Cornerstone Government Affairs LLC

01/10/2017 | Press release | Archived content

Cornerstone Government Affairs Adds Veteran Consultants to Team

Marty Fuller, Lydia Verheggen Join Firm this Month

WASHINGTON - Cornerstone Government Affairs announced Tuesday two senior additions to their Washington, D.C. team.

Dr. Marty Fuller joins as a Senior Consultant. Since 2006, Marty has served as Chief Executive Officer of his own federal government affairs company, Federal Solutions, LLC. The primary focus of Federal Solutions has been developing high technology business and facilitating meaningful synergy with appropriate scientific, research and development organizations. Additionally, Marty has also been at the center of many economic development projects that have a tether to federal government missions or funding.

Since 2010, Marty has also served as Chief Executive Officer of Ops Watch, LLC. Ops Watch is a multi-faceted company that provides business development and economic development assistance for clients as well as grant monitoring/grant writing. The primary focus is to identify grant opportunities and work on behalf of the client to develop winning proposals, with a special emphasis on the education space.

Prior to this role, he served as the Director of Federal Relations for Mississippi State University (MSU). Marty also served previously as the Associate Director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station (MAFES) and is an Emeritus Professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics at MSU. Marty received his Bachelor of Science, Master of Science and Doctorate of Philosophy, all in Agricultural Economics, from MSU.

'Cornerstone is a perfect fit as we look to serve our clients at the highest level while also having the ability to expand in new and interesting areas,' Marty said. 'The firm's agriculture, defense and education practices, as well as their Jackson, Mississippi office and overall capability in the area of economic development makes this move a great match.'

Lydia Verheggen also is joining the firm as a consultant. She has supported Dr. Fuller at both Federal Solutions and Ops Watch. Lydia previously worked as a Republican fundraiser and also worked for Citizens for a Sound Economy, the office of former Senator Paul Coverdell, and at the Department of Education under then-Secretary Lamar Alexander.

'We are very excited to have Marty and Lydia on board,' firm president Geoff Gonella said. 'Their skillset and relationships complement our existing professionals and provides us new opportunities for growth.'

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Cornerstone Government Affairs, LLC is a full-service, bipartisan public affairs firm with 60 professionals and offices in Washington, DC, Annapolis, MD, Atlanta, GA, Austin, TX, Baton Rouge, LA, Chicago, IL, Des Moines, IA, Houston, TX, Jackson, MS, Richmond, VA, and Springfield, IL. Cornerstone represents a diverse group of clients from myriad industries and sectors, and maintains expertise in a wide range of issue areas, including agriculture, cyber security, defense, education, energy, health, homeland security, international affairs, tax policy, telecommunications, and transportation and infrastructure. For more information, please visit Cornerstone's website at www.cgagroup.com.