Antonia Handler Chayes

Antonia Handler Chayes
Antonia Handler Chayes, 1980
Born	(1929-07-21) July 21, 1929 (age 87) New York City
Known for	US Lawyer, United States Under Secretary of the Air Force, Academic
Spouse(s)	Abram Chayes
Children	Sarah Chayes and 4 other children
Awards	Air Force Distinguished Service Medal

Antonia "Toni" Handler Chayes (born 1929) is a United States lawyer and educator who served as Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) from 1977 to 1979 and as United States Under Secretary of the Air Force from 1979 to 1981.

Antonia Handler was born in New York City on July 21, 1929. She married Abram Chayes on December 24, 1947; they had five children, including journalist Sarah Chayes. She was educated at Radcliffe College, receiving a B.A. in 1950. She then attended Yale Law School before transferring to the Georgetown University Law Center and receiving her LL.B. in 1953.

From 1959 to 1961, Chayes was executive assistant to Erwin Griswold, the Dean of Harvard Law School. In 1961, she joined the staff of the White House, where she worked drafting correspondence. She was then a consultant to a Baltimore community development firm 1962-63, and a social science adviser to the National Institute of Mental Health 1964-65. From 1966 to 1968, she was director of education and urban development for the Model Cities Program's Action for Boston Community Development program. In 1968, she became the dean of the Jackson College for Women (later incorporated into Tufts University). From 1970 to 1972, she was an associate professor of political science at Tufts.