Plenary Session 10 - Reflections on Nearly 20 years of DHS History and the Way Ahead
The Homeland Security Act of 2002 was signed into law on November 25, 2002 formally creating the Department of Homeland Security and in effect establishing the American homeland security enterprise. Many changes have been made since then including restructuring the organization and event creating an entirely new federal agency in CISA. Since its inception, DHS has been at the center of unique federal relationship with stakeholders - partnerships. What will the next few years hold for DHS and its partners? How does the current Secretary envision strengthening existing partnerships and building new ones?
Speakers
![Michael Chertoff](https://assets-global.website-files.com/6279d557a47f8622c9cd0c66/6279dc98698e7c59f7ee66ed_624f0d3821a7db30fac561f8_Chertoff%252C%2520Michael.png)
Michael Chertoff
Executive Chairman and Co-founder, The Chertoff Group, Former Secretary of Homeland Security
Michael Chertoff is the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of The Chertoff Group, a global advisory services firm that applies security expertise, technology insights, and policy intelligence to help clients build resilient organizations, gain competitive advantage, and accelerate growth. In this role, he counsels global clients on how to effectively manage cyber risk while incorporating a proper mix of people, process, and technology to achieve their security goals. He serves on the board of directors of several security companies and is a frequent speaker on security and risk management issues. From 2005-2009, Mr. Chertoff served as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Earlier in his career, Mr. Chertoff served as a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and head of the U.S. Department of Tustice's Criminal Division. He is the author of the recently published book Exploding Data: Reclaiming Our Cvbersecurity in the Digital Age.
![Alejandro Mayorkas](https://assets-global.website-files.com/6279d557a47f8622c9cd0c66/6279dc8327da9f4918b3a4d6_624cb7e77ee105854cd07740_Mayorkas%252C%2520Alejandro.jpeg)
Alejandro Mayorkas
Secretary of Homeland Security (2021-Present)
Alejandro Mavorkas was sworn in as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security b President Biden on February 2, 2021. Mayorkas is the first Latino and immigrant confirmed to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security. He has led a distinguished 30-year career as a law enforcement official and a nationally-recognized lawyer in the private sector. Mayorkas served as the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security from 2013 to 2016, and as the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services from 2009 to 2013. During his tenure at DHS, he led the development and implementation of DACA, negotiated cybersecurity and homeland security agreements with foreign governments, led the Department's response to Ebola and Zika, helped build and administer the Blue Campaign to combat human trafficking, and developed an emergency relief program for orphaned youth following the tragic January 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Mayorkas also created the Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate to better ensure the integrity of the legal immigration system. Mayorkas began his government service in the Department of Justice, where he served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Central District of California, specializing in the prosecution of white collar crime. After nearly nine years as a federal prosecutor, he became the youngest United States Attorney in the nation, overseeing prosecutions of national significance, including the investigation and prosecution of financial fraud, violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, public corruption, violent crime, cybercrime, environmental crime, international money laundering, and securities fraud. Mayorkas received his bachelor's degree with distinction from the University of California at Berkeley and a law degree from Loyola Law School