Celebrating Women in Engineering & Science: Dr. France A. Córdova, Director, National Science Foundation

Dr. France A. Córdova is an internationally recognized astrophysicist and the 14th director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), a position to which she was nominated in 2013 by President Barack Obama. Dr. Córdova also is president emerita of Purdue University. Previously, she served as NASA’s chief scientist, becoming the youngest person and first woman to serve in that position. Prior to joining NASA, she was on the faculty of the Pennsylvania State University where she headed the department of astronomy and astrophysics. Dr. Córdova was also deputy group leader in the Earth and Space Sciences division at Los Alamos National Laboratory. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Stanford University and her Ph.D. in physics from the California Institute of Technology.