Born and raised on the southside of Chicago, Edward Dickson attended St. Anselm’s grammar school and Mendel Catholic High school prior to his enrollment at Illinois Benedictine College in 1975. He earned his B.A. in Political Science from IBC (now Benedictine University) in 1979. In 1999, he was inducted into the University’s Athletic Hall of Fame as a two-sport athlete for basketball and track. In 2015, Dickson was also inducted into Mendel Catholic’s Hall of Fame for basketball.
Following graduation, Dickson began a brief three-year career with the Campbell Sales Company. In 1983, he began a 25-year career with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, retiring in 2008. During his tenure, Dickson worked significant administrative and criminal investigations in several field offices, including a Safe Streets Homicide Task Force in Washington, D.C., which had the highest homicide rate in the United States at the time. Following the attacks on September 11, 2001, he was transferred to the Counterterrorism Division where he supervised and provided executive oversight for numerous international terrorism, intelligence and counterintelligence investigations. Dickson ended his career as an Inspector and a member of the FBI’s Senior Executive Service.
In his post FBI career, he served as Director of Investigations at the Depository Trust and Clearance Corporation. There, he successfully implemented several administrative policies and operational protocols that effectively impacted security. He also successfully mentored several subordinates, resulting in higher roles within the Internal Security Department.
In 2012, Dickson was asked by the Governor of New Jersey to serve as the Director of New Jersey’s Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness. Among other duties, he was responsible for ensuring the state’s preparedness for adverse man-made incidents and natural disasters. During Superstorm Sandy, he led an effort which provided shelter to hundreds of at-risk New Jersey residents impacted by the worst natural disaster in the history of the state.
Dickson went on to serve as President of Investigations for New York-based MSA Security in 2014. He is now Vice President, Global Security for Johnson and Johnson, located in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
