Dr. Donna Lalli was appointed Associate Administrator in October 2023. In this role, she works in partnership with Administrator Kevin Shea and fellow Associate Administrator Dr. Mike Watson to carry out the Agency’s day-to-day operations, represent APHIS on Department-level and cross-Agency working groups, and oversee the activities of every APHIS program area and support unit on behalf of employees and stakeholders.

Prior to being appointed as Associate Administrator, Dr. Lalli acted in this role for more than 8 months since February 2023. From January 2021 until her joining the Office of the Administrator, Dr. Lalli served as the Associate Deputy Administrator for Wildlife Services, providing executive leadership to the Agency’s National Feral Swine Damage Management Program, the National Rabies Program, and the Airport Wildlife Hazards Program.

For 10 months she served on a temporary assignment as Senior Policy Advisor in the Executive Office of the President, Office of Science and Technology Policy, after serving as the APHIS Science Advisor from 2017-2020. Dr. Lalli started her APHIS career with Biotechnology Regulatory Services as a biotechnologist and then as the program’s chief of staff. Before joining APHIS, Dr. Lalli worked for USDA’s Agricultural Research Service where she worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Appalachian Fruit Research Station in Kearneysville, WV. Dr. Lalli has a Ph.D. in genetics and a bachelor of science degree in biochemistry from Clemson University.