John P. White

Dr. John P. White BS, MA, PhD is the Robert and Renee Belfer Lecturer at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

He served as U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense from 1995 to 1997, Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget from 1978 to 1981, Assistant Secretary of Defense, Manpower, Reserve Affairs and Logistics from 1977 to 1978, and as a lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps from 1959 to 1961. He has twice been awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.

Prior to his most recent government service, Dr. White was the Director of the Center for Business and Government at Harvard University and the Chairman of the Commission on Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces. His extensive private-sector experience includes service as Chairman and CEO of Interactive Systems Corporation from 1981 to 1988 and, following its sale to the Eastman Kodak Company in 1988, as General Manager of the Integration and Systems Products Division and as a Vice President of Kodak until 1992. In nine years with The RAND Corporation, he was the Senior Vice President for National Security Research Programs and a member of the Board of Trustees. He is also a Senior Fellow at The RAND Corporation and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

White currently serves as a director of L-3 Communications Corporation, IRG International, Inc., and the Institute for Defense Analyses, as well as the Concord Coalition and Center for Excellence in Government. He is also a member of the Defense Advisory Committee on Military Compensation, and the Policy and Global Affairs Oversight Committee of the National Research Council.

White holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University and a Master of Arts and PhD in Economics from The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.