Robert C. Leicht, Sr. is currently a senior program manager in the Southeast Region Research Initiative, National Security Directorate, Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Prior to coming to Oak Ridge in August 2001, he served in the U. S. Army for more than 27 years. His last assignment was as the senior liaison officer to the CIA from the United States Special Operations Command, with responsibility for the coordination of activities between the military and the intelligence community. In the years preceding that, he served in repeated infantry and Special Forces assignments, which included five years of duty in Asia. Leicht’s last tactical assignment was the Special Operations Command Korea, responsible for planning the employment of U.S. special operations forces in the defense of the Republic of Korea.

Since joining the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, his duties have centered on matching the R&D capabilities of the Oak Ridge DOE complex to the technology requirements of the special operations forces of the U.S. military, as well as those of the intelligence community of the U.S. government.

A 1973 graduate of Siena College, Leicht also has graduate degrees from Central Michigan University and the National War College in Washington, DC.

Bob and his wife Nancy were raised in New Jersey and have a daughter and a son, a serving officer of the U.S. Army.

Benjamin (Ben) Thomas, Jr. provides program management support to the SERRI Program. Ben is specifically responsible for oversight of the Mississippi Research Initiative and the Regional Research and Operations Support Projects of SERRI. Ben has more than 30 years experience working on the DOE Oak Ridge Reservation. Over the last 10 years, Ben has worked closely with minority institutions to build technology related partnerships and to implement research collaborations with minority institutions (in particular Historically Black Colleges and Universities). Ben's most recent assignment prior to the SERRI Program was loan personnel to Tennessee State University to implement the mentor protégé agreement between TSU and the Y-12 National Security Complex (Oak Ridge, TN). Ben's undergraduate degree is from Tuskegee University and his graduate degrees are from The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.