Elaine Ho

Elaine Ho serves as the Associate Administrator for NASA’s Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity.  She is the Agency’s Chief Diversity Officer, providing executive and transformative leadership over diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) policy and programs for the entire NASA workforce.  Ho leads the strategy and execution of NASA’s external civil rights programs; NASA’s DEIA Strategic Plan; cross-agency workforce and program data and analytics; Agency-wide anti-harassment, reasonable accommodation, EEO complaints, and conflict resolution programs; and DEIA-related training.

Experience

Ho is a long-time public servant who has remained connected to DEIA throughout her career.  Most recently at NASA, she served as the Deputy Associate Administrator for NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, responsible for leading and managing a wide-ranging portfolio of projects and initiatives that benefit students, universities and educational institutions across the country. Ho began her federal career in senior roles at Department of Agriculture and the IRS, leading transformative workplace diversity and inclusion strategies, including diversity recruitment through student internships. She then served as IRS’s Deputy Chief of Staff where she helped to shape and execute the strategic priorities of the IRS’s global tax operation and its workforce of 87,000.  Ho went on to serve several roles in the White House. In 2015, she held the position of Senior Policy Advisor, working with Former First Lady Michelle Obama’s Office to implement the Let Girls Learn initiative, focused on adolescent girls’ education worldwide. In 2017, she remained in the White House as the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Digital Service, an office dedicated to recruiting diverse top technical talent and deploying teams across the federal government to deliver better services to the American public. After joining NASA, Ho returned to the White House in 2021 on a year-long detail as Deputy Chief of Staff in the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Director of Space STEM Policy in the Office of the Vice President’s National Space Council. 

Prior to her federal service career, Ho was a practicing attorney, specializing in employment law and workplace diversity and inclusion. She also served over four years active duty as an Air Force criminal prosecutor. She continues her military service today as a Colonel in the Air Force Reserves, where she helps the Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps with its diversity and inclusion initiatives.

Education

Ho received her degree in civil engineering from Duke University, her Juris Doctor from the University of Florida, and executive certificate in diversity strategy from Georgetown University. 

Personal

Ho lives in McLean, Virginia, with her wonderful husband and three beautiful children.