Dr. Griffin served as the 11th Administrator of NASA from April 2005 to January 2008. From February 2018 until July 2020, Dr. Griffin was the Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering (USDR&E), where he was responsible for all U.S. Defense Department research and development programs. From August 2012 until May 2017, Dr. Griffin served as Chairman & CEO of the Schafer Corporation. Dr. Griffin co-founded and has served as the Co-President of LogiQ Inc, a business consulting practice in the aerospace, defense and national security sector.

He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and the International Academy of Astronautics, an Honorary Fellow and former president of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, a Fellow of the American Astronautical Society, and a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers. He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal, the AIAA Space Systems Medal and Goddard Astronautics Award, the National Space Club’s Goddard Trophy, the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement, the Missile Defense Agency’s Ronald Reagan Award, and the Department of DoD Distinguished Public Service Medal, the highest award which can be conferred on a non-government employee. In recognition of his contributions to the Pluto New Horizons mission, Asteroid 159999 Michael Griffin was named in his honor.

Dr. Griffin has a BA in Physics and an MS degree in Applied Physics from Johns Hopkins University, an MSE in Aerospace Science from the Catholic University of America, a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Maryland, an MS degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California, an MBA from Loyola College of Maryland, and an MS degree in Civil Engineering from George Washington University.

https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/griffin_bio.html