Frank Dixon Whitworth III (born June 17, 1967) is an active duty

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

vice admiral and career

intelligence officer An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile or analyze information (known as intelligence) which is of use to that organization. The word of ''officer'' is a working title, not a rank, used in the same way ...

who serves as the eighth director of the

National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) is a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense whose primary mission is collecting, analyzing, and distributing geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) in support of natio ...

since June 3, 2022. He most recently served as the Director for Intelligence of the

Joint Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, that advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and the ...

Early life and education

Born in Richmond, Virginia, Whitworth is a 1989 graduate of Duke University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. He holds a Master of Arts in National Security Studies from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

, as well as a Diploma from the

Naval War College The Naval War College (NWC or NAVWARCOL) is the staff college and "Home of Thought" for the United States Navy at Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island. The NWC educates and develops leaders, supports defining the future Navy and associ ...

in Newport, Rhode Island.

Military career

Whitworth’s command tours included Commander, Joint Intelligence Center Central; commanding officer, Navy Element of

U.S. Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...

; and commanding officer, Kennedy Irregular Warfare Center. Whitworth’s operational tours included director of intelligence for U.S. Africa Command, director of intelligence for

Joint Special Operations Command The Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) is a joint component command of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and is charged with studying special operations requirements and techniques to ensure interoperability and equi ...

, director of intelligence and deputy director of Maritime Operations Center for Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, U.S. Fifth Fleet; director of intelligence for a Special Operations Task Force in Afghanistan during three deployments supporting Operation Enduring Freedom; director of intelligence for

Naval Special Warfare Development Group The Naval Special Warfare Development Group (NSWDG), abbreviated as DEVGRU ("Development Group") and commonly known as SEAL Team Six, is the United States Navy component of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). The unit is often referre ...

; special assistant for Political-Military Affairs at U.S. Sixth Fleet during Operation Allied Force; indications and warning Officer at U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, U.S. Fifth Fleet, in support of

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

; and intelligence officer for Fighter Squadron 31 during 's deployment in support of

Operation Provide Comfort Operation Provide Comfort and Provide Comfort II were military operations initiated by the United States and other Coalition nations of the Persian Gulf War, starting in April 1991, to defend Kurdish refugees fleeing their homes in northern I ...

. Whitworth’s shore-based tours included the

National Security Agency The National Security Agency (NSA) is a national-level intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collect ...

as chief of targets for the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility; Navy federal executive fellow to

American Enterprise Institute The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right Washington, D.C.–based think tank that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare. A ...

; senior duty officer at the

White House Situation Room The Situation Room, officially known as the John F. Kennedy Conference Room, is a conference room and intelligence management center in the basement of the West Wing of the White House. It is run by the National Security Council staff for the ...

; intelligence briefer for the Chief of Naval Operations and

Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...

; and intelligence watch analyst at the

Office of Naval Intelligence The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is the military intelligence agency of the United States Navy. Established in 1882 primarily to advance the Navy's modernization efforts, it is the oldest member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and serve ...

and the National Military Joint Intelligence Center. In July 2021, he was nominated and confirmed for promotion to vice admiral. He was promoted to his present rank on July 30, 2021.

Awards and decorations

He is also a recipient of the Edwin T. Layton Leadership Award, Vice Admiral Rufus L. Taylor Leadership Award and the Army’s Knowlton Award for excellence in intelligence.

Personal life

Whitworth is the son of Frank Dixon Whitworth Jr. and Kay Sutton Whitworth. Whitworth married Amy Beth Crandall on September 5, 1992 in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...

. His wife is the younger sister of Navy judge advocate Darse E. Crandall Jr.

References

1967 births Living people People from Richmond, Virginia Duke University alumni Georgetown University alumni Naval War College alumni Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Navy rear admirals (upper half) Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Directors of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency {{US-navy-bio-stub