Christine Fox

Christine Fox
Acting Deputy Secretary of Defense
In office December 4, 2013 (2013-12-04) – May 1, 2014 (2014-05-01)
President	Barack Obama
Preceded by	Ash Carter
Succeeded by	Robert Work
Personal details
Born	(1955-05-26) May 26, 1955 (age 69) Bethesda, Maryland
Alma mater	George Mason University

Christine Fox is an American military civilian official and politician, who served as the Acting Deputy Secretary of Defense from December 3, 2013 until Robert Work's confirmation on May 1, 2014. With her appointment, Fox became the highest-ranking woman to serve in the United States Department of Defense.

Career

Fox graduated from George Mason University. She was a civilian employee at Naval Air Station Miramar and worked for CNA for nearly three decades as a research analyst, manager, and president of the Center for Naval Analyses.^[1]

From 2009 until 2013, she was the director of cost assessment and program evaluation in the Office of the Secretary of Defense—one of the most senior civilian positions in the Department of Defense.^[2] In her role as acting deputy secretary, she became the highest-ranking woman ever to work in the Pentagon.^[3] She officially retired from the Pentagon in May 2014.^[4]

From 2014 through 2022, Fox worked as the assistant director for policy and analysis at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory^[5][6] before transitioning to serve as one of the Lab's Senior Fellows.^[7]

She served on the boards of the United States Naval Academy, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the Council on Foreign Relations.

Honors

Fox is a three-time recipient of the Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Award and received the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.^{[citation needed]}

In popular culture

Fox gained notability during her work at Naval Air Station Miramar, and became the inspiration for the Top Gun character Charlotte "Charlie" Blackwood, played by Kelly McGillis in the film.^[8][9]

In April 2018, Fox was interviewed in the documentary Do You Trust This Computer?^{[citation needed]}

References

1. "Top gun Christine Fox departing Pentagon | The E-Ring". 2013-10-16. Archived from the original on 2013-10-16. Retrieved 2019-03-30.
2. Gertler, Jeremiah (2010). F-35 Alternate Engine Program: Background and Issues for Congress. DIANE Publishing. ISBN 9781437931754.
3. "'Top Gun' inspiration becomes highest-ranking woman at Pentagon - NBC News". Usnews.nbcnews.com. 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2014-02-20.
4. "Statement by the President on the Retirement of Christine H. Fox | The White House". whitehouse.gov. 2014-05-07. Retrieved 2014-07-14 – via National Archives.
5. "Christine Fox Returns to Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab as Assistant Director for Policy and Analysis". jhuapl.edu. 2019-05-19. Retrieved 2019-08-13.
6. "Christine Fox | Brown Advisory". www.brownadvisory.com. Retrieved 2022-05-09.
7. "Senior Fellows". www.jhuapl.edu. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
8. "Christine Fox, from 'Legs' to top woman at the Pentagon". The Scoop Deck. 2013-12-06. Retrieved 2019-03-30.
9. "Air Warfare Expert Christine Fox—Fighter Pilots Call Her "Legs"—Inspires the New Movie Top Gun". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 2019-03-30.

External links

• Appearances on C-SPAN