James Morhard (born 20 September 1956) is a former American government official who served as the

Deputy Administrator of NASA The Deputy Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the second-highest-ranking official of NASA, the national List of space agencies, space agency of the United States. Administrator of NASA is NASA's chief decision m ...

under President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

Biography

Early life and education

Morhard was born in Washington, DC. He received his

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

Accounting Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "languag ...

from

Saint Francis University Saint Francis University (SFU) is a private Catholic university in Loretto, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1847 and conducted under the tradition of the Franciscan Friars of the Third Order Regular. The university is situated on in the fore ...

, his

Master's in Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

, and his J.D. from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

Career

Morhard began his career in the

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

’s Office of the Comptroller. Morhard later served as Staff Director of the

Committee on Appropriations The United States House Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives that is responsible for passing appropriation bills along with its Senate counterpart. The bills passed by the Appropriations Commi ...

, where he also managed the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State, and the Judiciary, as it was called during the 108th Congress (2003–05), now known as the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies. He also oversaw the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, as it was called up to the 108th Congress, now the Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies. This subcommittee was responsible for funding all construction activities within the Department of Defense. Morhard served as Deputy

Sergeant at Arms Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

for the United States Senate from January 2015 to October 2018. Morhard was nominated by then President

on July 12, 2018 to serve as Deputy Administrator for NASA and was confirmed on October 11, 2018 in a voice vote. At the time of his nomination, Morhard was noted for his lack of experience in space technology, but his strong bipartisan connections on Capitol Hill and Appropriations Committee experience were noted as potential benefits for the Agency. James Morhard resigned from NASA after Donald Trump left office on January 20, 2021. He is a survivor of the

2010 Alaska DHC-3 Otter crash On August 9, 2010, a privately operated amphibious floatplane crashed near Aleknagik, Alaska, killing five of the nine people on board. The fatalities included former U.S. Senator Ted Stevens, while the survivors included former Administrator of ...

that killed five others onboard, including former U.S. Senator

Ted Stevens Theodore Fulton Stevens Sr. (November 18, 1923 – August 9, 2010) was an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. Senator from Alaska from 1968 to 2009. He was the longest-serving Republican Senator in history at the time he left o ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

References

External links

NASA biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morhard, James Living people Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents Trump administration personnel Deputy Administrators of NASA Saint Francis University alumni George Washington University School of Business alumni Georgetown University Law Center alumni Employees of the United States Senate 1956 births