Kathleen Paige Rear Admiral Kathleen K . Paige was the Program Director , Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense ( BMD ) , the sea - based element of the Ballistic Missile Defense System ( BMDS ) under development by the Missile Defense Agency ( MDA ) . Rear Admiral Paige retired on 22 November 2005 after 34 years of active service . Early life . Rear Admiral Paige was born in Schenectady , New York in August 1948 , and raised in Scotia , New York . Her grandmother , Mary Tobin , was a chief yeoman in World War I . She is a 1970 graduate of the University of New Hampshire and was commissioned in 1971 . Naval career . Rear Admiral Paige ’ s first tour of duty was at VFP - 63 , San Diego , California . Subsequent tours of duty included Fleet Combat Direction System Support Activity , San Diego ; Acquisition Manager in the Navy ’ s Standard Embedded Computer Resource Office , Arlington , Virginia ; Aegis C3 Warfare Officer and Combat Systems Baseline Manager , Aegis Shipbuilding Program ; Chief Engineer , Naval Surface Warfare Center , Port Hueneme Division ; and Technical Director , Aegis Program Office . Her first Flag Officer assignment was as Commander , Naval Surface Warfare Center , Arlington , Virginia , in July 1996 . In June 1998 , she assumed duties as the Director , Theater Air and Missile Defense and Systems Engineering ( TAMD & SE ) in the Program Executive Office for Theater Surface Combatants ( PEO TSC ) . As Director , TAMD & SE , she led the Interoperability Task Force , which coordinated the joint efforts of five program offices across three Systems Commands to complete a successful Operational Evaluation of the Cooperative Engagement Capability ( CEC ) . In April 1999 , she was concurrently assigned as the first ASN ( RDA ) Chief Engineer , the Department of the Navy ’ s senior technical authority for the development of system and technical architectures designed to improve the integration and interoperability of Navy and Marine Corps weapon , combat , and C4I systems . In July 2001 , she became MDA ’ s first Ballistic Missile Defense System Technical Director , the principal advisor to the MDA Director on all matters related to the planning and technical performance of the BMDS . In August 2002 , she became the Navy ’ s senior Engineering Duty Officer ( EDO ) . Rear Admiral Paige became Program Director , Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense ( BMD ) in March 2003 and in March 2005 , concurrent with her Program Director assignment , Paige was selected by the Director , Missile Defense Agency to be the first Director of Mission Readiness . Education . In 1976 , she received a Master of Science degree in Computer Systems from the Naval Postgraduate School . She was designated an Engineering Duty Officer ( EDO ) in 1981 . While attending the Engineering Duty Officer Basic Course , she was awarded the VADM Bryan Award for academic excellence . She is a graduate of the Defense Systems Management College and the Cornell University Program for Executives . Awards and decorations . Rear Admiral Paige ’ s personal decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal , the Legion of Merit ( 3 awards ) , the Meritorious Service Medal ( 3 awards ) , and the Navy Achievement Medal . See also . Women in the United States Navy