David A. McWhorter, Ph.D.

After a postdoctoral appointment at The National Institute for Science and Technology (NIST), Dr. McWhorter spent over seven years at the Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA), a Federally Funded Research and Development Center. There, in addition to several Department of Defense projects, he served as the Deputy Project Leader for IDA on the US Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) SAFETY Act (the Support Anti-terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002). In this position he led the technical evaluations of anti-terrorism products and services across a broad spectrum of countermeasures for chemical, biological, explosive, nuclear, cyber and human threats, including services. Because his involvement with the SAFETY Act began at the Act’s inception, he was instrumental in orchestrating the creation of the evaluation process, the drafting of the application kits, the coordination of several government procurements, and the identification of Subject Matter Experts. In 2007, Dr. McWhorter joined Catalyst Partners, a DC-based homeland security consulting and government relations firm. In his role as a Principal, he begun Catalyst’s SAFETY Act Practice and Technology Evaluation Practice. He represented clients in front of DHS, private sector companies, and other potential customers, spearheading dozens of successful SAFETY Act applications. Dr. McWhorter started his own firm in 2014: The Homeland Security Consulting Group (HSCG). Working with industry partners, The HSCG continues serving clients across the Homeland Security space. In the years since The HSCG was founded, Dr. McWhorter has prepared several more dozen successful SAFETY Act applications for his clients.