Who’s Who

Two years of documents produce a lot of names. This page is a reference: who holds which role, which documents they signed, and where they are now.

What this page is for. Everyone here appears in a public record acting in an official capacity. Knowing who signed what makes the documents easier to follow, and it tells you who to address a question to.

What it isn’t. It isn’t a target list. There are no personal details here, no home addresses, no contact information, and nothing about anyone’s private life or motives. These are people doing their jobs, and our rules about that haven’t changed. If you find yourself wanting to contact someone on this page about this project, contact the institution.

The one thing that jumps out

Almost everyone who signed the paperwork has moved on.

The vice president for research who signed the first agreement with Los Alamos in 2023 has left the University. So has the chief financial officer who signed both May 2024 confidentiality agreements. So has the president who signed the Memorandum of Understanding. So has the vice president for research who signed the 2025 transition letter.

As of this writing, four of the relevant senior roles are held on an interim basis — research, communications, finance, and the chief financial officer — and a new president arrives having inherited all of it.

Chris Kolb is the constant. Vice president for government relations through the whole arc: the November 2024 meeting with the Township, the text message after the land closed, and the September town hall.

I don’t think there’s anything sinister in that. Senior university jobs turn over. But it means the institutional memory of why this site was chosen may be thinner than anyone outside realizes — and an incoming president has room to settle an inherited dispute that the people who created it never had.

Where the decision actually sits

The Board of Regents — eight members, elected statewide to eight-year terms. A constitutional body, not appointed by anyone. They authorized both land purchases, and at the September town hall the panel confirmed that stopping or changing the project rests with them.

Paul W. Brown was the only regent at that meeting, and has publicly called on the University to pause the project.

Below the Regents sits the president, and below the president a group of executive officers who report to them directly.

University of Michigan

Presidents

Santa J. Ono — President until 2025. Recipient of the October 2023 letter committing up to $400 million. Signed Memorandum of Understanding #204 with Los Alamos on November 25, 2024. No longer at the University.
Domenico Grasso — President. Copied on Rep. Dingell’s September 2026 letter. Retiring from the University November 30, 2026.
C. Cybele Raver — named the University’s 17th president in August 2026, from Vanderbilt. Inherits this project when they take over the role on December 1, 2026.

Executive officers

Chris Kolb — Vice President for Government Relations. Present at the November 2024 meeting with Township officials; notified Supervisor Stumbo of the land closing by text message in March 2026; on the panel at the September 2026 town hall, and on the panel again on October 1. Also sits on the board of Ann Arbor SPARK, which supplied the letter of support in the state grant packet.
Patricia D. Hurn — Interim Vice President for Research and Innovation. On the panel at both the September 9 and October 1 town halls.
Robert A. “Bobby” Hewlett III — Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, serving on an interim basis since November 2025. Signed the Nexus Gas Transmission confidentiality agreement in December 2025.
Laurie McCauley — Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs. The project leader reports partly through this office.
Ravi Pendse — Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer. Named as the University’s technical point of contact in the 2023 Los Alamos non-disclosure agreement.
Ken Kettenbeil — Interim Vice President for Communications.

Former officers who signed the key documents

Rebecca M. Cunningham — then Vice President for Research. Signed the March 2023 non-disclosure agreement with Triad National Security, and its July 2023 amendment adding SmithGroup and the American Center for Mobility. Named as the administrative contact in both. Has since left the University.
Geoffrey S. Chatas — then Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Signed the MEDC confidentiality agreement and the Willow Run Arsenal of Democracy agreement, both in May 2024. No longer in the role.
Arthur Lupia — then Vice President for Research and Innovation. Signed the April 2025 letter agreement terminating the 2023 NDA and moving its obligations into the Los Alamos MOU. No longer in the role.

The project team

Steven Ceccio — Professor of engineering and project leader. Named in MOU #204 as the University’s collaboration manager, with the title Special Advisor for Strategic Initiatives, Office of the Provost and the Chief Financial Officer. Confirmed the roughly 90/10 capacity split at the September town hall, and was on the panel again on October 1. The MOU requires him to meet his Los Alamos counterpart at least quarterly.
Rob Green — project director. On the panel at both the September 9 and October 1 town halls.
Paul Corliss — Assistant Vice President for Public Affairs and Communication. Moderated both the September 9 and October 1 town halls. At the September meeting he committed to personally find and respond to a resident’s outstanding records request.
Drew Smith — Interim Vice President for Finance. On the panel at both the September 9 and October 1 town halls.
Stephen M. O’Rielly — Manager, Environment, Health & Safety. Submitter of the January 2025 Baseline Environmental Assessment for the 20-acre parcel.
Philip Szornyi — Environmental Specialist. Contact and certifier on the March 2026 Baseline Environmental Assessment for the Norfolk parcels.

Los Alamos National Laboratory / Triad National Security

Thom Mason — Director. Signed MOU #204 on November 26, 2024, and wrote the September 2026 letter to this community. My response is here.
John L. Sarrao — Deputy Laboratory Director for Science, Technology and Engineering. Signed the March 2023 non-disclosure agreement and its amendment.
J. Patrick Fitch — Deputy Director, Science, Technology and Engineering. Signed the 2025 NDA termination and transition letter.
Charles W. Nakhleh — Associate Laboratory Director. Named in MOU #204 as the Laboratory’s collaboration manager.
Jason C. Hick — High Performance Computing Director’s Office. Technical point of contact in the 2023 non-disclosure agreement.

Contractors and partners

SmithGroup, Inc. — Detroit architecture and engineering firm, a subcontractor to the University since before November 2024. Its conceptual design package covers architecture, mechanical, electrical, structural, civil, fire protection, IT, a DOE security risk assessment and cost estimating. Michael J. Weingartz, Vice President and Technology Studio Leader, signed the 2023 amendment and the 2025 transition letter on its behalf.
Apex Companies, LLC — environmental consultant. Prepared both Baseline Environmental Assessments — January 2025 and March 2026. Kellie Wing is the named contact. My write-up is here.
The American Center for Mobility — at Willow Run. A party to the 2023 NDA amendment from July of that year, and the named location in the State’s October 2023 commitment letter. Formally exited via the 2025 transition letter. Reuben Sarkar, President and CEO, signed both.
Nexus Gas Transmission, LLC — operator of the high-pressure gas pipeline crossing the property. An Enbridge and DT Midstream joint venture.
DTE Energy — Khalil Rahal, Director of Economic Development, was on the panel at both the September 9 and October 1 town halls.

State of Michigan

Quentin L. Messer, Jr. — Chief Executive Officer, Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Signed the October 2023 letter committing up to $400 million. My analysis is here.
Steve Bakkal — Senior Strategy Advisor, MEDC. Authored the October and December 2024 memoranda to the Strategic Fund board — the first projecting over 800 permanent jobs, the second 200.
Bree Anderson — Vice President for Legislative and External Affairs, MEDC. Received Senator Irwin’s July 2025 request for the project documents and forwarded it to communications staff.
Natalie Davenport — Michigan Strategic Fund Administrator. Circulated the board materials.
Rachael Eubanks — State Treasurer. Copied on the October 2023 commitment letter; sits on the Strategic Fund board and voted on the grant.
Jennifer Flood — State Budget Director. Signed the legislative transfer moving $100 million into the program on the morning of the vote.
Dr. Britany Affolter-Caine — Strategic Fund board member and Executive Director of Michigan’s University Research Corridor. Recused herself from the vote and the discussion, in writing, in advance.

Local and elected

Brenda Stumbo — Ypsilanti Township Supervisor. Attended the November 2024 meeting; notified of the land closing by text message afterward. Also sits on the Ann Arbor SPARK board, which is worth knowing given SPARK’s letter of support — she had no part in writing it, and her township has opposed the project throughout.
Doug Winters — Township attorney. Recorded the notification and objected in writing; has said the project will cost the Township in municipal services.
Rep. Debbie Dingell — United States Congress. Wrote to the community in September 2026 opposing the Textile Road site. My summary is here.
Sen. Jeff Irwin — Michigan Senate. Asked MEDC for the project documents on the Township’s behalf in July 2025.
Rep. Jimmie Wilson Jr. — Michigan House. Attended the November 2024 meeting; introduced legislation to rescind the state grant.
Paul Krutko — President and CEO, Ann Arbor SPARK. Signed the December 2024 letter of support, which stated that SPARK assisted in the site selection process.

Compiled from the documents on our sources page, the timeline, and the University’s own published leadership listings. Roles change — if something here is out of date or wrong, tell me and I’ll fix it and say that I did.