Mark Kennedy is the founding director of the Wahba Institute for Strategic Competition, which advances the technology leadership, innovation and manufacturing ecosystems, infrastructure investment, and alliances that underpin American strength in an era of intensifying geopolitical competition. He has served as a university president and as a U.S. Congressman. As President Emeritus of the University of Colorado and former President of the University of North Dakota, Kennedy led strategic transformations focused on student success, research excellence, affordability, and opportunity. In Congress, he championed bipartisan legislation to enhance global competitiveness, drive infrastructure investment, and foster innovation. A first-generation college graduate, he is the author of Shapeholders (Columbia University Press), a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a Civic Leader supporting the Secretary of the Air Force, and a Senior Fellow at CNA (Center for Naval Analyses).