Press Release

Carnegie Mellon’s Jon Peha Named Chief Technologist for the Federal Communications Commission

October 2, 2008

Contact: Chriss Swaney
Carnegie Mellon University
412.268.5776

PITTSBURGH—Carnegie Mellon University’s Jon Peha has been named chief technologist for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), where he will apply his extensive telecommunications expertise to a variety of issues. His appointment begins Oct. 1.

“I am honored to accept this position, and delighted to have an opportunity for public service,” said Peha, a professor in the departments of Engineering and Public Policy and Electrical and Computer Engineering at Carnegie Mellon. He has also served as associate director of Carnegie Mellon’s Center for Wireless and Broadband Networking.  

Peha will function as a senior advisor to the FCC chairman and commissioners on technology-related matters and perform specific assignments, such as conducting research addressing policy issues regarding IP and telecommunications networks, according to the FCC.

For more than two decades, Peha’s research has spanned technical and policy issues of computer and telecommunications networks. Some of those issues have included spectrum, broadband Internet, wireless networks, video and voice over IP, communications for emergency responders, universal service, secure Internet payment systems, e-commerce and network security. He also frequently consults for industry and government agencies around the world. 

“Professor Peha is a leading researcher in telecommunications policy. He will bring both depth and breadth to his position as chief technologist for the FCC,” said Pradeep K. Khosla, the Dowd University Professor and dean of Carnegie Mellon’s College of Engineering.  

M. Granger Morgan, head of Carnegie Mellon’s Department of Engineering and Public Policy, said, “Jon combines deep technical knowledge of telecommunications with superb policy skills. The FCC will benefit greatly from his presence, and we will also benefit when he returns to Carnegie Mellon to inform his teaching and research with a wide range of new experiences.”

In his previous government roles, Peha has addressed telecom and e-commerce issues with legislative staff in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, and helped launch a U.S. government interagency program to assist developing countries with information infrastructure. In industry, Peha has served as chief technical officer of three high-tech startups, and as a member of the technical staff at SRI International, AT&T Bell Labs and Microsoft.

Peha is a congressional fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and a diplomacy fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He received his bachelor’s degree from Brown University, and a master’s and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Stanford University.

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About Carnegie Mellon: Carnegie Mellon is a private research university with a distinctive mix of programs in engineering, computer science, robotics, business, public policy, fine arts and the humanities. More than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students receive an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration, and innovation. A small student-to-faculty ratio provides an opportunity for close interaction between students and professors. While technology is pervasive on its 144-acre Pittsburgh campus, Carnegie Mellon is also distinctive among leading research universities for the world-renowned programs in its College of Fine Arts. A global university, Carnegie Mellon has campuses in Silicon Valley, Calif., and Qatar, and programs in Asia, Australia and Europe. For more, see www.cmu.edu.