Kathleen Hicks | |
---|---|
35th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense | |
In office February 9, 2021 – January 20, 2025 | |
President | Joe Biden |
Preceded by | David Norquist |
Succeeded by | Steve Feinberg (nominee) |
9th Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy | |
In office May 24, 2012 – July 2, 2013 | |
President | Barack Obama |
Preceded by | James Miller |
Succeeded by | Brian P. McKeon |
Personal details | |
Born | Kathleen Anne Holland September 25, 1970 Fairfield, California, U.S. |
Spouse | Thomas W. Hicks |
Children | 3 |
Education | Mount Holyoke College (BA) University of Maryland, College Park (MPA) Massachusetts Institute of Technology (PhD) |
Kathleen Anne Holland Hicks[1][2] (born September 25, 1970)[1][3] is an American civil servant who served as the United States deputy secretary of defense from 2021 to 2025. She is the first Senate-confirmed woman in this role and is the highest-ranking woman to have served in the United States Department of Defense.
Hicks previously served as the principal deputy under secretary of defense for policy during the Obama administration.[4] By 2020, Hicks was an academic and national security advisor working as a senior vice president and director of the international security program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.[5]