Bernard J. Dunn

Last updated March 14, 2019

Bernard Joseph Dunn (May 26, 1924 – March 14, 2009) was a noted Washington, D.C. area scientist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He cofounded Braddock Dunn & McDonald (later BDM International) with fellow Fordham University professors in 1959, and served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Scientist.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington or D.C., is the capital of the United States. Founded after the American Revolution as the seat of government of the newly independent country, Washington was named after George Washington, first President of the United States and Founding Father. As the seat of the United States federal government and several international organizations, Washington is an important world political capital. The city is also one of the most visited cities in the world, with more than 20 million tourists annually.

A scientist is someone who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of interest.

Braddock, Dunn & McDonald, later known as BDM, then BDM International, was a technical services firm founded in 1959 in New York City. Its founders were Dr. Joseph V. Braddock, Dr. Bernard J. Dunn, and Dr. Daniel F. McDonald, who each received a PhD from Fordham University in the Bronx, New York. In 1997, TRW purchased BDM, and in 2002 Northrop Grumman bought TRW.

Biography

Dunn was born in the Bronx, New York City. He enrolled in Fordham University but left to volunteer during World War II and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Air Forces. He served as a bombardier aboard a B-24 for the 23rd Squadron, 5th Bomb Group, based on the Philippine island of Samar. On July 4, 1945, he survived the crash and complete destruction of a C-46 transport airplane on Biak Island in Indonesia (at the time part of New Guinea). For his combat service he was awarded the American Theater Ribbon, the Asiatic Pacific Theater Ribbon with 2 stars, and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon, Victory Medal.^[1]

The City of New York, usually called either New York City (NYC) or simply New York (NY), is the most populous city in the United States and thus also in the state of New York. With an estimated 2017 population of 8,622,698 distributed over a land area of about 302.6 square miles (784 km²), New York is also the most densely populated major city in the United States. Located at the southern tip of the state of New York, the city is the center of the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban landmass and one of the world's most populous megacities, with an estimated 20,320,876 people in its 2017 Metropolitan Statistical Area and 23,876,155 residents in its Combined Statistical Area. A global power city, New York City has been described as the cultural, financial, and media capital of the world, and exerts a significant impact upon commerce, entertainment, research, technology, education, politics, tourism, art, fashion, and sports. The city's fast pace has inspired the term New York minute. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy.

Fordham University is a private research university in New York City. Founded by the Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841, it is the oldest Catholic university in the northeastern United States, the third-oldest university in New York, and the only Jesuit university in New York City.

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

He graduated from Fordham in 1947 and received a master's degree in physics from Columbia University in 1949. He returned to Fordham under the mentorship of Austrian physicist and Nobel laureate Victor Hess, the discoverer of cosmic rays, where he taught for ten years. He received his doctorate in physics in 1958.

Columbia University is a private Ivy League research university in Upper Manhattan, New York City. Established in 1754, Columbia is the oldest institution of higher education in New York and the fifth-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. It is one of nine colonial colleges founded prior to the Declaration of Independence, seven of which belong to the Ivy League. It has been ranked by numerous major education publications as among the top ten universities in the world.

In 1959 he left Fordham to form BDM with Daniel F. McDonald and Joseph V. Braddock. Working at the U.S. Army Air Defense Center at Fort Bliss, Texas, and White Sands Missile Range, Dr. Dunn played a major role in the development of anti-ballistic missile technology, tested related weapons systems such as MIM-14 Nike-Hercules, and studied the effect of large electromagnetic fields on U.S. aircraft and missiles. His Army clients nicknamed him "The Man Who Saved Indianapolis" thanks to his innovation of a method (until then considered impossible)^[2] to distribute anti-ballistic missile interceptors to protect smaller urban centers, such as Indianapolis, as well as major population centers such as New York or Chicago.^[3]

Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Named in honor of LTC William Bliss (1815-1853), a mathematical genius who was the son-in-law of President Zachary Taylor, Ft. Bliss has an area of about 1,700 square miles (4,400 km²); it is the largest installation in FORSCOM and second-largest in the Army overall. The portion of the post located in El Paso County, Texas, is a census-designated place with a population of 8,591 as of the time of the 2010 census. Fort Bliss provides the largest contiguous tract of restricted airspace in the Continental United States, used for missile and artillery training and testing, and at 992,000 acres boasts the largest maneuver area. The garrison's land area is accounted at 1.12 million acres, ranging to the boundaries of the Lincoln National Forest and White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.

Texas is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population. Geographically located in the South Central region of the country, Texas shares borders with the U.S. states of Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the southwest, while the Gulf of Mexico is to the southeast.

White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) is a United States Army military testing area of almost 3,200 sq mi (8,300 km²) in parts of five counties in southern New Mexico. The largest military installation in the United States, WSMR and the 600,000-acre (2,400 km²) McGregor Range Complex at Fort Bliss to the south are contiguous areas for military testing. On 9 July 1945, the White Sands Proving Ground was established for testing German and American long range rockets. Just seven days later, the first atomic bomb test, code named Trinity was exploded at Trinity Site, near the north boundary of the range.

The firm relocated from El Paso, Texas to Tysons Corner, Virginia, in the early 1970s and became a highly successful business. BDM evolved into BDM International, Inc., a multinational information technology company that operated in three interrelated markets: systems and software integration, computer and technical services, and enterprise management and operations. The company served the Department of Defense, international defense agencies, civil government agencies and commercial clients.^[4]

Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States located between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" due to its status as the first English colonial possession established in mainland North America and "Mother of Presidents" because eight U.S. presidents were born there, more than any other state. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are shaped by the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Chesapeake Bay, which provide habitat for much of its flora and fauna. The capital of the Commonwealth is Richmond; Virginia Beach is the most populous city, and Fairfax County is the most populous political subdivision. The Commonwealth's estimated population as of 2017 is over 8.4 million.

Information technology (IT) is the use of computers to store, retrieve, transmit, and manipulate data, or information, often in the context of a business or other enterprise. IT is considered to be a subset of information and communications technology (ICT). An information technology system is generally an information system, a communications system or, more specifically speaking, a computer system – including all hardware, software and peripheral equipment – operated by a limited group of users.

The Department of Defense is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government concerned directly with national security and the United States Armed Forces. The department is the largest employer in the world, with nearly 1.3 million active duty servicemen and women as of 2016. Adding to its employees are over 826,000 National Guardsmen and Reservists from the four services, and over 732,000 civilians bringing the total to over 2.8 million employees. Headquartered at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., the DoD's stated mission is to provide "the military forces needed to deter war and ensure our nation's security".

After retirement, Dr. Dunn was active in philanthropic and charitable causes in Northern Virginia, including his $10 million endowment to found the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia, which was named for his father, a Manhattan pharmacist who died when Dr. Dunn was nine years old.

Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is a widespread region radiating westward from Washington, D.C. With 2.8 million residents, it is the most populous region of Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area.

Shenandoah University is a comprehensive private liberal arts university located in Winchester, Virginia, in the United States. It has an enrollment of approximately 4,000 students across more than 100 programs in seven schools: College of Arts & Sciences, Harry F. Byrd Jr. School of Business, Shenandoah Conservatory, Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy, Eleanor Wade Custer School of Nursing, School of Health Professions and the School of Education & Human Development. Shenandoah University is one of five United Methodist Church-affiliated institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 26,203. As of 2015, its population is an estimated 27,284. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester with surrounding Frederick County for statistical purposes.

Dr. Dunn also established the Bernard J. Dunn Eminent Scholars Endowment in Information Technology at George Mason University, and was a supporter of Loudoun Hospital, the Loudoun County Symphony, the Make-a-Wish Foundation, and Notre Dame Academy (Middleburg, Virginia). With his former business partners, he helped create the Potomac Foundation think tank. He was also a member of Sigma Xi, the scientific research society, the American Physical Society, and St. John Neumann Catholic Community in Reston. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, four children, and seven grandchildren.^[5]

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References

↑ Army of the United States, Separation Qualification Record, Bernard J. Dunn, 2nd Lt., 9 December 1945
↑ Dr. Joseph V. Braddock, videotaped interview, "A Salute to Bernie Dunn," Produced by BDM International, April 1985.
↑ "A Model for Allocating Interceptors From Overlapping Batteries: A Method of Dynamic Programming," G.E. Swinson, P.H. Randolph. B. J. Dunn, M.E. Walker, and R.D. Williams, OPERATIONS RESEARCH January–February 1971.
↑ http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/industry/trw.htm.
↑ Sullivan, Patricia. "Co-Founder of Defense Firm, Philanthropist." Washington Post, March 27, 2009, pg. B5.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/26/AR2009032603745.html?referrer%3Demailarticlepg&sub=AR

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[1] Army of the United States, Separation Qualification Record, Bernard J. Dunn, 2nd Lt., 9 December 1945

[2] Dr. Joseph V. Braddock, videotaped interview, "A Salute to Bernie Dunn," Produced by BDM International, April 1985.

[3] "A Model for Allocating Interceptors From Overlapping Batteries: A Method of Dynamic Programming," G.E. Swinson, P.H. Randolph. B. J. Dunn, M.E. Walker, and R.D. Williams, OPERATIONS RESEARCH January–February 1971.

[4] ttp://www.globalsecurity.org/military/industry/trw.htm.

[5] Sullivan, Patricia. "Co-Founder of Defense Firm, Philanthropist." Washington Post, March 27, 2009, pg. B5.