RADM Richard West
Rear Admiral Richard D. West, U.S. Navy (Retired), became President and CEO of CORE in August 2002. Admiral West came to CORE from the Department of the Navy where he served as Oceanographer and Navigator of the Navy. During his three years as Oceanographer and Navigator, he managed a $440 million annual program providing oceanographic, meteorological, geospatial information and navigation support to the Navy. He was designated the ‘first’ Navigator of the Navy and lead the Navy transition from paper to electronic navigation. He was responsible for the review of all Navy training and procurement in support of navigation and geospatial information systems (GIS). He has been called upon to speak as an expert on navigation, GIS and safety of life at sea.
His military career encompassed a broad spectrum of operational experience, high-level staff assignments, and command and leadership positions. Prior to serving as Oceanographer, he was the Deputy Director for the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization. Other shore assignments include Director, Surface Combat Systems Division on the CNO's Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations CINCSOUTH, Naples Italy and with Commander, Operational Test and Evaluation Force. From 1992-1993, as Commanding Officer of the Surface Warfare Officers School, he directed an advanced studies academic institution, which provided a continuum of professional education and training to prepare naval officers to serve at sea
Admiral West served in Vietnam with the riverine forces and commanded ships during hostilities in the Arabian Gulf. He has commanded three ships, USS OPPORTUNE (ARS 41), USS MCINERNEY (FFG 8), and USS LEAHY (CG 16).
As President, Rear Admiral West leads and manages the Washington, DC-based association of 92 of the country’s leading oceanographic research institutions, universities, laboratories, and aquaria. CORE's mission is to promote, develop, and support efforts to advance knowledge and learning in the science of oceanography and to disseminate such knowledge to the scientific community and to the public. CORE also serves as the Program Office for the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP), collaboration among fourteen Federal agencies to provide leadership and coordination of national oceanographic research and education programs. In addition, CORE manages a national high school science competition, the National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) funded by several federal agencies, is the Central Coordinating Office (CCO) for the NSF-sponsored Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (COSEE) and serves as the secretariat for both the U.S. and international Census of Marine Life (CoML) programs supported by the Sloan Foundation and NOAA.
