William Bierbower is ARPA-E’s Chief Counsel. Before joining ARPA-E, Bierbower served as Chief Counsel at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Bierbower also served as Lead Counsel for NASA’s Directorates for Exploration Systems and Science Missions at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., and as senior attorney at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Bierbower’s NASA service awards include the General Counsel’s Leadership Award, Exceptional Performance Award, and Exceptional Service Medal. In addition to his NASA service, Bierbower served as CEO and Trustee of the Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust, a Washington, D.C. charitable foundation focusing on cancer research and treatment of pediatric afflictions. Bierbower has served as Chairman of the Research and Development Committee of the American Bar Association’s Section on Government Contract Law. He has written articles in the field of industry-government-academia research and development agreements. He is a cofounder and former board member of the Goddard Alliance, a non-profit organization formed to support the mission of Goddard Space Flight Center. Bierbower earned a B.A. in Political Science from Duke University and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.