Biography
Known for his charisma and ability to find the middle ground, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie claimed honors June 4, 2014 as the newest inductee into the National Football Foundation (NFF) Leadership Hall of Fame. A packed house of supporters filled the Grand Ballroom of the New York Hilton Midtown to pay tribute Governor Chrisite, who has served as New Jersey Governor since 2010.
In his acceptance speech, Governor Christie talked about the influence that his mother and father played in teaching him the indispensable components of his leadership style. He credited his father, who got an education on the GI Plan and displayed an enormous work ethic, for teaching him that there is no substitute for hard work, and he paid tribute to his mother for instilling in him an instinct for being candid, honest and direct.
“Whatever you accomplish in life is not only a product of yourself but of who you are and where you come from, and secondly you have an obligation to pass that on,” said Governor Christie. “What the Foundation does is pass it on through the great works that they do, and as governor, I have an obligation to pass these things on in my public life [and to my children]. Thank you supporting the work of the foundation and thank you for being my friend… For those of you out there who are my friends please understand that whatever honors I receive, part of them belong to you in a similar way that they belong to my parents.”
Christie becomes the third member of the Leadership Hall of Fame, which was launched in 2013 as a new platform for recognizing the country’s most influential individuals who have ascended to the highest levels of success and exhibited the critical leadership qualities that transcend ordinary enterprises.
“Governor Christie’s leadership abilities represent a similar set of skills that are learned each year on the football field by millions of kids,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “Success on the football field, as in life, requires commitment, the ability to handle adversity, tenacity and the resiliency to move forward. These same traits have become the hallmark of Governor Christie during his remarkable political career. His induction into the NFF Leadership Hall of Fame provides us a powerful platform for celebrating his many accomplishments and the leadership traits that he has come to embody.”
Inductees are selected for embodying the same qualities in amateur football that define excellence in American life: hard work, discipline, determination, teamwork, integrity and the relentless pursuit to improve. Previous inductees include Jerry Jones, the owner, president and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys, and George Pyne, the president of IMG Worldwide Sports and Entertainment. Each inductee’s accomplishments will be enshrined in an exhibit at the new College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, which is scheduled to open its doors in late 2014, as role models for future generations to emulate.
Emeritus NFF Chairman Jon F. Hanson spoke during the induction ceremony, thanking those in attendance and highlighting Governor Christie’s remarkable career. FOX Sports and NFL Network analyst Charles Davis emceed the event. NFF Awards Committee Chairman and CBS Legal Analyst Jack Ford conducted the official induction ceremony at the event. He was joined on stage for the presentation of Governor Christie’s induction ring by NFF National Scholar-Athlete (Ole Miss) and current NY Giants Quarterback Eli Manning, as well as two NFF Board Members: Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany and former Boston College Athletics Director Gene DeFilippo.
Other board members at the event included General Electric Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt and emeritus member and former Rutgers Athletics Director Bob Mulcahy. College Football Hall of Fame inductees who attended included Marty Lyons (Alabama) and Don McPherson (Syracuse). Leadership from the New York Athletic Club, as well as Rutgers head coach Kyle Flood and his staff were also in attendance. Herff Jones provided the NFF Leadership Hall of Fame ring, and the Business Media Group (BMG) based in Indianapolis, produced the event.
Chris Christie was sworn in as governor of New Jersey on Jan. 19, 2010. He was re-elected to a second term on Nov. 5, 2013. Under Governor Christie, New Jersey has taken on the biggest and toughest challenges with real solutions and bipartisan cooperation. He has implemented an aggressive reform agenda to restore fiscal integrity and accountability to state and local government; lowered New Jersey’s property taxes; reformed the state’s pension and health benefits system; and improved public education to ensure every child has access to a quality education.
In his first term, Governor Christie fought for and achieved passage of a two percent cap on property taxes; landmark public employee pension and health benefit reforms that will save taxpayers more than $130 billion over the next 30 years; four balanced budgets that did not raise taxes; and $2.35 billion in job-creating tax cuts. After years of decline, New Jersey’s economy has turned around, and more than 143,100 private sector jobs have been added under Governor Christie’s watch.
In addition, Governor Christie has made education reform a top priority of his administration, working to turn around failing schools, improve accountability, create a fair and meaningful evaluation system for teachers and principals and increase school choice in the state’s worst performing districts. Governor Christie provided billions of dollars in additional state aid for New Jersey schools, setting a historic high for school funding three consecutive years.
In August 2012, Governor Christie signed into law landmark bipartisan tenure reform, modernizing the nation’s oldest tenure law to increase teacher effectiveness and accountability in the classroom. Since Superstorm Sandy struck in 2012, New Jersey has made real, substantial strides toward recovery and rebuilding. The Christie Administration has launched dozens of programs and services at an unprecedented pace to put displaced New Jerseyans back in their homes; reopen businesses damaged or destroyed by Sandy; and repair and improve infrastructure to withstand future storms.
A lifelong New Jerseyan, Governor Christie, 51, has a deep affection for and strong commitment to the state. Born in Newark and raised in Livingston, Chris has lived in New Jersey his entire life, except to attend college at the University of Delaware. He and his wife, Mary Pat, have been married since 1986 and reside in Mendham, where they are raising their four children, Andrew (born 1993), Sarah (born 1996), Patrick (born 2000) and Bridget (born 2003).
After graduating college in 1984, Chris attended Seton Hall University School of Law. He graduated in 1987 and joined a Cranford law firm, where he was soon named a partner. He was elected a Freeholder in Morris County, and served as Director of the Board in 1997.
Christie was named U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey in 2002. As the chief federal law enforcement officer in New Jersey, he earned praise from leaders in both parties and drawing national attention for his efforts in battling political corruption, corporate crime, human trafficking, gangs, terrorism and environmental polluters.
