Embrace the Brave: Our Mission

Dr. Joseph Kunze is ARA’s Chief Technology Officer. In 2022, Dr. Kunze’s company, SI2 Technologies was acquired by ARA to expand the company’s offerings to include signal mitigation systems, Active Electronic Steered Arrays (AESA), additive manufacture and low profile, low vis conformal antenna solutions. 

Prior to starting SI2, Dr. Kunze was Vice President and Business Unit Leader at Triton Systems, Inc. in Chelmsford, MA., and previously worked at the 3M Company in Mendota Heights, MN. 

He received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (Worcester, MA), and his M.S. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA). Dr. Kunze is an active member in several leading professional societies and organizations including the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) and the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA).

Tara Goodwin, lifelong entrepreneur and founder of Goodwin Consulting and Crisis Interception, Inc. brings more than three decades of experience to her public relations and crisis management practice.

Throughout her career, she has been a trusted advisor to a diverse spectrum of leaders ranging from professional athletes, revered coaches, and prominent celebrities, to politicians, religious leaders, Fortune 1000 CEOs and fellow entrepreneurs. She has provided stability and sound advice whether guiding them through media training for a positive feature story, or guiding them through the storm of crisis.

Tara is a sought-after international speaker on crisis response and management and has trained hundreds of CEOs and their teams on how to effectively navigate the unexpected. 

Bill Watson has an expansive career leading, building and growing companies. AS Chief Growth Officer, he will identify areas of growth by pursuing new markets and strengthening ARA's presence in existing ones.

Watson's career spans more than 30 years in all aspects of the defense industry, including engineering, manufacturing, and program management. Most recently, he served as CEO of RADA Technologies LLC. In this position, he grew a FOCI-mitigated operation to expand Rada Electronic Industries into the US market until RADA was acquired by DRS Technologies. Prior to this position, Watson served as VP of Sales and Business Development for L3 Technologies and Safran. He also brings 13 years of experience as VP or Executive Director of various departments at DRS Technologies.

Jamie Waldren is the founder and CEO of JN Private Wealth Management LLC, an independent boutique Virtual Family Office and Wealth Management Firm located in Columbia, Maryland. 

He is past chair for the Mid-Atlantic United Methodist Foundation investment committee. He is on the board of the Candlelight Concert Society of Maryland and a board member of the Embrace-The-Brave, a non-profit dedicated to the education of former enlisted military personnel returning from overseas deployment. 

His has a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation from the College of Financial Planning.

Jamie resides in Highland, Maryland, with wife Nora and two children, Matthew, and Alexandra. In his spare time Jamie enjoys family time, golfing, fishing, traveling, and college football.

Marianne Tango Williams is the Senior Director, Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings, a National honorary, collegiate leadership and community service organization with 77 years of legacy, whose membership includes Air Force ROTC (AFROTC) and US Air Force Academy Cadets as well as civilian students interested in national defense. In her position, she educates and mentors on servant leadership and professional development to prepare the students for America’s future challenges.

Marianne graduated from the Duke University School of Nursing and earned her commission through AFROTC Detachment 585 with her husband, Major General (Retired) Brett Williams.

She retired as a Lt Col after navigating a rewarding 20-year dual-military career primarily in Mission Support that included Command, Executive Support/Protocol, and Joint/higher headquarters duties. She then leveraged this experience in her role as a senior spouse while her husband served for an additional 13 years.

Marianne remains passionate about giving back to her military family. She advocates for initiatives that empower military spouses and families, and for programs that promote purposeful transition strategies for our military members and families who have honorably served our great Nation. 

Dr. Libby Carver is a nurse practitioner at Duke Employee and Occupational Health. She is a graduate of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with degrees in psychology and nursing. She earned her nurse practitioner degree at Duke University and her doctorate in nursing education at Gardner-Webb University. Her career at Duke spans more than 25 years in patient care, research and education.  Dr. Carver received the highest honor of a Duke employee in 2022 by winning the Presidential Award for her work with the COVID Response Team. She has a special interest helping service members and their families cope with the stress of post-deployment reunions and reintegration.

 Robert “Bob” Dann has been the Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for Modern Technology Solutions, Inc. (MTSI) for the past six years. Bob is also a trustee for the MTSI ESOP and a member of the ESOP Trustee Committee. Bob has over 30 years of additional experience in financial leadership for government contracting organizations. Most of Bob’s experience has been serving the aerospace & defense industry with long stints at DRS Defense Solutions, LLC (~ 9 years) and Amherst Systems Northrop Grumman (~ 12 years). Bob has helped both engineering services and defense electronics manufacturing organizations plan and execute growth strategies with a focus on business systems control and optimization.