Jeffrey Fowler
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey L. Fowler is a United States Navy
vice admiral
who served as the 60th Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy
until his retirement in August 2010.
, he received his commission from the United States Naval Academy
in 1978. Following a successful interview with Admiral Hyman G. Rickover
, he was subsequently trained in the Navy’s nuclear propulsion
and submarine
programs.
Fowler served at sea as a junior officer aboard , as Engineer Officer for , and as Executive Officer
for the Pre-commissioning Unit and . He commanded and Submarine Squadron Three, responsible for eight nuclear-powered fast attack submarines. Fowler has deployed to the Atlantic
, Pacific
, Indian
and Arctic
oceans, and the Persian Gulf
.
Ashore, Fowler served as a submarine tactics instructor at Naval Submarine Training Center, Pacific; as a junior member on the Nuclear Propulsion Examining Board on the staff of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet
; as the Head, Submarine Programs Section of the Programming Division (N80) on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations
; Deputy Executive Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (N8) and the Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
; the Pacific submarine force Prospective Commanding Officer Instructor; and as the Executive Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Strategic Command.
Following selection to Flag Officer
, Fowler served as Commander, Navy Recruiting Command and Director, Naval Europe/Sixth Fleet Plans and Operations; Deputy Commander, United States Sixth Fleet; Commander Submarines, Allied Naval Forces South; Commander, Submarine Group 8; and Commander, Task Forces 164/69. Fowler relieved Vice Admiral Rodney P. Rempt
as Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy on June 8, 2007.
In August 2007, Fowler unveiled new plans for the Naval Academy, stating that the school was focusing too much on extracurriculars. Some of the new changes include mandatory study time each night for all Midshipmen, secured all weekday liberty (which Seniors had Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and Juniors Tuesday and Friday), and mandatory meals Sunday night through Friday night. Fowler stressed, however, that the Academy was not in an emergency situation, and that these changes were merely to keep the recent graduates ready to enter into wartime service. He cast the changes as having more to do with preparing future Navy and Marine officers for wartime duty than with cracking down on misbehavior.
Fowler stepped down as Superintendent of the Naval Academy in August 2010 (30 days earlier than his scheduled relief) amidst controversy over financial irregularities at the academy as well as multiple honor-code violations by USNA midshipmen.
He was succeeded by in this post by Vice Admiral Michael H. Miller
.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
vice admiral
Vice admiral (United States)
In the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, and the United States Maritime Service, vice admiral is a three-star flag officer, with the pay grade of...
who served as the 60th Superintendent of the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
until his retirement in August 2010.
Early life and career
Born in May 1956 and raised in Bismarck, North DakotaBismarck, North Dakota
Bismarck is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the second most populous city in North Dakota after Fargo. The city's population was 61,272 at the 2010 census, while its metropolitan population was 108,779...
, he received his commission from the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
in 1978. Following a successful interview with Admiral Hyman G. Rickover
Hyman G. Rickover
Hyman George Rickover was a four-star admiral of the United States Navy who directed the original development of naval nuclear propulsion and controlled its operations for three decades as director of Naval Reactors...
, he was subsequently trained in the Navy’s nuclear propulsion
Nuclear propulsion
Nuclear propulsion includes a wide variety of propulsion methods that fulfil the promise of the Atomic Age by using some form of nuclear reaction as their primary power source.- Surface ships and submarines :...
and submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
programs.
Fowler served at sea as a junior officer aboard , as Engineer Officer for , and as Executive Officer
Executive officer
An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
for the Pre-commissioning Unit and . He commanded and Submarine Squadron Three, responsible for eight nuclear-powered fast attack submarines. Fowler has deployed to the Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, Indian
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and Arctic
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
oceans, and the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
.
Ashore, Fowler served as a submarine tactics instructor at Naval Submarine Training Center, Pacific; as a junior member on the Nuclear Propulsion Examining Board on the staff of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet
U.S. Atlantic Fleet
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
; as the Head, Submarine Programs Section of the Programming Division (N80) on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Naval Operations
The Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...
; Deputy Executive Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (N8) and the Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
Joint Chiefs of Staff
The Joint Chiefs of Staff is a body of senior uniformed leaders in the United States Department of Defense who advise the Secretary of Defense, the Homeland Security Council, the National Security Council and the President on military matters...
; the Pacific submarine force Prospective Commanding Officer Instructor; and as the Executive Assistant to the Commander, U.S. Strategic Command.
Flag officer
Flag Officer
A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark where the officer exercises command. The term usually refers to the senior officers in an English-speaking nation's navy, specifically those who hold any of the admiral ranks; in...
, Fowler served as Commander, Navy Recruiting Command and Director, Naval Europe/Sixth Fleet Plans and Operations; Deputy Commander, United States Sixth Fleet; Commander Submarines, Allied Naval Forces South; Commander, Submarine Group 8; and Commander, Task Forces 164/69. Fowler relieved Vice Admiral Rodney P. Rempt
Rodney P. Rempt
Rodney Paul Rempt is a retired Vice Admiral of the United States Navy who served as the 58th Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy from 2003 to 2007.-Biography:...
as Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy on June 8, 2007.
In August 2007, Fowler unveiled new plans for the Naval Academy, stating that the school was focusing too much on extracurriculars. Some of the new changes include mandatory study time each night for all Midshipmen, secured all weekday liberty (which Seniors had Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and Juniors Tuesday and Friday), and mandatory meals Sunday night through Friday night. Fowler stressed, however, that the Academy was not in an emergency situation, and that these changes were merely to keep the recent graduates ready to enter into wartime service. He cast the changes as having more to do with preparing future Navy and Marine officers for wartime duty than with cracking down on misbehavior.
"We are a nation at war," he said. "If any campus should understand being a nation at war, it's the United States Naval Academy."
Fowler stepped down as Superintendent of the Naval Academy in August 2010 (30 days earlier than his scheduled relief) amidst controversy over financial irregularities at the academy as well as multiple honor-code violations by USNA midshipmen.
He was succeeded by in this post by Vice Admiral Michael H. Miller
Michael H. Miller
Michael Harold "Mike" Miller is a vice admiral in the United States Navy, and was the first active-duty officer to direct the White House Military Office...
.
Education
- 1978 Bachelor of ScienceBachelor of ScienceA Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in mechanical engineeringMechanical engineeringMechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
, U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland - 1985 Master of Business AdministrationMaster of Business AdministrationThe Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
degree, Chaminade University of HonoluluChaminade University of HonoluluChaminade University of Honolulu is a private co-educational university in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Founded in 1955 by the Society of Mary, a Roman Catholic religious order also known as the Marianists, Chaminade is located in the historic Kaimuki district of Honolulu. Chaminade offers...
, Honolulu, Hawaii - 1990 Master of Public AdministrationMaster of Public AdministrationThe Master of Public Administration is a professional post-graduate degree in Public Administration. The MPA program prepares individuals to serve as managers in the executive arm of local, state/provincial, and federal/national government, and increasingly in nongovernmental organization and...
degree, John F. Kennedy School of GovernmentJohn F. Kennedy School of GovernmentThe John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University is a public policy and public administration school, and one of Harvard's graduate and professional schools...
at Harvard UniversityHarvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, Cambridge, Massachusetts - 2002 National Security Studies, Syracuse UniversitySyracuse UniversitySyracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
, Syracuse, New York - 2003 Fellow, Council on Foreign RelationsCouncil on Foreign RelationsThe Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
, New York, New York