Newport, R.I. - The U.S. Naval War College honored U.S. Navy Adm. Charles “Chas” A. Richard, commander, U.S. Strategic Command presenting him the NWC Distinguished Graduate Leadership Award during a ceremony in Spruance Auditorium, Dec. 15. Rear Adm. Shoshana A. Chatfield, president, U.S.Naval War College, presented the award in front of the in-residence students.
“This is our 26th time that we have presented the Distinguished Graduate Leadership Award,” said Chatfield. “It was first presented in 1996, and it recognizes the accomplishments of our most distinguished graduates, people who have relied upon their Naval War College experiences as they assumed positions of senior leadership and national prominence. These alumni serve as inspirational role models for current and future students.”
“I am truly humbled to be selected for the award,” said Richard.
The award recognized his exceptional service to the nation and the Department of Defense as well as his unparalleled dedication to duty, unwavering sense of personal and professional integrity and his insatiable intellectual curiosity.
“One constant thing you are going to see out of this education [is that] it was less about what I learned and it was more about the process of thinking through problems,” said Richard. “And how to go about learning was really one of the major things I took away from the [Naval] War College.”
Following the recognition ceremony, Richard provided the in-residence students an update brief and answered their questions. His final event at the college was participating in an NWC-hosted U.S. Strategic Command strategic deterrence war game.
Richard assumed his current duties as commander, U.S. Strategic Command in November 2019 and leads one of 11 Unified Commands under the Department of Defense. U.S. Strategic Command provides responsibility for the global command and controls of U.S. strategic forces to meet decisive national security objectives, providing a broad range of strategic capabilities and options for the President and Secretary of Defense.