Ms. Theresa Whelan at the Office of the Secretary of Defense to provide the Opening Keynote at the Special Operations Summit Little Creek

(Norfolk, VA. September 8. 2015) Special Operations Summit Little Creek is pleased to announce the keynote speaker - Ms. Theresa Whelan, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Special Operations & Low Intensity Conflict at the Office of the Secretary of Defense this November 16 - 18 at the Founders Inn & Spa, Virginia. Ms. Whelan brings over twenty-seven years of experience in the defense intelligence, defense policy and national intelligence communities. At the summit this November, she will discuss the Future SOF Landscape and present:

• Future Challenges Facing the Special Operations Community

• Irregular Warfare Challenges

• Requirements to support the COCOMs and TSOCs

She will be joined by a prestigious line-up of speakers including:

• Marie Richards, Acting Deputy Counterterrorism Coordinator, Counterterrorism Bureau, U.S. Department of State

• CAPT Vincent Martinez, USN, Commanding Officer, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technology Division NSWC Indian Head

• MR. JONATHAN YOUNG, J8/Requirements -Joint Improvised-Threat Defeat Agency (JITA), USD AT&L

• CDR CAMERON CHEN, USN, Counter Proliferation/ Unified Collection J-39 Global Operations, Joint Staff

• CDR Clay Pendergrass, USN, Commanding Officer - Naval Small Craft Instruction and Technical Training School, USSOCOM

• CDR MICHAEL FREDIE, USCG, Commanding Officer Tactical Law Enforcement Team South (TACLET South), USCG

The summit will bring together senior DOD decision makers, thought leaders, and policy makers together with industry and academia to outline challenges and requirements for supporting the next-generation US Navy SOF warfighter. The agenda for the conference has been designed to focus on five key development areas - Building Human Capital, Leveraging technology to improve SOF Tactical Equipment Requirements, Requirements to Develop Regional Expertise and Facilitate Full Spectrum Partner Capability, More Agile and Adaptable Maritime Access/Mobility Platforms, Improving Agility, Persistence, and Flexibility in C4ISR capabilities

"We’re thrilled to release the agenda to the public as as we shape the program to be the best one yet," said Drew Hildebrand, Special Operations Summit Little Creek Event Director. "We have a lot to look forward to in 2015 and attendees will be more than impressed with the program".

The summit is sponsored by ADS, Berg, Drywired, Red Hen Systems LLC. Other media partners include Armor & Mobility, ASD News, The Counter Terrorist, GovEvents, Homeland Security Assistance and the Special Operations Technology Magazine.

-Ends-