Shawn Skelly
Shawn Skelly | |
---|---|
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness | |
Assumed office July 22, 2021 | |
Preceded by | Veronica Daigle |
Personal details | |
Born | 1966 (age 57–58) New York City, New York, U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Education | University of South Carolina (BA) Naval War College (MA) |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United States |
Branch/service | United States Navy |
Years of service | 1988–2008 |
Rank | Commander |
Shawn Graham Skelly (born 1966) is a retired
During
In November 2020, Skelly was appointed to President-elect Joe Biden's transition team for the Department of Defense.[5] In July 2021, Skelly was confirmed as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness by voice vote.[6][7]
Early life and education
Skelly was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1966. She received a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of South Carolina in 1988 and later a master’s degree in national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College.[8]
Career
Skelly began her career in the
In her last assignment before retiring as a Commander in 2008, Skelly directed the department-wide anti-IED program for the Marine Corps.[10]
In 2017, Skelly was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve on the congressionally mandated National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service, an 11-member bipartisan commission tasked by Congress in 2017 to review the Selective Service System, along with the military, national, and public service.
In July 2021, Skelly was confirmed as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness.[7]
Advocacy work
In 2018, Skelly co-founded Out in National Security, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing opportunities and representation of the LGBT community within the national security and international affairs industry.[11]
In response to President Trump’s ban on transgender service members serving openly in the military, Skelly spoke at a rally in New York City protesting the ban, telling media, “[The ban] is the most prominent part of a broader administration campaign to drive transgender people out of the mainstream of American society through the deliberate removal of legal recognition and protections of every sort.”[12]
References
- ^ "Shawn G. Skelly". U.S. Department of Defense. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
- ^ ""Promoting and Expanding the LBGTI+ Contribution to National Security" with Shawn Skelly, Vice President and Co-Founder, Out in National Security". Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Institute of Politics. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ "Reports | Inspire2Serve". Archived from the original on 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
- ^ Thomas, Chris (9 November 2017). "OUT100: 9 Transgender Veterans Talk Service, Trump & Fighting Back". Out Magazine. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ "Joe Biden appoints trans veteran Shawn Skelly to transition team". Metro Weekly. 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2020-12-22.
- ^ "Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness > Readiness". prhome.defense.gov.
- ^ a b "Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness".
- ^ https://cdn.govexec.com/media/shawn_skelly_bio.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "S-3B Viking - Naval Technology".
- ^ "Commission on National, Military and Public Service Featuring Navy Veteran Shawn Skelly and Marine Corps Veteran Ed Allard" (PDF). United States Veterans Affairs Agency. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ "About Us". Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ Tracy, Matt (6 June 2019). "Trans Vets Rip Trump's Comments on Military Ban". Gay City News. Retrieved 25 September 2020.