Board Members

Elected 2017

Taylor W. Lawrence is currently an independent investor focusing on venture funding of biotech startups in the areas of immuno-oncology and novel vaccines.

Lawrence retired from Raytheon Company in 2019 after spending 35 years in the aerospace, defense, and national security industries. His tenure included 11 years as president of the largest missile manufacturer in the world, Raytheon Missile Systems, with annual sales of $9 billion in 2019. Prior to Raytheon, Lawrence was sector vice president and general manager of the C4ISR and Space Sensors division for Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems.

Prior to Northrop Grumman, Lawrence spent time working for the U.S. government. His assignments included staff director for the Select Committee on Intelligence for the United States Senate, deputy director of the Information Systems Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and director of technology for the Defense Airborne Reconnaissance Office in the Pentagon.

Lawrence earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Caltech in 1986 and holds a master's degree and doctorate in applied physics from Stanford University.

He is a former member of the Defense Science Board and vice chairman emeritus of the Air Force Studies Board of the National Academies. He is a fellow and lifetime member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and serves on the boards of the Arizona Commerce Authority and the Roundabout Theatre Company in New York City.

In 1996, Lawrence was honored with the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service. In 2013, he received the Medal for the Advancement of Research from ASM International.

Standing Committees: Executive; Executive Compensation, chair; Jet Propulsion Laboratory