The Potomac KnowledgeWay Project today announced the addition of six new Board members, expanding the Board of Directors to include 21 regional business leaders. The new directors include:

• Arthur E. Johnson, president and COO, Lockheed Martin Corporation's Information & Services Sector
• Alan G. Merten, president, George Mason University
• W. Russell Ramsey, president, Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co., Inc.
• H. Patrick Swygert, president, Howard University
• Stephen T. Walker, president and CEO, Trusted Information Systems, Inc.
• Mark R. Warner, managing director, Columbia Capital Corporation

Arthur E. Johnson started his career with IBM in 1969 and rose to president and chief operating officer of IBM Federal Systems in 1992. Following the sale of IBM Federal Systems to Loral Corporation in 1994, he was named group vice president of Loral Federal Systems. Following Loral's merger with Lockheed Martin in 1996, he was named group vice president of Lockheed Martin Federal Systems. Later that year, he was elected a vice president of Lockheed Martin Corporation and named president of its Federal Systems Group. In 1997, he became president of Lockheed Martin Systems Integration Group before being appointed to his current position in August 1997. He is a graduate of Morehouse College and Harvard University Business School's Advanced Management Program.

Dr. Alan G. Merten became the fifth president of George Mason University in 1996. Prior to that, he served as dean and professor of Information Systems at the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University; dean of the College of Business Administration at the University of Florida; and associate dean for Executive Education and Computing Services at the University of Michigan. Dr. Merten received an undergraduate degree in mathematics and a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Wisconsin, and a master's degree in computer science from Stanford University.

W. Russell Ramsey began his career in the securities industry in 1986 when he joined the Institutional Research, Sales and Trading Group at Johnston, Lemon & Co., Inc. In 1989, he co-founded Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co., Inc. (FBR) and in 1995, he created FBR's Technology Group, which focuses on growth opportunities in Internet- and information-based businesses. FBR has catapulted into the investment banking and finance world as a leader, having expanded its IPO and venture capital efforts into the Internet, communications and e-commerce. Mr. Ramsey is a graduate of The George Washington University.

H. Patrick Swygert was involved with Howard University long before he became its 15th president in 1995, having earned both his undergraduate and law degrees there. Before being recruited to lead Howard, he served as president of the University at Albany, State University of New York and held various positions at Temple University from 1972 to 1990. In addition, Mr. Swygert has a long history of civil service, including a stint as general counsel to the U.S. Civil Service Commission.

Stephen T. Walker founded Trusted Information Systems, Inc. in 1983 and today employs more than 300 people. He has over 35 years of experience in system design and program management of which 22 years were spent with the U.S. Department of Defense at the National Security Agency, the Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Mr. Walker is an established leader on computer and communications security and has received both the Secretary of Defense Meritorious Civilian Service Award and the first National Computer System Security Award.

Mark R. Warner has helped found four public companies and ten private companies while serving as managing director of Columbia Capital Corporation, an investment company specializing in emerging technologies. He has been involved in the wireless telecommunications industry since 1992 and has been an advocate of Virginia's status as a major technology center. He also has a long history of political involvement, including a campaign for U.S. Senate in 1996. Mr. Warner is a graduate of The George Washington University and Harvard Law School.

The Potomac KnowledgeWay Project is a nonprofit, regional collaborative effort whose mission is to make the Greater Washington region a global leader in the creation, production and delivery of digital information products and services.

Visit the Potomac KnowledgeWay Project's Web site at http://knowledgeway.org and the Potomac KnowledgeWay Netpreneur Program's Web site, the Netpreneur Exchange, at http://netpreneur.org.