General Charles Q. Brown

Chief of Staff, United States Air Force

and

David H. McCormick *94 *96

Former U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs; CEO, Bridgewater Associates

in conversation with

Jacob N. Shapiro

Professor of Politics and International Affairs

 

 

Co-sponsored by

 

 

 

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About the Speakers

 

Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr.

Chief of Staff, United States Air Force

As Chief, Gen. Brown serves as the senior uniformed Air Force officer responsible for the organization, training and equipping of 689,000 active-duty, Guard, Reserve and civilian forces serving in the United States and overseas. As a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the general and other service chiefs function as military advisers to the Secretary of Defense, National Security Council and the President.

Gen. Brown was commissioned in 1984 as a distinguished graduate of the ROTC program at Texas Tech University. He has served in a variety of positions at the squadron and wing levels, including an assignment to the U.S. Air Force Weapons School as an F-16 Fighting Falcon Instructor. His notable staff tours include Aide-de-Camp to the Chief of Staff of the Air Force; Director, Secretary of the Air Force and Chief of Staff Executive Action Group; and Deputy Commander, U.S. Central Command. He also served as a National Defense Fellow at the Institute for Defense Analyses, Alexandria, Virginia.

Gen. Brown has commanded a fighter squadron, the U.S. Air Force Weapons School, two fighter wings and U.S. Air Forces Central Command. Prior to serving as the Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen. Brown was the commander of Pacific Air Forces, Air Component Commander for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Gen. Brown is a command pilot with more than 2,900 flying hours, including 130 combat hours.

 

 

David H. McCormick *94 *96

Former U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs; CEO, Bridgewater Associates

David McCormick is CEO of Bridgewater Associates, responsible for overseeing the firm’s strategy, governance, and business operations. David joined Bridgewater in 2009 and previously served as the firm’s President, before becoming Co-CEO in 2017 and CEO in 2020.

Before joining Bridgewater, David was the U.S. Treasury under Secretary for International Affairs in the George W. Bush Administration during the global financial crisis. Prior to that, he served in senior posts on the National Security Council and in the Department of Commerce.

From 1999-2005 David was a technology entrepreneur, serving as CEO and then President of two publicly-traded software companies, FreeMarkets, Inc. and Ariba, Inc.

Earlier in his career David was a consultant at McKinsey & Company. He is a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and has a Ph.D. from the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. He is a former Army officer and a veteran of the First Gulf War.

David serves as a Trustee on several boards including the United Service Organizations (USO) and The Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS). He also serves as the Chairman of the Atlantic Council’s International Advisory Board.

 

 

Jacob N. Shapiro

Professor of Politics and International Affairs

Professor Shapiro directs the Empirical Studies of Conflict Project, a multi-university consortium that compiles and analyzes micro-level data on politically motivated violence in countries around the world. His research covers conflict, economic development, misinformation, and security policy. He is author of The Terrorist’s Dilemma: Managing Violent Covert Organizations and co-author of Small Wars, Big Data: The Information Revolution in Modern Conflict. His research has been published in a broad range of academic and policy journals as well as a number of edited volumes. He has conducted field research and large-scale policy evaluations in Afghanistan, Colombia, India, and Pakistan.

Shapiro received the 2016 Karl Deutsch Award from the International Studies Association, given to a scholar younger than 40, or within 10 years of earning a Ph.D., who has made the most significant contribution to the study of international relations. He received his Ph.D. in Political Science, and M.A. in Economics, from Stanford University, and his B.A. in Political Science, from the University of Michigan. He is a veteran of the United States Navy.

 

 

 

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