Alumnus Named 2016 Black Engineer of the Year

alumni

Aerospace Engineering alumnus Christopher T. Jones (Ph.D. '97) selected as the 2016 Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) by Black Engineer magazine.

Jones is corporate vice president and president of Northrop Grumman’s Technical Services sector. In this role, he leads businesses at more than 250 locations throughout the United States and 29 countries, supporting a diverse customer base, including the U.S. departments of Defense, Energy, Homeland Security, State and Interior as well as NASA.

Beyond his career at Northrop Grumman, Jones currently serves on both the A. James Clark School of Engineering's Board of Visitors and the National Action Council for Minorities Board of Directors.

Previously, Jones was sector vice president and general manager of the Integrated Logistics and Modernization division of Northrop Grumman Technical Services. The division is responsible for the company’s business activities in global logistics and modernization, systems logistics and modernization, and operational responsive systems.

Jones joined Northrop Grumman in 2004 as director of product support for the Airborne Early Warning Program. In addition to program execution, Jones provided technical leadership during aircraft design, development, production and fielding, and was a key member of the business strategy development and capture teams.

Jones was an active duty Air Force officer and worked as a systems analyst at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, where he performed analysis on foreign ballistic missile and space systems. He was also a member of the Connecticut Air National Guard for 14 years, serving as the chief of maintenance for the 103rd Air Control Squadron. He participated in military deployments including Operation Noble Eagle and Operation Enduring Freedom. Jones retired from the Air Guard in 2011.

Jones earned his bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He then earned two master’s degrees in aerospace engineering and engineering management from the University of Dayton before attending Maryland for his doctorate degree.

Jones will formally receive the 30^th Black Engineer of the Year Award during the BEYA Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Conference held February 2016. In addition to this recognition, Jones was recently named an Associate Fellow of AIAA and inducted into Georgia Tech's College of Engineering Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni.

Published November 13, 2015