Judith Dawson is the Chancellor of the VA Acquisition Academy (VAAA) as a member of the Senior Executive Service, where she directs and oversees the training of VA’s acquisition workforce. As Chancellor, she serves as executive leader for the Academy’s unique business units, whose purpose is to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of VA acquisitions. Further, she oversees and manages Government-wide impacts on the Federal acquisition workforce by leveraging the Academy’s efficiencies, professionalism, standardization, and effectiveness to provide acquisition workforce training across the Department and other Government Agencies. As Chancellor, Ms. Dawson will continue to expand and maintain business and professional partnerships with senior executives within the Office of Management and Budget, General Services Administration, Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Defense Acquisition University, and the Federal Acquisition Institute, as well as with executives from other Agencies and educational institutions.
Before her role as Chancellor, Ms. Dawson served as the Director of Acquisition Human Capital Management Services and the Departmental Acquisition Career Manager (DACM). She led transformational human capital strategic planning initiatives for over 19,000 acquisition professionals. In that role, she was responsible for Department-wide acquisition workforce programs, business planning, budget formulation, and performance management – including data analytics, succession planning, retention initiatives, professional development, employee engagement, and knowledge management.
Before coming to VA, Ms. Dawson led mission-critical and enterprise-wide acquisition workforce strategic initiatives at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Prior to that, she served as U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Director of Acquisition Workforce and Strategic Initiatives and DACM, where she established and monitored vital Department-wide acquisition workforce policies, processes, and practices for over 16,000 acquisition professionals; and played a crucial role in creating Government-wide training models and professional development programs.
Ms. Dawson is a recognized Government-wide leader, change agent, and consensus builder, known for galvanizing creative and cross-cutting discussions and orchestrating enterprise-wide forums/symposiums, and sought after for promoting swift and effective resolution of vital strategic issues. Overseeing acquisition workforce functions at the three largest Federal Agencies (VA, DHS, and HHS), Ms. Dawson is incredibly skilled at leveraging industry and Government-wide stakeholder relationships, utilizing cutting-edge technology and resources, examining and aligning competencies, and fostering talent opportunities that promote agility and enhanced performance within the acquisition workforce community.
Ms. Dawson holds a bachelor’s degree in organizational management from Washington Adventist University and a master’s degree in counseling/organizational psychology from Bowie State University. In her personal time, Ms. Dawson enjoys leading epicurean experiences, reading, music, and traveling.
