1st female chosen to be Naval War College president

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A helicopter pilot who heads a military command in Guam says she’s humbled by her selection to be the first female leader of the U.S. Naval War College and looks forward to serving.

Rear Adm. Shoshana Chatfield was named as the 57th president Friday, with Navy Secretary Richard Spencer calling her a “historic choice.”

Chatfield said in a statement Saturday that it has been an honor working with the service members and civilians at Joint Region Marianas, and a privilege working with Guam’s governor and community. She said she is looking forward to her new role with war college students in Rhode Island.

Rear Adm. Jeffrey Harley was removed as the college’s president Monday after the Associated Press reported he was under investigation and more than a year after the initial complaint was filed.

Spencer was at the postgraduate institution in Newport on Friday for graduation. About 550 students crossed the stage, and about 1,000 students graduated from the distance learning program. Spencer challenged them to be innovative and act with urgency.

Shortly afterward, he released the announcement about the school’s new leadership.

Chatfield served as commander of a provincial reconstruction team in Afghanistan in 2008 and as an assistant professor of political science at the United States Air Force Academy from 2001 to 2004. She assumed command in Guam, of Joint Region Marianas, in January 2017.

“She is the embodiment of the type of warrior-scholar we need now to lead this storied institution as it educates our next generation of leaders,” Spencer said in the statement. The AP reported Harley was under investigation for allegedly spending excessively, abusing his hiring authority and otherwise behaving inappropriately, including keeping a margarita machine in his office.

Richardson said that though the investigation into Harley isn’t yet complete, he felt he had enough information to warrant removing Harley this week.

A small group of college employees filed an anonymous complaint about Harley in April 2018 with the Navy’s office of the inspector general.

Harley downplayed the complaints in a campuswide email, saying that they were from “a few individuals” and that all his decisions were within his authority.