Dr. Brandi Vann is Performing the Duties of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs (ASD(NCB)) and is the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs (PDASD(NCB)). In this capacity, Dr. Vann supports the Assistant Secretary of Defense in the role of the principal advisor to the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment on nuclear weapons, nuclear energy, chemical and biological defense programs, chemical demilitarization, and treaty management. She holds leadership, management, and advisory responsibility for the following offices: Chemical and Biological Defense; Nuclear Matters; Threat Reduction and Arms Control; and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. She also serves in this capacity as the Executive Director of the Biodefense- and Nuclear Weapons Councils.

From September 2019 to January 2021, Dr. Vann served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Chemical and Biological Defense where she led the Department’s efforts to develop capabilities to prepare for and defend against chemical and biological threat agents. Activities included a full suite of research, development, and acquisition of chemical and biological defense capabilities from concept and requirements development, through early science and technology, to advanced development, testing and evaluation, and procurement. 

Previously, Dr. Vann held positions at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), leading efforts for characterization of and medical countermeasure development of advanced and emerging chemical and biological threats, as a Visiting Scientist at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and as Director of Laboratories at Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corporation.   

As a career member of the Senior Executive Service, she was awarded the 2023 Meritorious Presidential Rank Award. 

Dr. Vann received her PhD in Chemistry from the University of South Carolina where she studied analytical chemistry and applied statistics.