Timothy Cole Gallaudet is an American

oceanographer Oceanography (), also known as oceanology and ocean science, is the scientific study of the oceans. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of topics, including ecosystem dynamics; ocean currents, waves, and geophysical fluid dynamics ...

who is a retired

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in the

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 ...

. Gallaudet previously served as the ''Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere'' within the

U.S. Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth ...

. In this function, he fulfilled the role of Acting

Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere The under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere, or USC(OA), is a high-ranking official in the United States Department of Commerce and the principal advisor to the United States secretary of commerce on the environmental and scientific ...

and Acting Administrator of the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

(NOAA) until February 24, 2019. He was the longest-tenured Acting Administrator of NOAA in the organization's history at the time he was replaced, but was subsequently surpassed by his successor,

Neil Jacobs Neil Andrew Jacobs, Jr. (born December 12, 1973) is an American scientist and former government official who served as the acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admi ...

. Currently, he is the CEO of Ocean STL Consulting, LLC., and host of The American Blue Economy Podcast.

Early life and education

Gallaudet was born on March 18, 1967, in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...

. He attended the United States Naval Academy and was awarded a bachelor of science degree in oceanography and was commissioned as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in the United States Navy in 1989. After leaving Annapolis, Gallaudet went directly to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography for two years of post graduate studies, and was awarded a master of science degree in oceanography in 1991. For the next six years, Gallaudet served in various naval assignments before he returned to Scripps for his doctoral studies in 1997 under the direction of Christian de Moustier. He received his Ph.D. in 2001 before returning to active duty. Gallaudet holds a bachelor's degree from the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

and master's and doctoral degrees from the

Scripps Institution of Oceanography The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (sometimes referred to as SIO, Scripps Oceanography, or Scripps) in San Diego, California, US founded in 1903, is one of the oldest and largest centers for oceanography, ocean and Earth science research ...

, all in oceanography.

Naval service

Prior to his role at NOAA, Gallaudet served as ''Oceanographer of the Navy'' and ''Commander of the

Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command The Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (COMNAVMETOCCOM) or CNMOC, serves as the operational arm of the Naval Oceanography Program. Headquartered at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, CNMOC is an echelon three command reporting to ...

''. He has experience in weather and ocean forecasting, hydrographic surveying, developing policy and plans to counter illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing, and assessing the national security impacts of

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

. Directly following his receipt of an M.S. in Oceanography from the

, Gallaudet served on several tours around Bahrain, Italy, and California aboard the USNS Harkness, USS LaSalle, USS Peleliu and at the Naval European Meteorology and Oceanography Detachment/Center of Greece and Spain. He planned and participated in hydrography surveys, lead weather and ocean forecasting efforts, directed ship movements and operations as Officer of the Deck and briefly served as assistant fleet oceanographer to the senior oceanographer on the staff of the Commander of the U.S. 6th Fleet. After returning to Scripps for his Ph.D. in oceanography, Gallaudet served for 2 years aboard the

USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) USS ''Kitty Hawk'' (CV-63), formerly CVA-63, was a United States Navy supercarrier. She was the second naval ship named after Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the site of the Wright brothers' first powered airplane flight. ''Kitty Hawk'' was the fi ...

based out of Yokosuka, Japan. Here, he served as Officer of the Deck, directing all aircraft carrier movements and aircraft launches and recoveries; Meteorology and Oceanography Division Officer, where he led personnel in forecasting weather and sea conditions for the KITTY HAWK Carrier Strike Group (CSG) and 5 escort ships which conducted the first strikes into Afghanistan during

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...

; and conducted the first strikes into Iraq during

Operation Iraqi Freedom {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

. From 2003-2005, Gallaudet served under Commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command at

Stennis Space Center The John C. Stennis Space Center (SSC) is a NASA rocket testing facility in Hancock County, Mississippi, United States, on the banks of the Pearl River at the Mississippi–Louisiana border. , it is NASA's largest rocket engine test facility. T ...

in Mississippi as the plans and programs officer, where he oversaw the budget and plans for a highly classified unmanned underwater program executed at a subordinate command (Naval Oceanographic Office)''.'' He then served as the program manager for

Anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...

(ASW), coordinating the undersea data collection of 8 Oceanographic Survey Ships deployed worldwide, the processing of this data into geophysical databases used by Navy ships, aircraft, and submarines to operate their sonars/sonobuoys effectively, and direct teams of deploying military and civilian personnel to advise these units during ASW exercises and operations. After Katrina hit, he and his family moved to California where he became the Commanding Officer of the Naval Oceanography Special Warfare Center. Gallaudet retired from the Navy in July 2017.

NOAA service

On October 25, 2017, after being confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Gallaudet took office as ''Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere'' within the

. In this function, he fulfills the role of Acting

and Acting Administrator of the

. The Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere is appointed by the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

with the consent of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

to serve at the pleasure of the President. The

University Corporation for Atmospheric Research The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) is a US nonprofit consortium of more than 100 colleges and universities providing research and training in the atmospheric and related sciences. UCAR manages the National Center for Atmosph ...

, a nonprofit consortium of more than 100 colleges and universities providing research and training in the atmospheric and related sciences, supported Gallaudet's nomination. In February 2019, Gallaudet was replaced as Acting NOAA Administrator by

while still remaining as the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. At the time of the announcement, the Senate has yet to confirm a permanent administrator for NOAA.

References

External links

Biography at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Biography at the U.S. Navy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gallaudet, Timothy Living people United States Naval Academy alumni Scripps Institution of Oceanography alumni American oceanographers National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration personnel Trump administration personnel United States Navy rear admirals 1967 births United States Navy rear admirals (lower half)