Murch joined Virginia Tech in December 2004 as associate director, Research Program Development, National Capital Region and currently serves on the RDT. He is also an adjunct professor in the School of Public and International Affairs and in the Department of Plant Pathology. Murch's 23-year career in the FBI includes responsibilities as a field agent, forensic biologist, research scientist, department head, and deputy director. He was a member of the Senior Executive Service for his last seven years with the FBI. Murch also served the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), Department of Defense, as director of the Advanced Systems and Concepts Office. From 2002 to 2004, Murch was a research staff member, Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), a leading federally funded research and development center, where he led or participated in studies for the defense, intelligence, and homeland security communities. Murch has served, or still serves, on standing boards and study committees of the National Research Council and the National Academies, and on several advisory committees for U.S. defense, intelligence, and law enforcement agencies.

Responsibilities

For the RDT, Murch focuses on bringing and engineering new research and development opportunities from intelligence, defense, homeland security, law enforcement, life sciences, and bio security through his extensive government, regional, and national network. He is also in the process of creating new research and study programs in strategy, policy, operational concepts, and science and technology related to security, robustness and resiliency in complex systems, human networks performance in complex national security enterprises, and novel global infectious disease enterprise management. Building new collaborations with other academic institutions is part of these activities.

Contact Information

E-mail: rmurch@vt.edu