Lori Bush, Cisco Systems, Inc., Senior Advisor, Critical Infrastructure Assurance Group

As a Senior Advisor in Cisco's Critical Infrastructure Assurance group, Lori Bush works with State and Local Government agencies, non-profits and non governmental organizations sharing best practices and technology solutions that can address Homeland Security initiatives in the areas of Public Safety, Public Health, Critical Infrastructure Protection and Information Sharing and Communications. These solutions include the creation and deployment of mobile command centers, interoperable emergency communications and IP-enabled video surveillance to help protect & secure infrastructure, respond and recover from disasters and share critical information in emergencies. She worked closely with the national headquarters of the American Red Cross after Hurricane Katrina, onsite with their multi-vendor taskforce to deploy and support communications to over 300+ shelters.

Lori has just returned from a 15 month "Cisco fellowship" on Cisco's 21st Century Schools (21S) Initiative, a $40 million program to rebuild and infuse technology in schools devastated by Hurricane Katrina and Rita on the Gulf Coast. Cisco's 21S program is multi-phase, three-year education initiative, and she was the strategic partner and relationship manager for 21S, bringing together a coalition of partnerships - public, private and non profit organizations to enable a "force multiplier" approach to building 21st century schools and communities. She was also responsible for spear-heading efforts to create "connected communities" surrounding the 21S schools, extending the school network to connect parents, teachers, students, businesses and the region. These networks provide anywhere, anytime access to communication tools and resources. Over time, they will provide community development and economic opportunities for the area while enhancing the social fabric and providing the digital dividends of having a truly "connected community."

With 12 years at Cisco, she has worked with both Service Providers and Enterprises to deploy solutions in varied environments - from IBM and the e-business solutions to deploying mobile wireless applications, as well as network management solutions. Prior to joining Cisco, Lori was a product manager and engineer at IBM for 12 years working on network management and end-to-end connectivity options.

Lori is an executive board member of the National Institute of Urban Search and Rescue (NIUSR), involved in civic endeavors and on the boards of several government advisory groups and standards bodies (Information Technology Advisory Board for Wake County, NENA, etc.) is an "Internet Safety" advocate, and an active participant with local non-profit organizations such as the Food Bank of North Carolina, Communities in Schools, Habitat for Humanity and Junior Achievement.)

Lori received her B.S in Computer Science from the engineering school of the University of Missouri-Rolla. She lives in Cary, NC with her husband Greg and above-average children, Morgan and Jacob.