Jennifer Calandra-Willson

Jennifer Calandra-Willson serves as a Contracting Specialist within the Air Force Research Laboratory’s FA8750 organization, where she plays a pivotal role in advancing cutting-edge aerospace and defense technologies through strategic procurement of research and development services. She manages the full lifecycle of complex, high-priority acquisitions focused on autonomous systems, resilient communications, AI-enabled battle-space awareness, and quantum-enabled technologies. Her work directly supports the Department of the Air Force’s mission to deliver foundational scientific innovation for next-generation military capabilities, with a strong emphasis on early-stage R&D and prototype development under FAR Part 35 and Other Transaction Authority frameworks. She maintains sustained working relationships with leading defense and aerospace contractors including Booz Allen Hamilton, Lockheed Martin, Eaton Corporation, Technergetics, LLC, and Caelight, Inc., often engaging them in collaborative, performance-based contract structures such as cost-plus-fixed-fee and time-and-materials arrangements. Her procurement approach emphasizes technical agility and innovation, frequently partnering with vendors capable of rapid prototyping and systems integration in advanced electronics and sensor domains. Calandra-Willson demonstrates an unwavering commitment to small business participation, with 100% of her acquisitions structured as total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5, ensuring equitable access for small disadvantaged, HUBZone, and women-owned firms. Her socioeconomic contracting strategy prioritizes capacity building among small innovators with specialized technical capabilities in electronics and defense systems. Her procurement portfolio is exclusively focused on NAICS 334111 (Electronic Computer Manufacturing), reflecting deep specialization in the acquisition of advanced computing hardware, embedded systems, signal processing modules, and mission-critical electronic components. She routinely procures custom-designed, low-volume, high-reliability electronics for aerospace platforms, requiring stringent compliance with MIL-STD and ITAR regulations, and consistently collaborates with vendors possessing expertise in radiation-hardened, secure, and field-deployable computing architectures.