About
John MacCarthy
About John MacCarthy
My wife Betsy and I have been married for more than 40 years and we have two nearly perfect children, three perfect grandchildren, and a dog.
I spent much of my formative years attending public schools in small conservative towns in the West and Midwest. During this time, I engaged in thoughtful discussions with my father (a physician and Reagan Republican) and my mother (a college professor and Humphrey Democrat). Through their guidance, I developed a devotion to God, country, and education.
Upon graduating from high school in Elko, Nevada, I earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from Carleton College in Minnesota, and then a doctorate in physics (program in Biophysics and Biochemistry) from the University of Notre Dame. After teaching physics for five years at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania, I decided to pursue my interest in supporting our national defense by becoming a systems engineer for one of the nation’s major defense contractors.
During my 23-year career with TRW and Northrup Grumman, I held a variety of technical management and leadership positions on programs of national significance and served as a technology and policy advisor to a high-level executive in the Pentagon. I was also a part-time adjunct professor of Systems Engineering at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Upon retiring from Northrop Grumman, I served as a senior analyst for a defense think tank and was later recruited to be the Director of the University of Maryland’s Systems Engineering Education Program.
In 2020, Betsy and I retired and moved to Simpsonville. While we could have retired anywhere, we found that the Greenville area offered friendly people, a pleasant climate, a variety of excellent colleges and universities, good hiking, and cultural attractions typical of a much larger metropolitan area. I have been blessed to find a church home at Westminster Presbyterian Church and a position as a physics teacher at Wofford College. I have enjoyed becoming an involved member of the Simpsonville and Mauldin communities.
A History of Achievement and Service
Summary of Work Experience
- Three years as an adjunct lecturer of physics at Wofford College.
- Five years as the Director of the Systems Engineering Education Program at the University of Maryland, College Park.
- Four years as a research staff member at a defense think tank (Institute for Defense Analyses).
- 23 years as a lead systems engineer for Northrup Grumman and TRW, applying systems engineering-related skills to the solution of large-scale, complex, real-world problems of national significance. This included three years as the Deputy Director of TRW’s Center for Advanced Technology and five years as the senior technology and policy advisor to a high-level executive in the Department of Defense.
- Five years teaching undergraduate physics at Muhlenberg College.
Community Service
- Presbyterian Church
- Member of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Greenville
- Ordained Elder
- Taught adult Sunday school courses for 25 years.
- Participated in a number of mission trips to Mexico.
- Member, Greenville Rotary Club Church
- Attend Simpsonville and Mauldin Rotary Clubs
- 12 years as an adjunct lecturer of physics at Wofford College and adjunct professor of systems engineering and telecommunications at various University of Maryland campuses
Education
- Ph.D., Physics, Program in Biophysics and Biochemistry: University of Notre Dame, 1982
- M.S., Systems Engineering (C2 Concentration): George Mason University, 2007
- B.A., Physics:Carleton College, 1976
- Coursework toward an M.S. in Computational Science: George Mason University, 2008–2011
- Coursework toward an M.S. in National Security Studies: California State University San Bernardino, 1991–1992
