IMMEDIATE RELEASE
15 April 1999

Biographical Information on William J. Perry

Dr. Perry was born in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania in 1927, received his BS and MS degrees from Stanford University and his PhD from Penn State, all in mathematics. In 1946 he enlisted in the Army Corps of Engineers and served in the Army of Occupation in Japan. Joining the Reserve Officer Training Corps in 1948, he served as a Second Lieutenant in the Army Reserves from 1950 to 1955.

Dr. Perry's broad experience in business, government, and academia began in 1954, when he joined General Telephone and Electronics as a laboratory director. In 1964 he founded ESL, Inc., where he served as President until 1977. During this time, he also served as part-time lecturer in the Department of Mathematics at Santa Clara University.

In 1977, Dr. Perry was appointed Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, a position he held until returning to the private sector as Executive Vice President of Hambrecht and Quist, Inc. in 1981. Four years later he founded Technology Strategies and Alliances, where he served as Chairman until 1993. During this time (1988-1993), he was also part-time professor at Stanford University and Co-Director of the Center for International Security and Arms Control.

Returning to government service in 1993 as Under Secretary of Defense, Dr. Perry was appointed, a year later, the nineteenth Secretary of Defense, a position he held from February 1994 to January 1997.

Currently the Michael and Barbara Berberian professor at Stanford University, Dr. Perry holds a joint appointment in the Department of Engineering-Economic Systems/Operations Research and the Institute of International Studies.

He is a member of the national Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He serves on Boards of a number of companies and has received numerous awards.