Vayl Stanley Oxford (born March 1, 1952) is a national security policy adviser who was selected by

Secretary A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, program evalu ...

James Mattis James Norman Mattis (born September 8, 1950) is an American military officer who served as the 26th United States secretary of defense from 2017 to 2019. A retired Marine Corps four-star general, he commanded forces in the Persian Gulf War, th ...

in 2017 to head the

Defense Threat Reduction Agency The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is both a defense agency and a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense (DoD) for countering weapons of mass destruction (WMD; chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear ...

. Oxford was previously a security adviser at the

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is one of the United States Department of Energy national laboratories, managed by the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science. The main campus of the laboratory is in Richland, Washington ...

Education

Born in

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

and raised in

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, Oxford graduated in 1974 with a B.S. degree in general engineering from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

, and then in 1976 with an M.S. degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology.

Career

During his

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

tenure, Oxford held several positions associated with aircraft and weapons development, and war plans analysis in Europe and the Pacific. Oxford was an assistant professor of aeronautics at the

Air Force Academy An air force academy or air academy is a national institution that provides initial officer training, possibly including undergraduate level education, to air force officer cadets who are preparing to be commissioned officers in a national air forc ...

from 1982 to 1986. Oxford became director for counterproliferation at the

Defense Nuclear Agency The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is both a defense agency and a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense (DoD) for countering weapons of mass destruction (WMD; chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, a ...

and the Defense Special Weapons Agency, from 1993 until 1998. Oxford was director for

counterproliferation Counterproliferation refers to diplomatic, intelligence, and military efforts to combat the proliferation of weapons, including both weapons of mass destruction (WMD), long-range missiles, and certain conventional weapons. Measures to combat pro ...

on the

United States National Security Council The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the national security council used by the president of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and Foreign relations of the United States, foreign policy matter ...

. In 2004,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

appointed Oxford to head the

Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency (HSARPA) is a part of the Science and Technology Directorate at the United States Department of Homeland Security. Much like DARPA in the Department of Defense, HSARPA is tasked with advanced pr ...

(HSARPA). Subsequent to that appointment, Oxford was Director of the

Domestic Nuclear Detection Office The Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO) is a jointly staffed office established on April 15, 2005 by the United States to improve the nation’s capability to detect and report unauthorized attempts to import, possess, store, develop, or tran ...

, following its creation in 2005. During his tenure, the DNDO invested heavily in

Radiation Portal Monitor Radiation Portal Monitors (RPMs) are passive radiation detection devices used for the screening of individuals, vehicles, cargo or other vectors for detection of illicit sources such as at borders or secure facilities. Fear of terrorist attacks ...

technology to scan cargo entering the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

for

radiological weapon In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or a material medium. This includes: * ''electromagnetic radiation'' consisting of photons, such as radio waves, microwaves, infr ...

s, technology Oxford strongly promoted. In later years, Oxford served as head of the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oxford, Vayl 1952 births Living people United States Military Academy alumni Military personnel from Tennessee United States Air Force officers Air Force Institute of Technology alumni United States Air Force Academy faculty United States National Security Council staffers George W. Bush administration personnel United States Department of Homeland Security officials First Trump administration personnel Defense Threat Reduction Agency