Richard Milo Clark (born July 29, 1964) is a retired

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

who served as the 21st

Superintendent of the United States Air Force Academy The superintendent of the United States Air Force Academy is the senior officer and commander of the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The position is normally held by an active duty Air Force lieutenant general, and i ...

from 2020 to 2024. He previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration. A

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...

pilot, he graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1986. On November 10, 2023, the

College Football Playoff The College Football Playoff (CFP) is an annual postseason knockout invitational tournament to determine a national champion for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the highest level ...

announced that Clark had been chosen to serve as its next executive director.

Early life and education

From

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, Richard Milo Clark graduated from Jefferson-Huguenot-Wythe High School, where he was an All-Metro offensive lineman in

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

and also stood out in

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

. Originally committed to play at William & Mary in

Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...

, he took an interest in the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

during his senior year, was accepted, and graduated in 1986 with a Bachelor of Science in

Management Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

. As a cadet, he was a four-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

on the football team at

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

. During his senior season in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, the Falcons went 12–1 and were eighth in the final AP poll. In 1991, Clark was named a distinguished graduate from

Squadron Officer School Squadron Officer School (SOS), is a 5.5-week-long Professional Military Education (PME) course for U.S. Air Force and Space Force Captains, Department of the Air Force Civilian (DAFC) equivalents and International Officers. It fulfills the U.S ...

Maxwell Air Force Base Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. O ...

and, in 1994, he received a Master of Arts in

human resource development Training and development involve improving the effectiveness of organizations and the individuals and teams within them. Training may be viewed as related to immediate changes in organizational effectiveness via organized instruction, while devel ...

Webster University Webster University is a private university with its main campus in Webster Groves, Missouri. It has multiple branch locations across the United States and countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs ...

. In 1996, he attended the

USAF Weapons School The USAF Weapons School is a unit of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force, assigned to the 57th Wing and Space Delta 1. It is located at Nellis AFB, Nevada. Mission The mission of the USAF Weapons School is to teach gradua ...

, then at Ellsworth AFB, and in 1998 he was again a distinguished graduate at the Naval War College and married his wife, Amy, shortly after. The

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

awarded him an honorary doctorate.

Military career

Clark is a command pilot, with more than 4,200 combined hours in the B-1 Lancer, EC-135 Looking Glass,

KC-135 Stratotanker The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transpo ...

T-1 Jayhawk The Raytheon T-1 Jayhawk is a twin-engined jet aircraft used by the United States Air Force for advanced pilot training. T-1A students go on to fly airlift and tanker aircraft. The T-400 is a similar version for the Japan Air Self-Defense For ...

, T-38 Talon, T-6 Texan II, and

Learjet C-21 The Learjet Model 35 and Model 36 are a series of American multi-role business jets and military transport aircraft manufactured by Learjet. When used by the United States Air Force they carry the designation C-21A. The aircraft are powered by ...

. Four hundred of his flight hours have been in combat, and he received the Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement and courage in the

Global War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant I ...

. His initial flying assignment after pilot training was the Looking Glass in 1988 at Offutt AFB, then moved to the B-1 in 1991 at McConnell AFB. From 2010 to 2012, Clark served as the

Commandant of Cadets The Commandant of Cadets is the officer in charge of the cadets at an academy. Lists include: * List of commandants of cadets of the United States Air Force Academy * List of commandants of cadets of the United States Military Academy The Comm ...

at the United States Air Force Academy. In 2016, Clark took command of the

Third Air Force The Third Air Force (Air Forces Europe) (3 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). Its headquarters is Ramstein Air Base, Germany. It is responsible for all U.S. air forces in E ...

Ramstein Air Base Ramstein Air Base or Ramstein AB is a United States Air Force base in Rhineland-Palatinate, a state in southwestern Germany. It serves as headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA) and also ...

, Germany, and in 2018, he was named Deputy Air Force Chief of Staff for Strategic Deterrence and Nuclear Integration. In July 2020, U.S. president

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

nominated Clark to become the next

, succeeding Jay Silveria. He began his duties on September 23, becoming the first black Superintendent to lead the institution.

Effective dates of promotions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Richard M. 1964 births Living people Air Force Falcons football players Bomber pilots Military personnel from Richmond, Virginia Recipients of the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Air Force generals Superintendents of the United States Air Force Academy United States Air Force Academy faculty United States Air Force Academy people United States Air Force personnel of the Gulf War United States Air Force personnel of the Iraq War United States Air Force personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)