Dr. Walter F. Jones

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DSN: 785-2321
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Dr. Walter F. Jones is the Director and Chancellor of the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. He is responsible for a team of approximately 500 military and civilian Airmen and Guardians, who provide professional continuing education to more than 27,000 people annually, and advanced academic education to more than 3,000 students.

Prior to his current appointment, Dr. Jones served 11 years as the Executive Director of the Office of Naval Research (ONR), planning and managing the entire $3-billion science and technology program for the Navy and the Marine Corps. While serving as the senior civilian manager, he provided executive, technical, and scientific direction in the performance of ONR’s mission. He worked closely with ONR’s Technical Director and Department Heads in the identification, prioritization, and support of specific areas of science and technology development. He also served as Executive Director of the Navy International Programs Office (IPO), where he was responsible for oversight of the development, planning, and implementation of the Department of the Navy’s International Programs, primarily in the areas of Security Cooperation, Cooperative Programs, Research and Development, Technology Transfer, and Strategic Planning. Dr. Jones also held the position of Director, Plans and Programs, at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio where he was responsible for developing and managing the processes that defined AFRL’s $3-billion annual investment in technologies for future Air Force systems. These included space, weapons, aeronautics, materials, propulsion, sensors, information, directed energy, and munitions.

Dr. Jones held a variety of other leadership positions in government. He served as Director, Aerospace and Materials Sciences at the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Arlington, Virginia. In this capacity he planned, coordinated and executed a $55-million basic research program, including solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, materials science, and propulsion. He also served as Senior Program Analyst with the Office of the Deputy Director of Central Intelligence for Community Management as well as holding several positions with the Air Force, including Deputy for Research Sciences with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Acquisition) and Deputy for Science and Technology with the Office of the National Security Space Architect. 

Dr. Jones has also held appointments at several major research universities, including Rice University, Texas A&M University, the University of Florida, the University of Tennessee, and Clemson University. As the Executive Director of the Rice University National Security Research Accelerator (RUNSRA), he provided strategic leadership that focused on all aspects of national security research and development, including defense, energy, science and technology policy, and international cooperation. He worked closely with the world-class faculty and staff at Rice, as well as with scientists and engineers in government laboratories, universities, and industry. Some of RUNSRA’s research, funded primarily by the US Army Futures Command through the Army Research Laboratory, was focused on advanced material processing, high-speed networks, and energetic materials. As a Professor of the Practice in the J. Mike Walker ’66 Department of Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University, he taught several undergraduate courses and served as a consultant and mentor to students and faculty researchers throughout the University.  Dr. Jones held tenure-track faculty positions at the University of Tennessee and the University of Florida.

Internationally, Dr. Jones has represented the United States as principal voting member of both the NATO Science and Technology Board and the NATO Naval Armaments Group. He led an international team that developed the first NATO Science and Technology Strategy. He also created and led a NATO Science and Technology initiative in Maritime Security, which has now grown into a multi-Nation initiative in Maritime Unmanned Systems, endorsed by the North Atlantic Council. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

Dr. Jones holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering, a Master of Science degree in engineering mechanics, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in engineering mechanics, all from Clemson University, where he is an elected member of the Thomas Green Clemson Academy of Engineers and Scientists. He also earned a Master of Science degree in national resource strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces at Ft. Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C. and a certificate in legislative studies from the Government Affairs Institute at Georgetown University in Washington D.C.

Education

1978 Bachelor of Science, Mechanical Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, S.C.
1981 Master of Science, Engineering Mechanics, Clemson University, Clemson, S.C.
1982 Doctor of Philosophy, Engineering Mechanics, Clemson University, Clemson, S.C.
1999 Master of Science, National Resource Strategy, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Ft. McNair, Washington, D.C.
2005 Certificate in Legislative Studies, Government Affairs Institute, Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.

Professional Certification: Certified Acquisition Professional, Level III, Systems Planning, Research, Development, and Engineering

Awards

1982 R.C. Edwards Graduate Research Fellowship, Clemson University
1994 Associate Fellow, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
2001 Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers
2011 – 2018 US Principal Voting Member, NATO Science and Technology Board
2011 – 2019 US Principal Voting Member, NATO Naval Armaments Group
2014 Elected to Thomas Green Clemson Academy of Engineers, Clemson University

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Air Force Institute of Technology
2950 Hobson Way
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH 45433-7765
Commercial: 937-255-6565 | DSN: 785-6565