Admiral Robert Joseph Papp Jr. (born 25 March 1953) is a retired admiral of the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

who served as the 24th

commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

from 2010 to 2014. He led the largest component of the

United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...

, with 42,000 active duty, 8,200 Reserve, 8,000 civilian, and 31,000

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personnel.

Early life and education

Papp is a 1975 graduate of the

United States Coast Guard Academy The United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) is a service academy of the United States Coast Guard in New London, Connecticut. Founded in 1876, it is the smallest of the five U.S. service academies and provides education to future Coast G ...

. Additionally, he holds a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the

United States 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 associa ...

and a Master of Science in Management from

Salve Regina University Salve Regina University is a private Roman Catholic university in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It was founded in 1934 by the Sisters of Mercy and is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. The university enrolls m ...

Career

U.S. Coast Guard

As a flag officer, Papp served as Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area, where he was operational commander for all U.S. Coast Guard missions within the eastern half of the world and provided support to the Department of Defense; as the Chief of Staff of the Coast Guard and Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Headquarters; as Commander, Ninth Coast Guard District, with responsibilities for Coast Guard missions on the Great Lakes and Northern Border; and as Director of Reserve and Training where he was responsible for managing and supporting 13,000 Coast Guard Ready Reservists and all Coast Guard Training Centers. Papp is a cutterman, having served on six Coast Guard cutters and commanded the cutters , , , and , the U.S. Coast Guard's training barque. He has also served as commander of a task unit during ''Operation Able Manner'' off the coast of Haiti in 1994, enforcing United Nations sanctions. Additionally, his task unit augmented U.S. Naval Forces during an American intervention in Haiti. Papp's assignments ashore have included the Commandant of Cadets staff at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy; Aids to Navigation staff in the Third Coast Guard District; Chief of the Capabilities Branch in the Defense Operations Division; Chief of the Fleet Development Team; Director of the Leadership Development Center; Chief of the Coast Guard's Office of Congressional Affairs; and Deputy Chief of Staff of the Coast Guard.

Commander of the Atlantic Area

Until May 2010, Papp served as Commander, Coast Guard Atlantic Area in Portsmouth, Virginia and Commander, Defense Force East. He served as the operational commander for all U.S. Coast Guard missions within the eastern half of the world; ranging from the Rocky Mountains to the Persian Gulf and spanning an area of responsibility across 42 states with over 14 million square miles, and serving with more than 51,000 military and civilian employees and Auxiliarists. In this role, he was also Commander, Defense Force East and provided Coast Guard mission support to the Department of Defense and Combatant Commanders. He assumed those duties in July 2008.

Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard

Papp was promoted to admiral and succeeded Admiral

Thad Allen Thad William Allen (born 16 January 1949) is a former admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 23rd commandant from 2006 to 2010. Allen is best known for his widely praised"Coast Guard's Chief of Staff To Assist FEMA Head ...

as the U.S. Coast Guard's commandant in a change of command ceremony on 25 May 2010. Papp made the first appointment in

United States history The history of the lands that became the United States began with the arrival of the first people in the Americas around 15,000 BC. Numerous indigenous cultures formed, and many saw transformations in the 16th century away from more densely ...

of a woman to head a United States military service academy when he designated Sandra L. Stosz as

superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

. On 30 May 2014, Papp was succeeded by Admiral Paul F. Zukunft.

U.S. Special Representative for the Arctic

On 16 July 2014, U.S. Secretary of State

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

announced the appointment of retired Admiral Robert Papp to serve as U.S. Special Representative for the Arctic. He retired from this position in January 2017 to become a lobbyist for a shipbuilding company.

Awards and decorations

Personal life

Papp is a native of Norwich, Connecticut. He is married to the former Linda Kapral of East Lyme, Connecticut, the daughter of retired Coast Guard Academy athletic coach Frank Kapral. The couple has three daughters, three granddaughters, and two grandsons. On 30 July 2005, Papp was inducted into the Reserve Officers Association Minuteman Hall of Fame in recognition of dedicated service to the nation in support of the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve. He was presented the Distinguished Public Service Award of the National Maritime Historical Society in 1998 for his service as the Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard Cutter ''Eagle''. In 2005 he was presented with the "Native Sons Award" by his home town of Norwich, Connecticut. Papp is the 13th Gold Ancient Mariner of the Coast Guard, which is an honorary position held by an officer, with the earliest date of qualification as a Cutterman and over ten years of cumulative sea duty. Papp accepted the 2010 Naval War College Distinguished Graduate Leadership Award from the Naval War College (NWC) during a ceremony held at the Washington Navy Yard on 6 May 2010. In a cover story interview published in the February 2012 issue of '' Military Officer'', he described his plans for budgetary reductions in the U.S. Coast Guard. Additionally, Admiral Papp was presented with the Dwight D. Eisenhower award in 2013.

References

External links

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Papp, Robert J. 1953 births Living people American people of German descent United States Coast Guard Academy alumni Military personnel from Norwich, Connecticut Salve Regina University alumni Naval War College alumni Recipients of the Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit Recipients of the Meritorious Service Medal (United States) United States Coast Guard admirals Commandants of the United States Coast Guard United States Special Envoys