Cebrowski
Appointed As Director of Force Transformation
Villanova alumnus
Navy Vice Admiral Arthur K. Cebrowski (Ret.) ‘64 has been named director of
the Office of Force Transformation in the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).
The appointment was announced by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld on
Nov. 26.
Rumsfeld called
for the establishment of the office in the Quadrennial Defense Review
and Defense Planning Guide as part of President Bush’s broad mandate
to transform the DOD. This
transformation process challenges the organization status quo with a new
architecture for American defense in order to ensure an overwhelming and
continuing competitive advantage for America’s military for decades to come.
“Art Cebrowski
is the perfect guy to promote and analyze our transformation efforts,” said
Rumsfeld. “I chose him for his
broad military experience, his strong credentials in joint operations and
information technology and his grasp of the cultural and technical issues
involved in transformation.” Cebrowski has been called the “father of
network-centric warfare,” one of the centerpieces of the department’s
transformation planning. He
retired from the U.S. Navy in October 2001 after as the president of the Naval
War College in Newport, R.I.
Cebrowski will
lead the effort in evaluating the transformation activities of each of the
military departments. He will
recommend steps needed to integrate them into other ongoing transformation
activities. He will also monitor ongoing experimentation programs
encompassing activities involving risk management and associated metrics These
efforts will link the transformation to the broad elements of national and
departmental strategy.
The Office of Force
Transformation will work closely with the Offices of the Under Secretaries of
Defense for Policy and Acquisition, Technology and Logistics.
They will develop strategies, processes and activities to provide a
continuous and broadly focused force structure transformation and will make
recommendations to the secretary and deputy secretary of Defense.
Cebrowski, a native of Passaic, N.J., visited the
campus in February 1999, at which time he addressed and presented awards to the
midshipmen of the Navy ROTC Unit. He graduated from Villanova’s College of
Liberal Arts and Sciences and holds a master’s degree in computer systems
management from the Navy Post Graduate School. He is a naval aviator and
commanded Fighter Squadron 41 and Carrier Air Wing Eight.
He commanded the assault ship USS Guam; the aircraft carrier USS Midway;
and the USS America Battle Group. He
has combat experience in Vietnam and Desert Storm.
His Joint assignments included service as the director, Command and
Communications (J-6), Joint Staff. | 
