OAN Staff Abril Elfi
12:42 PM – Saturday, July 19, 2025
Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Michael J. Borgschulte has been nominated to become the next superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced Borgschulte’s nomination on Friday. If the Senate confirms his appointment, he would make history as the first Marine to lead the Academy in its 180-year existence.
Borgschulte is currently the deputy commandant for manpower and reserve affairs at Marine Corps Headquarters in Quantico, Virginia. He graduated from the Naval Academy in 1991.
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Vice Adm. Yvette Davids, who took over as superintendent last year, has now been selected for a new post at the Pentagon. Pending Senate confirmation and a congressional waiver, she is set to become the deputy chief of naval operations for operations, plans, strategy, and warfighting development (N3/N5/N7).
Davids, who graduated from the Naval Academy in 1989, broke new ground as the first woman and the first Hispanic to lead the institution.
While superintendents traditionally serve for three years before retiring, the Department of Defense (DOD) did not offer a reason for the early transition. Her next assignment requires a congressional waiver, as it typically follows a retirement period, which she has yet to begin.
“I’m honored to be nominated,” Davids said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing to serve alongside America’s strongest warfighters.”
Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan offered high praise for both officers. He referred to Borgschulte as a “decorated combat leader” with “strategic insight” and applauded Davids for her “strategic vision” and “operational depth.”
Phelan emphasized the importance of this appointment, calling it a significant demonstration of “naval integration” as a Marine prepares to oversee the Navy’s premier training ground for future officers.
Established in 1845, the U.S. Naval Academy has always been headed by officers from the Navy. A Marine nomination represents a major shift and highlights growing emphasis on unified leadership and integrated force development.
Phelan described the Naval Academy as one of the most “consequential institutions in American public life” and said Borgschulte’s leadership would help prepare officers “for an increasingly contested world.”
Since his commissioning in 1991, following his graduation from the Academy, Borgschulte has served in a variety of leadership and combat roles. In his current post, he manages Marine Corps personnel policies, force structure, and overall readiness.
Borgschulte’s nomination is one of several leadership changes recently announced by the DOD, including appointments to new vice chief and combatant command positions throughout the armed services.
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