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- Astrophysicist
- France A. Cordova is a French-born American astrophysicist who served in multiple prominent leadership positions at scientific institutions.
- France Anne-Dominic Córdova is an American astrophysicist and administrator who was the fourteenth director of the National Science Foundation.
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France Córdova
France Anne Córdova is a leader in science, engineering and education with more than three decades experience at universities, national labs and federal agencies. She is currently president of the Science Philanthropy Alliance. She is an internationally recognized astrophysicist for her contributions in space research and instrumentation. She has served on both corporate and nonprofit boards. In 2014 Córdova was confirmed by the US Senate as the 14th Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), an $8.5 billion independent federal agency. It is the only government agency charged with advancing all fields of scientific discovery, STEM education and workforce development. She is the only woman to have served as president of Purdue University, where she led the university to record levels of research funding, reputational rankings, and student retention and graduation rates. Córdova is also chancellor emerita of the University of California, Riverside, where she was a distinguished professor of physics and astronomy. She laid the foundation f
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France A. Córdova facts for kids
Quick facts for kids France Córdova | |
|---|---|
Córdova in 2017 | |
| 14th Director of the National Science Foundation | |
| In office March 31, 2014 – March 31, 2020 | |
| President | Barack Obama Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Subra Suresh |
| Succeeded by | Kelvin Droegemeier (acting) Sethuraman Panchanathan |
| 11th President of the Purdue University System | |
| In office July 16, 2007 – June 30, 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Martin C. Jischke |
| Succeeded by | Timothy Sands (acting) Mitch Daniels |
| 7th Chancellor of the University of California, Riverside | |
| In office July 1, 2002 – July 1, 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Raymond L. Orbach |
| Succeeded by | Timothy P. White |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1947-08-05) August 5, 1947 (age 77) Paris, France |
| Spouse | Christian Foster |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Stanford University (BA) California Institute of Technology (MS, PhD) |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | National Science Foundation Purdue University University of California, Riverside University of California, Santa Barbara Pennsylvania State University
President Barack Obama has nominated an astrophysicist who started out as a creative writer and has divided her scientific career between public service and work in academia to be the next head of the National Science Foundation. Dr. France Anne Córdova, who is president emerita of Purdue University, would succeed Dr. Subra Suresh, who took the job in June 2010.
Born August 5, 1947, and baptized as Françoise at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, France Córdova is the oldest of twelve children of an Irish-American mother and a Mexican-American father. Her father, Frederick Córdova, was a West Point graduate posted in Paris to supervise the Cooperative for American Remittances Everywhere (CARE), a nonprofit organization set up after World War II to distribute food and clothing in war-torn Europe. France graduated Bishop Amat High School in La Puente, California, and went on to Stanford University, where she earned a B.A. in English in 1969.
As part of an anthropology class at Stanford, Córdova conducted field work at Copyright ©cowroof.pages.dev 2025 |