Christine Merdon

Chief Operating Officer

Contact: Jessica Blanche
Staff Assistant to the Chief Operating Officer
202-228-3266
jblanche@aoc.gov

Architect of the Capitol
U.S. Capitol, Room SB-13A
Washington, DC 20515
www.aoc.gov

Restoring & Repairing Cast Iron: Methods for Refurbishing and Restoring Cast Iron at the US Capitol Dome Restoration Project

Christine Merdon is currently the Chief Operating Officer for the Architect of the Capitol (AOC). She is responsible for the overall direction, operation and management of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, including implementing AOC’s goals and mission, providing overall organization management to improve performance, and assisting in promoting reform and measure results. The AOC is the builder and steward of the U.S. Capitol Building, serving the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court and creating a home for American democracy. The AOC traces its beginnings to 1791. Today, the AOC is comprised of 2,600 employees who serve Congress and the Supreme Court in a variety of occupations. Ms. Merdon began her federal career in 1981 as a cooperative engineering student for the U.S. Navy. After earning her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maryland in 1987, she continued her career with the Navy as a project engineer and a project manager. In 1998, she received a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering. In 1990, she joined the White House Military Office as a Project Manager responsible for managing classified design and construction projects at the White House, Camp David and other presidential support facilities. 

From 1998 to 2010, Ms. Merdon worked in private industry, starting as a Project Manager and ascending to the role of Senior Vice President of Program and Construction Management. Her responsibilities included operations and business development for program and construction management contracts in Washington, D.C.; Chicago, Illinois; and Los Angeles, California. She has been responsible for the successful program and construction management of more than $11 billion in major construction projects and programs including: Washington Nationals Major League Baseball Stadium, O’Hare Airport Modernization Program, Los Angeles Unified School District, Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial, Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum for African American History, and Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson Memorial Renovations. Throughout her career, Ms. Merdon has won many outstanding performance awards, as well as excellence awards for construction projects. She is a Registered Professional Engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Ms. Merdon is the Chair of the Board of Visitors for the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Maryland.