a passion to his workforce and education policy and advocacy work in his Workforce Practice Group Chair role. In addition to those areas, he brings experience in immigration, economic development, research, and tax policy on behalf of Lewis-burke clients. Otto provides strategic guidance on legislative, administrative, and regulatory issues at the Department of Education (ED) and Department of Labor (DOL), in addition to other federal agencies. He leverages his professional knowledge and expertise, gained while working in the K-12 space and at the state and federal policy level, to provide timely insight and support to a wide range of clients, including institutions and systems of higher education, associations, foundations, and coalitions on key education and workforce policy issues including federal student financial aid, workforce development legislation, ed R&D, the evolving higher education landscape, and the “business” of higher education.
Before joining Lewis-Burke, Otto served as the Education Advisor for Representative Phil Roe, a member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee. While there, he proposed and developed education and workforce development policies for the congressman. He also staffed and advised the congressman at Education and Workforce Committee meetings and district events and engaged various interest groups, stakeholder groups, and agencies regarding pertinent legislation.
Issue Expertise: K-12 and STEM education policy, higher education policy, workforce development policy, student financial aid, accreditation, “business” of higher education.
Additional Experience: Otto has worked in education as a teacher, administrator, and policy analyst in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and North Carolina. These experiences include serving as a Teach For America Corps member.
Vital Statistics: Otto received his B.A. in History from The College of New Jersey and his Masters in International Studies: Latin America from the University of Connecticut. He grew up in New Jersey, runs the occasional marathon, and enjoys spending time outside with his wife and daughter.
Bill Ruch
Bill Ruch is the Chair of Lewis-Burke’s Technology-Based Economic Development Practice Group, a complex area that involves assisting clients as they seek to commercialize research from lab to market, forge public-private partnerships, and pursue regional economic development strategies. If done in sync, these efforts can foster cohesive regional growth around key technology areas that, in turn, can bolster the nation’s competitiveness on the global stage. Bill meets clients where they are in their commercialization/ecosystem-building journey through actionable intelligence on future federal direction, support for the development of sensible federal policies and programs, and direct connections with key decisionmakers. These efforts have led to success for our clients in extraordinarily competitive programs and numerous policy wins.
Bill’s diverse portfolio also covers federal interests across the research and development spectrum. He also serves as one of the firm’s top experts in the social and behavioral sciences and domestic security spaces. His day-to-day can include providing in-depth analysis on federal trends, targeted advocacy on Capitol Hill and at federal agencies, and coalition building with relevant stakeholders to bolster messaging.
Issue Expertise: Economic development, technology transfer, social and behavioral sciences, criminal justice, homeland security, cybersecurity, appropriations, and STEM education.
Additional Experience: Prior to joining Lewis-Burke, Bill accrued valuable state and local government experience at the Michigan House of Representatives and was involved in various political campaigns.
Vital Statistics: Bill is a proud land-grant graduate, having attended Michigan State University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a concentration in Pre-Law. Outside of work, Bill enjoys distance running and American League baseball.
Amber Cassady
Amber spearheads complex agency and congressional advocacy strategies on behalf of Lewis-Bruke clients related to national security and emerging technology policies. As a key leader for Lewis-Burke's national security practice, Amber has deep knowledge of the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and advances defense-related appropriations and authorization strategies on behalf of clients and the firm. Amber is also active in the Coalition for National Security Research, which advocates for basic and applied research funding on behalf of many Lewis-Burke research universities and organizations.
Issue Areas: Defense, national security, manufacturing, emerging technology, standards and technology, defense health.
Additional Experience: Prior to joining Lewis-Burke, Amber worked as a Research Assistant at the Bertelsmann Foundation, a transatlantic think tank where she covered European Union-U.S. policies in artificial intelligence, technology, manufacturing, and the future of work. She also interned with the Department of State at the U.S. Embassy in Lisbon, Portugal and gained international diplomatic experience in the Embassy’s politics and economics section. Amber also worked as an Education Outreach Assistant at the Center for European Studies, at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill.
Vital Statistics: Amber received both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from UNC (Go Heels!). She earned a B.A. in Global Studies, a B.A. in Contemporary European Studies, and a minor in Spanish. She also earned an M.A. in Political Science, during which she studied at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, and was awarded two Foreign Language Area Studies (FLAS) scholarships by the U.S. Department of Education for her study of Portuguese. Amber is an aficionada of the Iberian Peninsula, having lived in Lisbon, Barcelona, and Seville before moving to D.C. She also enjoys being one of the firm’s resident “foodie” experts and loves trying new restaurants in the DMV.