Gary Roughead

Gary Roughead ( "rough head"; born July 15, 1951) is a former United States Navy officer who served as the 29th Chief of Naval Operations from 2007 to 2011. He previously served as Commander, United States Fleet Forces Command from May 17 to September 29, 2007. Prior to that, Roughead served as the 31st Commander, United States Pacific Fleet from 2005 to 2007. In 2011, he retired from the U.S. Navy after 38 years of service.

Early life and education
Roughhead was born July 15, 1951, in Buffalo, New York. Roughead graduated from high school at Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, Pennsylvania, in 1969. He is a 1973 graduate of the United States Naval Academy and a Surface Warfare Officer.

Career
Roughead's initial assignment was in the Weapons Department aboard USS Josephus Daniels (CG-27). This was followed by duty as executive officer on the patrol gunboats USS Douglas (PGM-100) and USS Tacoma (PGM-92), the former home-ported in Naples, Italy. He was the commissioning chief engineer aboard USS O'Bannon (DD-987) and executive officer on board USS Spruance (DD-963).

Roughead's tours ashore include assignments as flag lieutenant to the Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic in the United States Atlantic Fleet, the Surface Warfare Analyst at the Navy's Office of Program Appraisal, administrative aide to the U.S. Secretary of the Navy, executive assistant to the Commander, Naval Surface Force Pacific, commandant, United States Naval Academy, the Department of the Navy's chief of legislative affairs; and deputy commander, United States Pacific Command.

Roughead was the commissioning commanding officer of the Aegis Combat System destroyer USS Barry (DDG-52), and, upon assuming command of the cruiser USS Port Royal (CG-73), he became the first naval officer to command both classes of Aegis ships. While he was in command, Port Royal was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation and received the Golden Anchor Award for excellence in retention and crew support programs. He was Commander, Cruiser Destroyer Group Two and the USS George Washington (CVN-73) Carrier Battle Group, deploying to the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean Sea. His latest assignment afloat was as Commander, United States Second Fleet and Commander, NATO Striking Fleet Atlantic and Commander, Naval Forces North Fleet East in Norfolk, Virginia; he was nominated to head the Fleet Forces Command on March 19, 2007.

On September 2, 2005, Roughead was a keynote speaker at the End of World War II Commemoration aboard the battleship USS Missouri (BB-63) Memorial on Ford Island in Hawaii.

Chief of Naval Operations
On September 29, 2007, Roughead was appointed Chief of Naval Operations. In January 2009, Roughead attended the inaugural parade of Barack Obama in Washington, D.C.

In 2011, Roughead retired from the U.S. Navy after 38 years of service and was succeeded in his post as Chief of Naval Operations by Admiral Jonathan Greenert.

Post-Navy career
After retirement, Roughead became a board member of Theranos, a now-defunct privately held health technology company known for its false claims to have devised revolutionary blood tests using very small amounts of blood. He sits on the executive committee of the Maritime Policy and Strategy Research Center (HMS).

Roughhead is a distinguished fellow at the Hoover Institution, a conservative think tank, and a member of the Board of Managers for the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.

Awards and decorations
Roughead is also a distinguished recipient of the "Bob Hope Five Star Award for Distinguished Service to America."

The Asian-American Government Executives Network (AAGEN) recognized Roughead with the AAGEN Excellence in Public Service Award June 10, 2010.